"Aye."
After they entered the solar, Brodie slammed the door. "What is the damned meaning of this, Cat?" He lit a candle in the dimness of gloaming. The lightning outside was less severe now.
Glancing at Torr, she tried to suppress her grin but couldn't. She knew happiness shone from her.
Brodie rolled his eyes, then glared at Torr. "And you. How could you take advantage of my wee sister?"
"I have nay excuse, Brodie." Torr's gaze landed on Cat with much affection and intensity. "Except that I love her."
Certain she was beaming, Cat wanted to jump up and down but forced herself to remain in place.
"Oh, is that so? Youloveher. Do you thinklovemeans anything?" Brodie asked in a bitter tone, then dropped into the chair behind his desk. "Believe me, I have seen what love can do and how sincere and long-lasting it is."
"Torr is free of the curse," Cat said. "And so is Gavin."
"They told me as much, but not how they managed it."
"Again, the answer is love," Torr said.
Her brother snorted. "Aye, I'm certain that explains it all."
"It does," she said. "Along with trust. Gavin wrote missives to you and Torr explaining how his curse was broken." She withdrew the paper from her arisaid and handed it to Brodie.
"This has my name on it. Why are you reading my missives?"
"You were not here, and I kenned 'twas important. This is why I went to find Torr in the first place—to enlist his help in shattering your curse so you would come back and lead the clan. And so you could tell MacPeter to go to the devil."
Brodie clenched his jaw and read the missive near the candle. He lowered it, then tossed it to the desk. "'Twill never happen."
"What?" she asked.
"Breaking the curse... I'll never be free of it."
"Why not? Of course, you will," she argued.
"I cannot love someone I'm suspicious of."
"Not Elsea. Someone else."
"What makes you think a different woman would be faithful?" Brodie snapped.
"I'm a woman, and Torr trusts me."
"Aye, but that's Torr. He trusts everyone."
"Bah! You've gone daft," Torr muttered.
"And Gavin trusts and loves Dani," she went on.
"You should strive for freedom from the curse, Brodie," Torr said. "As long as 'tis in effect, Wilona MacRae controls your life. I hated being a kelpie and am a hundred times happier now."
"Well, I happen to enjoy being a selkie."
Cat rolled her eyes. "We know that. You care more about your selkie friends than you do your clan."
"Nay, I just feel more at home with them."
"If you had been here all along, Ma wouldn't have tried to marry me to that swine."
