Page 66 of His Forgotten Highland Bride

Chapter Twenty-Four

When Brenna opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was her husband sleeping on the chair beside their bed. His head rested on the mattress. She reached out to wake him and encourage him to get in bed, but the movement stole her breath, reminding her why she was alone in their bed.

She’d been shot with an arrow. She glanced toward the window. It looked to be late afternoon, though she wasn’t sure which afternoon. Being careful not to move as much, she brushed the long, golden locks from his face to see Ronan better. He was a formidable warrior when awake, but when he slept, he took on the youthful innocence of a boy, except for the growth on his jaw—more than one day had passed since he’d seen a blade.

His eyes blinked open, and he sat up. “You’re awake,” he whispered.

“Aye. And so are you,” she teased him.

He wiped at his face before offering her a smile. He kissed tenderly on the back of her hand and then stood to retrieve some water. She hadn’t even needed to ask, but her throat was dry.

“I’ll wait until you’re properly healed to give you the scolding I have prepared about stepping in front of an arrow intended for someone else. In the meantime, I will say thank you and tell you how glad I am that you survived such a foolish decision.”

She laughed, though only once because doing so pulled on her wound. She smiled and placed her palm on his cheek. “I can think of better things for you to do with your mouth than scold me, husband.”

“As it happens, I plan to do a fair amount of that as well.” He came closer and placed a soft kiss on her lips before whispering, “I was so frightened, Bren.”

“You? Frightened? My fierce soldier?” She tried to joke, but he remained stoic.

“Yes. I was even terrified. I’ll have you know I didn’t survive the war and travel all this way just to be alone. I won’t have it. And I’m the laird, so you’ll listen to me.”

She smiled at his rant but saw the genuine worry in the lines between his brows.

“I’m sorry I scared you.” She glanced toward the window again. “How long exactly did I scare you?” Was it the same day, or had she been abed longer than she thought?

“Since yesterday morning. But it was more than enough time to worry, I assure you. You lost a lot of blood, and Moira said you’d sleep until you needed to.”

As much as she hated causing him distress, she had to admit it felt nice to have someone care so much for her wellbeing. But happiness was quickly dismissed when she remembered how she ended up under Ronan’s care.

“He’d planned to shoot you,” she said so quietly she worried he wouldn’t hear her. It was as if speaking about Ewan out loud would bring the devil to the room.

“I know. And with one of your blue-tipped arrows.”

“He intended to murder you and make it look like I was responsible. Then he would have been free to take over the clan.”

“Aye. It’s pretty clear what his intentions were. But he overestimated his skill with the bow. He should have taken more than just the one arrow to see it done.”

Brenna shivered at the thought and winced from the pain the motion brought. Ewan had been the ogre in many of her nightmares over the years. But she’d never been so scared of him as she was now that he had set his focus on killing Ronan.

“What will we do?” she asked.

“Most of the guard is searching the woods for him and will bring him back to face justice.”

Brenna wanted to inquire as to what punishment Ewan would receive. She still regretted not taking more permanent action against him when she’d had the chance. If she’d seen him hanged for his attack on her months ago, he wouldn’t be a danger to Ronan now.

Her husband wouldn’t have to handle what to do with his once-loved uncle.

“I didn’t know he was capable of such a thing. I didn’t realize he was vying for the lairdship. He’d never said anything about wanting to be chieftain before. He saved my life when we were boys. Why would he have done this if he felt I was standing in his way?”

“I can’t answer. I doubt there is any good reason. I’ve watched him grow angrier and more vicious over the years. His hatred for me seemed to swell into something he couldn’t control. I did try to be his friend,” she said quietly, remembering what a colossal failure it had been. “He only saw me as the reason you left.”

“Do you think you are the reason I left?”

She offered the slightest shrug in answer. It was only so long before a person could hear such a thing before being forced to consider it the truth.

“I have to believe you wanted to go and that I had nothing to do with your decision…” She paused.

“But?” He guessed she had more to say.