Page 96 of Defy the Highlander

She frowned. “Do ye have tae call it that? That’s what Colly called it and…”

He shushed her gently. “I’m sorry, my angel,” he said. “I willna use that word again. I will simply say that we’re doing the devil’s dance.”

She looked at him in horror. “What?”

“Belly bumping?”

Lilia burst out laughing. “Nay! Brody, that’s terrible!”

He pretended to ignore her as he shaved the right side of his face. “I’ve heard it called beating the guts. Is that better?”

“Stop this instant!”

She was laughing so hard that she could scarcely breathe, which brought out the naughty boy in him. “We’ll call it docking the boat. Ye’re the dock and I’m the…”

“Enough!” Lilia was far gone with laughter, hand over her mouth. “Ye’re a terrible, terrible man. How dare ye say such things about… that. Something we do that’s an expression of our love.”

He was grinning as he looked at her; it was such an adorably dastardly grin. “And it means the world tae me,” he said, sobering. “I was only jesting, my angel. It’s good tae see ye laugh.”

She was still chuckling. “And ye,” she said. “I dunna think we’ve laughed enough. We need tae laugh more.”

“And we shall,” he said, washing the remainder of the suds from his face and rubbing his hands over his cheeks and chin. “I’ll think up more names tae call dipping my wick and I’ll make ye laugh until ye cry.”

Lilia was torn between screeching and laughter until he put up his hands in surrender. “I know,” he said. “Ye said enough. I’ll stop. Now – how does my face look?”

Lilia went over to her mischievous husband, inspecting his cheeks. “Very clean,” she said. “Ye look like the man I fell in love with.”

He beamed. “Good,” he said, splashing around again and causing her to move away from the tub. “Tomorrow, my da will actually know who I am. I hope… I truly hope he’s glad tae see me.”

He climbed out of the tub and she grew serious. “He will be, willna he?” she said. “Surely a man would be glad tae see his own son.”

Brody took the same drying linen she had used, damp from her, and began to rub his big body down with it. “My da was a man of calm and reasonable temperament,” he said. “I’ve not thought much about him until I met ye and forced myself tae remember things I’d tried hard tae forget. I realize that I miss my da very much. I’m eager tae see him.”

Lilia could see the strain on his face, the strain of longing for a loved one. Standing up from the stool she’d been sitting on, she gently pushed him to sit on it as she took the drying linen and began to dry his hair.

“Tell me about yer village,” she said. “Ye were born there, werena ye?”

Brody closed his eyes as she gently buffeted his head, remembering the place where he’d lived most of his life. It seemed like so long ago.

“Aye,” he said. “Ledmore is the small village. But the place where I was born is a tower that has been in my family for two hundred years. Latheron Tower has four floors and is built with thick walls and little windows. I was born on the second floor and my mother, Valery, passed away shortly thereafter.”

Lilia put the towel aside and picked up her comb, pulling it through his thick, brown hair. “Who raised ye?”

“My da,” he said. “I had uncles who had wives, but they were busy with my cousins. No one had time for me, but I dinna mind. My da and I were close when I was young.”

She continued to comb. “But that changed after Jedburgh.”

“Aye.”

She cocked her head thoughtfully. “He probably thinks ye’ve just run away,” she said. “What I mean is, he couldna think ye were dead, could he? Surely, he thought ye’ve run off and will return any day.”

Brody shrugged. “Possibly.”

He sat there for a few moments, enjoying her attention, letting her comb his hair until she teasingly made an attempt to braid it and he’d had enough. He stood up and went to find his clothing.

“I’m going tae go tae the common room and bring us back some warmed wine,” he said. “Is there anything else ye’d like?”

“Can I come with ye?”