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“Well,” Damon smirked as he shook his head. “I am nae one to be put in that situation to begin wit’. Ye ken what I think of marriage and that kind of commitment. But I think if ye talk to the lass, and explain that ye were a fool, I’m sure she’ll understand. After all, ye two have been at each other before. It’s nae like this is somethin’ new for her.”
“But it is,” Conner said as guilt swelled within him. It felt as if his heart had been stung by a bee and was swelling with the pressure from the nick. “Things have changed between us.”
“Ye mean yer in love wit’ yer wife, but she’s nae in love wit’ ye so yer keepin’ yer distance from her?” Damon asked as the smirk on his face stretched. Conner’s eyes darted to Damon as he stared at him with shock. It never occurred to Conner how much Damon could read him like a book. Then again, Damon had been his friend and companion for many years. Still, hearing the truth slip from Damon’s lips was like swallowing a mouth full of salt.
“I think she may be in love wit’ me too. Which may be the reason she searched out my company this mornin’ and I denied her the one thin’ she needed.”
“Sounds to me like ye’ll be eatin’ humble pie tonight,” Damon laughed as he slapped his hand on the arm of the chair.
“What if I invited them here?” Conner asked, suddenly struck by a brilliant plan. “Say I throw a party of some sort?”
“And what? Ask every laird and lady to brin’ their staff wit’ them? Or is the gatherin’ more as a distraction for me to go to their home and interrogate Joseph without their knowledge?”
Conner chewed on the tip of his thumbnail as he jumped to his feet and began pacing the room again. The moment the idea played out, he realized it was a foolish thing to do. After all, if Niel ever found out why he invited them to the castle, it would only stir the pot between them.
“Nay, it was a foolish thought,” Conner mumbled.
“And why is that? Nay one will ken. I’ll go there, ask the questions and be back before anyone is the wiser.”
“It’s like Olivia said though,” Conner answered as he paused by the bay window and stared out into the courtyard. “The servants would talk and it would eventually be heard by the Websters. Their suspicions would be heightened again. Nay. The water is settled between us wit’ my marriage to Olivia. The last thin’ I want is to put her in the middle of this.”
“True, and if there is nay man by that name livin’ there, chances are, we’d end up lookin’ foolish and paranoid. Daenae want that now, do we?” Damon said as he rubbed his chin.
“Ye mean I would look foolish. Nae to mention if the king got a whiff of it. He’d think that the treaty between the clans is null and void. Then who kens what he would dae.”
“Suppose we could take the matter to him?” Damon asked. “He could certainly get us the answers we need. If we present our case to the king...”
“That is impossible. He will say I’m provokin’ the matter,” Conner answered as he moved back to the chair and plopped down, defeated. He knew in his heart there was only really one solution, to go to the Websters and ask outright, consequences be damned.
“What if I find a way to brin’ Joseph here? I’m sure wit’ the proper motivation, the man will end up comin’ to us,” Damon said. “After all, every man has a price, daes he nae?”
“Ye want to bribe him out of hidin’?”
“If he daes in fact exist, why nae? He’ll make a few extra shillin’, ye’ll get yer answers, and it will be mutual. Nay blood will be spilt, nay one will be able to say ye broke the treaty. It’ll be a win-win, for all involved.”
“And what exactly dae ye propose we give him to come to us? And how dae ye suppose we get the message to him?”
“Leave that part to me,” Damon said as he pressed the tips of his fingers together and flashed Conner a devious smile. “Ye just worry about patchin’ things up wit’ yer wife.”
Conner nodded somberly. “Any ideas on how I can dae that?”
Damon rose to his feet and slapped his hand down hard on Conner’s shoulder. “That one, I’m afraid ye’ll have to dae on yer own. Ye ken Olivia better than I do. But as I said, everyone has a price, findin’ out hers may help ye to figure out how to mend things wit’ her.”
“Thanks,” Conner grumbled to Damon’s laughter fading as he walked out of the room.
How am I supposed to get her to forgive me when I treated her so poorly? Tis nae like I can blame it on anythin’ other than my own foolishness.
I shouldnae have spoken to her like that. Oh, Lord, what am I to dae?
Chapter 20
The sound of the wind swallowed all other sounds as Olivia pushed Garric as hard as she could. The horse didn’t falter as it raced through the misty moors, trekking across the knolls and valleys with ease.
Throwing her arms out, she closed her eyes, giving Garric free rein to run as fast as the horse wanted. Olivia couldn’t help but feel as if she were a bird flying so free over the valley. In the back of her mind, she knew she couldn’t be gone all day despite her longing to remain as far from Conner as possible.
As Garric climbed the large knoll, Olivia grabbed the reins and pulled back, stopping the horse as they reached the top. Olivia’s lips curled at the corners as she glanced at the scene before her. Majestic rugged mountains cut through the horizon as a shimmering stream wove through the valley floor. Her heart sank as small little pricks jabbed at her memory.
“Out of all the places ye could have brought me to, ye brin’ me here?” Olivia scolded Garric.
