Though she was unsure of what sort of mood he would be in, she said lightly, “I hope ye havenae made yer speech yet. I wouldnae want to miss it.”
“I was waitin’ for ye to come. As the lady of the castle, ye should be here.”
She was pleased that he was speaking to her. Even though his voice held little warmth, it was better than being ignored.
Perhaps he is puttin’ on a show for his people,she mused, wary of being lulled into a false sense of security again.
“Grandmaither’s over there, with Megan and Jane and some of the other ladies from the castle,” he said, nodding in their direction.
“Och, all right. I’ll go and join them while ye make yer speech.”
For a moment, she was disappointed, thinking he was banishing her and she would not see him for the rest of the night.
“I’ll come and meet ye there afterward. Hold this for me,” he added, handing her the tankard, “and I’ll do it now. Then, we can get on with the celebrations.”
“I approve of that idea,” she said, pleased with the way things had gone so far.
Eileen was still watching the dancers, tapping her foot to the music. Olivia went over to tell her where she was going and then wandered over to greet Greta and the others.
They all watched while Edan stood up on a wooden crate and clapped his hands to gain people’s attention. It was not hard to rally folks to his summons with his commanding voice. It carried on the night air, its sonorous power sending little thrills up and down Olivia’s spine.
Despite everything, she felt enormously proud of him as he made the libation, a dram of whisky that was fed to the fire and blazed brightly as he recited in Gaelic the sacred words that had been spoken since ancient times on this special night.
With the ritual completed, the crowd gave a great cheer and set about enjoying the festival in earnest.
Edan came to join her. “What would ye like to do now?” he asked civilly, which she found surprising.
“I would like us to go for a walk—perhaps find a little bonfire of our own and spend some time together. I have something I want to talk to ye about.”
He seemed to frown, but it could have been the light from the bonfire flickering over his darkened features. Whatever it was, her heart sank, for she was convinced he was going to refuse.
But he surprised her again when he nodded. “All right. But what about yer sister? Will she be all right on her own?”
Olivia turned and looked for Eileen. When she saw her, she smiled. “I think she’ll be all right. Look.”
Edan followed her gaze to where Eileen was deep in animated conversation with none other than Zander.
“Aye, she’ll be fine,” he said drily, offering her his arm. “Let’s go and find this private bonfire, then.”
They strolled through the fields and were greeted respectfully by the people as they passed by, taking in the lively festivities. But they found no fire of their own.
“I’m a wee bit disappointed,” Olivia admitted.
“Ach, I’ll build us a fire in nay time,” Edan assured her. “All we need is a nice spot and some firewood. Come on, this way.”
He led her to the edges of the forest and showed her how to find dry wood. Olivia found it fun hunting for it with him. She felt quite happy, for he was definitely warmer towards her than she had been expecting.
“There’s nothin’ quite like sittin’ by yer own fire, eh?” he said jokingly once they were warming their hands over their own fire.
Edan had fetched a burning log from another fire to light it and also came back with a bottle of wine.
“We’ll have to drink straight from the bottle, but it’ll still taste just as good,” he told her, handing it to her.
Amused, she took a sip of the delicious, fruity wine. “Mmm, I think it tastes even better this way,” she told him, passing the bottle back to him.
“So, what did ye want to talk to me about?”
“Our last outing. I have an idea, and I want to ken what ye think of it.”
