Something about the tone of one of them made her heart jolt in her chest. Propelled by equal parts hope and excitement, she threw aside the blankets and climbed from the bed. Pausing only to throw on a robe, she hurried toward the door, her pulse racing as she opened it and stepped into the hallway.
Immediately, she stepped back onto the threshold, to avoid colliding with any of the fleet of servants who were hurrying along the hall, carrying trunks and various bundles past her door and into the neighboring chamber. They greeted her with respectful nods and smiles as they passed.
She turned her head to the left... and then she saw him.
Her brother was standing as large as life at the end of the hallway, near the landing, directing the servants in the same commanding voice she remembered. For one suspended heartbeat she could not move and simply stared at him.
He looks older, but then he would.
Tall and powerfully built, with the same dark auburn hair and piercing green eyes as her own, Duncan’s features were strongand sharply carved. But at that moment, she saw they were also deeply shadowed by exhaustion. Rain had darkened his heavy traveling cloak, and mud streaked his boots after the long ride across country from his keep.
But it was the strain in his face that pierced Catriona’s heart most painfully. Five years had changed him, marked him.
“Duncan,” she whispered, her hands at her mouth.
His head snapped toward her. And then he was moving, striding down the hallway towards her, his face lit up with joy.
Catriona barely had time to breathe before his arms crushed around her.
“Och, Cat,” he rasped, holding her so tightly she thought he might never let go. “Christ, lass…”
Tears sprang instantly to her eyes as she buried her face against his shoulder and hugged him back as hard as she could, breathing in the smell of damp wool and the strong whiff of horse. Her heart raced as her mind struggled to take it in. After five long years of separation, they were finally reunited!
“Ye’re all right, eh?” he asked roughly, pulling back only far enough to have a proper look at her. His hands framed her face, tilting it upwards, and he peered anxiously into her eyes. “Tell me ye’re unharmed.”
“I’m well,” she assured him quickly, tears slipping free despite her smile. “Truly.”
Emotion flickered fiercely across his tired features. “God be praised. And Malcolm as well, of course,” he added.
She beamed. “Aye, Malcolm had a lot tae dae with it. I’d nae be here but fer him. He saved me life more than once.”
Duncan nodded and looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before his expression softened again. He fell to studying her once more, almost as though reassuring himself she was truly standing before him.
Just as she was doing with him, for despite her inability to stop smiling, she could not help noticing scars and lines of care marking her brother’s features that had not been there five years before. Like Malcolm, since they had last seen each other, Duncan’s handsome looks and powerful physique had been hardened by years of violence and war.
She realized she must look older to him too. And what of Elaina? Five long years!
“Did Sinclair hurt ye?” Duncan asked.
“Nay.” She shook her head quickly. “Malcolm got me safely away from the priory before Sinclair’s men could reach me.” Warmth touched her voice instinctively as certain memories of the escapeflickered through her mind. “He protected me the entire journey here. And he’s been a wonderful host besides.”
Relief flooded Duncan’s face. “Och, I wouldnae have asked him tae fetch ye if I thought otherwise, lass. I’m sorry I couldnae come mesel’ tae the priory, but I was too far away tae guarantee gettin’ there in time, and I couldnae take the risk. Malcolm’s keep is nearer, and I kenned I could trust him tae get ye away safely.”
Something tender tightened in her chest at the absolute certainty in his voice when he spoke of his best friend. The man she loved.
Homesickness and the desire to be with her family tugged at her heartstrings. The need to protect Malcolm and his clan from Sinclair in the only way she could, by leaving castle Gordon as soon as possible, strengthened the pull.
But her love for Malcolm tore her in the opposite direction, leaving her in a whirl of bitter confusion. Despite all, the thought of leaving him now was like knives twisting in her heart.
Duncan broke into her thoughts, patting her back affectionately before releasing her. Catriona watched him rub a tired hand over his eyes, a boyish gesture that made her heart clench and brought their shared past back into vivid focus.
She was about to ask him if they were leaving soon when he spoke first, smiling down at her.
“We’ll nae be goin’ home immediately. I’ll be stayin’ here with me men tae help Malcolm until Sinclair’s been dealt with. So, we’ll have plenty of time tae catch up, eh?”
Sinclair! Always Sinclair!
Emotion clogged her throat as she gazed up at Duncan, her eyes swimming once more. She had missed him so desperately, but now he was here, the thought of him getting hurt in her defense if fighting broke out was almost unbearable. Just as unbearable as it was whenever she worried for Malcolm.
