As if sensing her approach, the doors to the main keep opened, and Rose and Jenna stepped out, coming to meet her as she pulled up her horse and swung down.
“You went climbing,” Rose said flatly, a disapproving expression on her face.
Elise shrugged, unrepentant. “I always go climbing.”
“Onthisday?” Rose demanded. “Have you no sense at all?”
Jenna’s mouth twitched despite herself. “We lost track of you. Again.”
“I left a note.”
“A note?” Rose said incredulously. “Like some surly teenager trying to get out of school sports day? I swear you will turn my hair prematurely gray!”
Her sister’s tone wasn’t sharp now—just worried. “Have you made a decision?” she asked softly.
Elise met her gaze and nodded. “I have.”
Jenna’s lips quirked in a smile, the quiet, knowing kind. At the sight, Elise felt the last knot in her chest loosen.
“Did you get what I asked for?” she asked her niece.
Jenna reached inside her cloak and produced a small, carefully wrapped package. “I did. And before you ask—yes, I did have to visit the pawn shop. And no, I donotwant to know how they ended up there.”
Elise laughed and took the package. “Let’s just say I needed the money and leave it at that, eh?”
Rose looked between them a few times. “What are you two talking about?”
Elise patted her shoulder. “All in good time, Sis. All in good time.”
Giving them a wink, she tucked the package into her pocket and walked away.
Jamie would be waiting.
It took a while to track him down, but she eventually found him up on the battlements overlooking the sea, hands braced on the stone, staring out at the horizon as though it might offer answers.
He turned when he heard her footsteps, trying—and failing—to look calm. His smile was tight, his shoulders stiff, but the sight of him still had the power to take her breath away. White-blond hair spilling onto his shoulders, bow-shaped lips ripe for kissing, piercing eyes that seemed to see right through her.
God, how she loved him.
“Elise,” he said, eyes sparkling as he caught sight of her. “Ye are back.”
“Did you doubt it?”
“Of course not.” He hesitated. “I just—today is…”
She crossed the space between them, resisting the urge to throw her arms around him. It had only been a few hours since she’d seen him, but it felt like forever.
Up close, she could see the tension in his eyes, the care with which he was holding himself. For a year and a day, he’d done that. Given her space. Never pushed. Never asked for more than she was ready to give.
“Have ye made a decision?” he asked quietly.
She glanced at the plaid wrapped around her wrist. “We followed the traditions of the Isles,” she said slowly. “The handfasting. A year and a day.”
Jamie nodded, jaw tight.
“But now,” Elise continued, “I have to break those traditions.”
The color drained from his face. “Oh,” he breathed softly. “I see.”
