Page 45 of Wedded to the Devilish Highlander
“The cook is bakin’ some tarts for the feast. Could ye go and sample them to make sure they’re the best we can offer the laird and lady of the castle?” Calum asked.
“Aye, of course. I’ll do it right away,” Ivy said, before skipping back to the keep.
Eileen smiled at her retreating figure, and when she looked back at Calum, he smiled.
“He told me already, but I would have figured it out on me own if he dinnae. I’m by his side most of the time, and I ken what he’s doin’ and why.”
Eileen thought about denying it and asking him what he meant, but the look in his eyes was too knowing. Besides, he didn’t seem annoyed by the ruse. It was another thing that needed to be done, and he would help see it through.
It was a relief, in a way, that someone else knew. She could share the burden, and perhaps she wouldn’t share half of the blame when the wedding was called off.
“Ye’ve been with the Laird for long, have ye?”
“Since I was a lad,” Calum said. “Me faither served his. We were raised more like braithers than anything else.”
She hummed. “He trusts ye, then.”
“Aye. I’d die for him… and now for ye, Me Lady.”
Eileen looked up at him. “And does he often send ye off on errands that take ye away from the keep?”
Calum hesitated. “If it matters to him, it matters to me.”
“And does it matter to him?”
He glanced sideways. “He asked me to make inquiries. Quiet ones.”
Her heart stuttered. “About what?”
Calum hesitated again. “I dinnae ken how much I should say.”
She leaned in slightly, her voice low. “If it concerns me family, I ought to be told.”
Calum looked pained. “Aye. I’m inquirin’ after yer braither.”
Eileen inhaled sharply and bit her lip as she looked away.
I thought he was ignorin’ me, but he’s nae.
She turned her head back and gave him a small, tight smile. “Thank ye, Calum. Truly. It means the world to me that ye’re helpin’.”
He cleared his throat and nodded firmly. “Aye, Me Lady.”
They continued walking as they turned toward the keep. “And where might yer search take ye next?”
He blinked. “I cannae say for certain.”
She hummed. “Ye cannae or willnae?”
Calum looked like he might be sick, so she relented.
“Ach! Forgive me for pesterin’ ye. Ye are relieved of yer watch. I’m goin’ to go back to me chambers. Thank ye, Calum. Thank ye for helpin’ look for me braither despite the danger.”
“Dinnae fash, Lady Eileen. There’s more than enough danger to go around.”
14
Archer was leaning against the window frame in the solar as Calum arrived. Rain just started to patter against the leaded glass, a soft, constant drum that seemed to echo the growing tension in his chest.
