Heather had flitted through the great hall from time to time, evidently helping Maeve with some tasks. Each time, she walked past Niall as if he didn’t exist. But after the mid-day meal, he hadn’t seen her again, and he was driven to distraction thinking about what she might be doing and why he was such an idiot around her.
Just go and grovel, he thought at one point.You’re not going to get anything done while Heather’s mad at you.
And indeed he wasn’t getting much done. Half of what Ian was telling him was going in one ear and out the other.
Bring the ring back to her. Grovel.Would that work? Wouldanythingwork?
The truth was—and he hated himself for this—Niall was scared to find out.
In the mid-afternoon, he and Ian were discussing what he’d learned earlier, while they waited for Robert to return from his own mission.
Ian was saying, “Sounds to me like Ogilvy wants to buy up all the property along the River Uaine here. But why? Some land speculation? Does he know something about a trade route?”
“Has Brenna ever got mad at you?” Niall asked. “How long did it last?”
“Niall! We’re talking about Ogilvy.”
“I know that.”
“No you don’t. You’re mooning over your own wife.”
“She won’t be my wife for long.”
Ian sighed, stretching his hands along the table until he lowered his forehead to the surface. He asked (in a somewhat muffled tone), “Have you considered the radical option of…just being married to her? Correct me if I’m wrong, but youlikethe woman.”
Oh, God, did he. Not just as a person, though he’d liked her right off. If he hadn’t, why would he have ridden across half a county to get her away from pursuit? But it was more than that now. Lust was there too. The memory of her under him in bed nearly unhitched all rational thought. He pulled himself together with an effort. “My feelings have nothing to do with the matter. Heather entered into the agreement with the belief that it was a temporary ruse to get her uncle off her back. I entered into it with that same belief. To change course now would be unfair to her—I’d be no better than a thief.”
“Yes, her surprise fortune.” Ian lifted his head. “You know, most men would take it as a windfall and not worry about the wife that comes with it.”
“Why should I care what most men would do?”
Rob came in then, a strange expression on his face. “Just got back from talking to that one gentleman on Halperin’s list. On my way, I saw your wife riding Sterling along the hillside path. She didn’t see me. Thought you should know.”
“So? I told her she was to use Sterling if she planned to go riding,” Niall said, not sure what his brother’s point was.
“Don’t think that a mere ride is all she’s got planned. She also had a rather large carpet bag strapped onto the horse.”
Damn it.He should have known. Well, she wouldn’t run this time. At least, she wouldn’t run far.
He stood up. “Both of you with me. We’re going after her.”
“See, I knew you liked her,” Ian said, smiling in triumph.
“Ijustgot back,” Rob muttered, though he gamely followed the two to the stables.
The brothers wasted no time getting saddled up and riding out. Niall said little as they moved along the track to town. He was too annoyed—mostly at himself, for not guessing that she’d do this. Was he so terrible that Heather couldn’t even come argue with him about things?
Well, considering the previous evening, perhaps he was.
“What if she didn’t ride to the village?” Robert asked at one point.
“Where else would she go?” Ian replied, after Niall remained stubbornly silent. “It’s not as if she’s got kin close by. And she knows little of the area.”
“I just worry that we’ll miss her,” Rob confessed. “The lass is clever, and clever people always think they know what to do, even when they’re in over their heads. She could get herself into trouble.”
“Don’t you think we know that, Robbie!” Niall snapped. He didn’t want to think of all the ways Heather could suffer. She could fall from her horse. She could be taken by highwaymen. She could get sick. She could get lost on the road. “We’ll find her. She didn’t have that much of a lead.”
They reached the village. Everything was peaceful, even sleepy. People moved about on their business, but in an unhurried way. No one paid much attention to the trio.
