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“Reverend Brown, do you know if my sister has been found?” Kathleen anxiously asked.
The vicar nodded. “Yes, she’s fine but for a twist of the ankle. John happened to come upon her while out riding. He was able to return her to Lochnagar before the weather turned too frightful.”
Kathleen slumped in her saddle. “Thank God.”
“Thank me,” the captain said in jovial tone. “The poor girl would have had a right good soaking if I hadn’t found her when I did.”
“Is her ankle very injured?” Kathleen asked.
“Not badly, I should think,” John answered. “She was limping, but mostly she was annoyed with herself that she’d stumbled over a rock.”
Grant pressed Kathleen’s shoulder. “See, lass? All’s well.”
She dredged up a smile for the captain. “Thank you, sir. I’m very grateful.”
He gave her a small bow. “Delighted to help, dear lady.”
“Miss Calvert, will you come in for a cup of tea?” David asked, obviously worried about her. “You must be chilled to the bone after being stranded out in that terrible storm.”
The captain tilted his head. “From the look of things, I’d say they were stranded somewhere inside, not out.”
The vicar frowned at his brother. “Sorry, what?”
“David, their clothes are perfectly dry.”
“Thank you for the offer of tea, Mr. Brown,” Kathleen hastily cut in. “But we must go. My sister will be worried about me.”
“As are all the folk up at the manor house,” the captain said. “You’ve been gone so long, after all.”
The vicar nodded. “Yes, as soon as the storm passed, Sir Graeme sent men out looking for you. We were all quite worried, you know.”
“I would have happily joined the search myself, even though I’d already rescued one damsel in distress today. I’d wager, however, that Mr. Kendrick did his level best to keep Miss Calvert from feelingtoodistressed.” The captain’s grin matched his smarmy tone.
“John, there is no need to make jest of it,” his brother said. “We would have been happy to help, but Sir Graeme felt it unnecessary.”
Grant was quite sure that Graeme was trying to control a potentially scandalous situation by keeping others away.
“And he was right,” he said. “We were fine.”
Captain Brown shot him a broad wink. “Better than fine, I’d wager.”
The vicar frowned. “John, why are you talking such nonsense? Clearly Miss Calvert has suffered a difficult day.”
“She has indeed,” Grant said. “Which is why I’m getting her back to Lochnagar.”
He’d deal with bloody Captain Brown and his salacious—if accurate—innuendoes later.
“Yes, it’s been a wearying day,” Kathleen said.
The vicar nodded. “Then of course you must go, dear Miss Calvert.”
Grant gave the brothers a nod and nudged his horse forward with Kathleen following suit right away.
“I’ll stop by Lochnagar tomorrow to see how you get on, Miss Calvert,” the vicar called after them.
“Splendid idea,” said the captain. “We’ll visit to see how both you and Miss Jeannie get on.”
“Not if I can help it,” Kathleen muttered.
