Page 77 of A Virgin for the Stone Highlander
Edith nodded, smiling. “Aye. He had me identify different herbs and how they are used.”
“And ye remembered them?”
“Aye.”
Violet gasped dramatically, and Edith laughed.
“I always kent ye would make a great healer,” Violet gushed, the words warming Edith more than she had expected. “Perhaps the day is soon.”
Sooner than ye ken.
For most of her life, Edith had never been sure what would become of her. She had only ever had one desire—to become a healer—and now her dream was starting to take shape in a way that she could see.
She nodded. “Thank ye, Violet. Truly.”
Violet waved her hand. “Ye daenae need to thank me. Pray tell, what would the examination look like?”
“I shall tend to a patient. But nae someone who is truly sick. Someone from within the keep who is kind enough to volunteer themselves.”
Violet’s face brightened. She rose from the chair and turned to face Edith, holding her hands.
“Please choose me, me Lady,” she begged. “Let it be me.”
Edith shook her head slowly. The hopeful look on Violet’s face almost broke her heart.
“Nay…” Her voice was quieter now. “I asked him already, lass. He is… strict in such matters.” Her gaze flitted across Violet’s face as it fell. “He asked for someone else to volunteer. I wouldnae have him make ye uncomfortable.”
Violet released her hands and stepped back slightly. She tilted her head, not willing to give up yet. “Still, ye could ask again. Nae to examine me, but ye ken…”
Edith smiled faintly. “I will. I promise.”
The door swung open before she could speak further. She frowned, turning to see who the intruder was.
Her breath caught at once.
Scarlett.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Edith’s eyes widened, and for a moment, she simply stared at the woman standing in the doorway.
Scarlett looked exactly as she remembered and yet somehow different. Her smile was the same, light and mysterious, with a glint in her eyes. And yet there was something softer about it. About the way she held herself.
Her hair was pinned differently now, woven with ribbons Edith did not recognize. There was a gold chain around her neck—a befitting replacement for the silver medallion she had worn all her life—and a ring on her finger that had not been there before.
“Ye look as though ye’ve seen a ghost,” Scarlett drawled.
The words snapped Edith out of whatever daze she was in. She ran across the room, throwing her arms around her friend before she could think better of it.
“Och!”
The force of her hug nearly knocked them both backwards as Scarlett laughed in surprise.
“Ye came!” The words escaped Edith before she realized how much she meant them.
She drew back reluctantly, taking a second look at Scarlett’s face before drawing her into a hug tighter than the first.
“Of course I came,” Scarlett managed, her voice ringing with laughter despite the tightness of the hug. “I ran all the way here to see ye.”
