Flora laughed, covering her mouth as her shoulders shook. When she recovered enough to speak, she replied, “Imustmeet the wee lass while we’re here. She sounds like an absolute delight.”
“If ye have anythin’ that might need a healer’s attention, Isla will happily treat whatever ails ye,” Amelia said a bit fondly. As the hilarity died down a bit, she continued, “Ye ken, I think she’ll be a wonderful healer one day. She had the softest hands out of the three of them when she was treatin’ me.”
Amelia realized too late what she had said. The admission came out so casually that she truly hadn’t realized just how comfortable she’d become around the other woman. They’d only had this short conversation, yet she knew she could trust Flora with this.
Saints, but it’s the others at the table that I daenae need hearin’ it.
“It sounds as if she’s already found her callin’,” Flora said, immediately diffusing the tension that had begun to settle. “I cannae imagine she was glad that ye were injured, but I’m sure she was delighted to have a patient to fuss over.”
“Aye, she was,” Amelia agreed as she turned her attention back to her food. “Always knockin’ on me door with a tray full oftinctures. She was so stern with me that I couldnae turn her away.”
Flora giggled, bouncing slightly in her seat. “Now Imustmeet Isla. Perhaps I should stage a fall, so I can experience her bedside manner.”
“Nay,” Lucas said. He was smiling, but the word was firm. “Ye’re nay injurin’ yerself, so ye can be treated by the wee healer.”
“Ach, I’m nae actually goin’ to do so,” Flora relented, giving Amelia a private look that seemed to ask if she could believe this man.
“If a fall makes ye nervous,” Amelia said, addressing Laird McGowan directly for the first time since he arrived, “I’m sure that she’d be glad to help ye with an upset stomach.”
Lucas smiled then, big enough that his teeth showed beneath his beard. She didn’t feel threatened when he leaned forward and said, “Ye’re bright, Amelia.”
She looked down at her plate then, telling herself that it was a good thing to be comfortable here. It wasn’t a crime to enjoy company at dinner. And, at least at this table, the men weren’t going to do a thing to her.
When Amelia looked up once more, Flora was studying her. The understanding in her gaze was too much. But when she looked at Darragh, he was wearing a similar expression.
As Flora began to craft an elaborate plan, Amelia let herself sit back and listen. The other woman carefully steered the conversation. It was almost as if she could read Amelia’s mind.
I hate to admit it to meself, but perhaps Darragh was right to invite the McGowans.
Chapter Nineteen
Amelia stepped into the courtyard, breathing in the crisp evening air. Lanterns glowed along the paths, bathing the area in a warm, golden glow. The atmosphere was starkly different than the dinner had been.
As she exhaled long and slow, she felt more than heard someone approaching her from behind. She didn’t turn, continuing to watch the tiny flying bugs zip around in the dusk. It wasn’t until there was a quiet presence at her side that she tilted her head.
“I thought I’d find ye outside,” Flora said, her voice soft so as not to disturb the peace. “Would ye like to go on a walk in the gardens with me?”
“Aye,” Amelia said, turning to look at the other woman.
Flora nodded, a genuine smile on her face. She led Amelia down the nearest path. For a few minutes, they walked in silence. Itwasn’t until they were beneath the blossoming orchard trees that she finally spoke.
“We dinnae ken ye were there,” she said quietly.
At first, Amelia wasn’t sure what she was referring to. Then, as sharply as being sliced by a kitchen knife, she understood. She couldn’t bring herself to look at the other woman. That would mean acknowledging what happened to her. It would make it real, tangible.
“When Lucas told me that Darragh had found ye, I felt so guilty,” she continued, stopping to pluck a blossom from the nearest tree. She sniffed it before twirling the flower between two fingers. “Had the others and I kent ye were there, we would have torn that place apart stone by stone to get ye out.”
The statement was delivered without dramatics. All Amelia could sense in the words was certainty. Despite the fact that they had just met and that Amelia didn’t know any of the other women, she truly believed that they would have found her.
“Me location wasnae meant to be kent,” Amelia explained, unable to look at Flora as she told the truth she’d been carrying close to her chest. “I was taken months earlier. They were careful about movin’ me from place to place, makin’ sure nae one kent they had me.”
Beside her, Flora made an encouraging sound. She was listening, but she wasn’t prying. That made it easier to keep going.
“I was bein’... used as a prize. For the winner of their hunt,” she continued, stepping off the path to run her palm over the rough bark of the nearest tree. “They kept me in isolation so there wasnae any chance of me bein’ found.”
“That’s why we dinnae ken ye were there,” Flora said softly. “We werenae meant to.”
“Aye,” Amelia agreed, taking a shaky breath. She let a few beats pass them by, getting used to being seen so completely. Then, she admitted, “I was meant to be given away at the event’s conclusion. I daenae even want to think about what would have happened to me then.”
