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Although clearly discouraged by his answer, Sarah merely nodded. “How many stops? Shall we sleep outside?”
Keir chuckled, remembering the last time he had taken Sarah across country. Then, they had spent a few nights in a tent outside. “No, not this time, lass. But we need a head start and shall push on until nightfall. However, starting tonight, we shall spend the night at inns along the road. Warm beds and warm food.”
Relief came to Sarah’s face, and Keir knew it was not for her but for her sister and her young nieces. “So, we’ll ride on until nightfall?”
Keir nodded. “Do ye wish to ride Autumn, little wisp?”
Sarah shifted upon her feet to peer around the corner of the carriage to where Mr. Gardner was watering the horses. Her mare, Autumn, stood beside Scout. Thus far, she had trotted after the carriage. Like Loki, the two horses had become trusted companions.
“I’d like to,” Sarah admitted with a longing look at Autumn. “But I think Kate needs me. She cannot hold Frederica all day as much as she would like to.”
Keir nodded. He had seen the fearful look in Lady Birchwell’s eyes, overshadowed by past pain.What sort of man would separate a mother from her children?Keir pondered.’Tis unthinkable!
Shaking off that thought, Keir tugged Sarah closer, smiling at her as she turned wide eyes to him. “And ye? How are ye, little wisp? Regretful? Or—?”
“No, no regrets!” Sarah exclaimed, shaking her head vehemently. “No, I want to be here.” She bit her lip, and her eyes closed as though she could not believe what she had just blurted out. “My mother would be scandalized, of course.”
Keir chuckled, purposefully tightening his hold on her. “And ye?” He arched his brows meaningfully. “Does it bother ye to know that yer mother would disapprove?”
Sarah’s lips thinned, and for a moment, she seemed thoughtful, undecided. Then her eyes focused, and she smiled up at him. “I cannot deny that it does. At least, a little.” She shrugged. “I was raised to care more for the opinion of others than my own. It is like an instinct, nothing I can simply shake off.”
“Aye, ’tis not easy to abandon old habits.”
“But I’m trying,” Sarah replied insistently. “I’m doing my best to ignore her voice in my ear and to make up my own mind.”
“And what does yer mind say?”
A luminous smile lit up her face. “My mind is still confused,” she admitted a little sheepishly, which made her look utterly adorable, “but my heart just sighed with contentment.” Then, bold as she could be at times, Sarah pushed herself up onto her toes and kissed him.
Chapter Three
FOR FAMILY
Sarah’s head snapped up as the carriage pulled to a sudden halt. Her eyes blinked against the darkness, then focused as they detected faint light from outside the carriage. Leaning forward, Sarah peered out the window and instantly heaved a sigh of relief as she spotted the simple, two-story inn half-hidden in the dark.
Across from her, the girls were asleep, Loki once more curled upon their laps. Kate, too, was lost in slumber while Frederica was lashed to her chest as before. As much as Sarah had tried to persuade her sister, Kate could not seem to part with her infant daughter for longer than a few moments. Consequently, exhaustion lingered upon her every feature, her arms now hanging limply at her sides.
The sound of footsteps drew Sarah’s attention, and as she turned her head, the door was opened, and Keir appeared in the dim light from the inn. “Are ye well?” His gaze moved from her to her sister, and she could see his brows draw down in concern. “She needs rest,” he murmured, a touch of anger in his voice—no doubt directed at Kate’s husband. “Mr. Garner is procuring rooms. Come! Can ye walk, lass?” He held out his hand to her, his own features marked by fatigue.
Sarah nodded, accepting his hand. “And you?” she asked, climbing out of the carriage. At first, her limbs protested, a slow ache burning through them. Then, however, the movement relieved the tension that had been lingering these past hours. “You look exhausted as well.”
Keir offered her one of his teasing grins. “Aye, lass. Truth be told, I feel as though I could easily sleep standing up.” He pulled her to his side for a quick moment, his arm wrapping around her shoulders. “We’ll have to carry the girls,” he murmured then. “Perhaps they’ll not wake. ‘Twould be best for them.” Then his gaze moved to Kate before he looked down at her. “Ye should wake her. I reckon she’ll be frightened if I pick her up and she wakes without knowing where she is.”
Sarah nodded. As much as she hated robbing her sister of the sleep she so clearly needed, waking to find oneself in the arms of a stranger was deeply unsettling. Sarah knew so from experience, her thoughts instantly drawn back to her first day with Keir.
“What?” he asked with a sudden chuckle, his dark eyes lingering upon her face. “Are ye thinking of me, lass? Of the first time I carried ye in my arms?”
‘I still cannot believe you allowed him such liberties!’ her mother’s disapproving voice chided in her ear. ‘I raised you better than that!’
Sarah felt heat rise to her face, averting her head to hide the traitorous blush. Keir would not allow her, though. His hand gently grasped her chin, urging her to meet his gaze. “Why would ye hide that?” Keir asked, tightening his hold on her. “Are ye afraid to admit that ye care for me? Did ye not already do so only the day before?”
A part of Sarah wanted to sink into a hole in the ground—as she always did when embarrassment heated her cheeks. Still, the look in Keir’s eyes was mesmerizing. She felt warm and tingly, her skin humming with something unexpected and unfamiliar. “It’s my mother’s voice,” she whispered, closing her eyes and willing it away. “I feel as though she is standing right beside me.” She sighed, then met his gaze again. “For a time, I thought I’d banished her for good, but now, I hear her again. I don’t know why.”
A challenging gleam lit up Keir’s gaze. “When do ye hear her, lass? When I hold ye?” His hands settled more firmly on her back. “When I kiss ye?” Sarah felt her heart almost beat out of her chest as Keir lowered his head purposefully, then paused a hair’s breadth from her lips. “Can ye hear her now?”
“No,” Sarah gasped breathlessly.
Keir brushed his lips against hers. “Now?” A teasing note lingered in his voice.
