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A frown rested upon Eoghan’s face as he stared after the cat. “Did ye train him?” he asked with a glance at Keir.
Meeting Sarah’s eyes, they both laughed. “What can I say?” Keir remarked with a shrug. “Loki is Loki.” He sought Sarah’s gaze, remembering the many times when Loki had stood at their side, always watchful, always protective. “He is family, loyal and faithful.” He lifted his eyes to Eoghan, allowing a smirk to play across his features. “And perhaps he was in a former life.”
Again, everyone laughed, easing the hint of tension that lingered at the unspoken threat that might or might not present itself.
Still, the expression upon Katherine’s face remained tense, and when Keir caught her eye as she looked across the table, she immediately dropped her gaze. Indeed, she looked rather self-conscious and seemed to avoid looking at him. Kenna, too, appeared different this morning as she hurried by, casting only a furtive glance in their direction. That loathing expression in her eyes was gone, replaced by something akin to sadness. Still, Keir saw a determined spark in her eyes not to be pushed down by the heavy weight upon her heart, and he wondered what had passed between Sarah and Kenna that day in the garden.
Wanting a moment alone with Sarah, Keir pulled her away from the table the moment she finished her breakfast. They climbed the stairs to the upper floors, higher and higher, until they stepped out onto the ramparts. The wind blew briskly, and yet there was a touch of warmth in the air, the icy chill of winter gone. “How are ye this morning, lass?” Keir asked as he watched her lift her face to the sky, her eyes closed and a soft smile teasing her lips.
Sarah sighed in contentment. Then she turned to him, and the look in her blue eyes made him forget everything around them.
Within two heartbeats, Keir held her in his arms, his mouth dropping to hers.
Sarah’s lips parted on a gasp, and Keir dove into their kiss with fierce passion, thrusting his hands into her hair and cupping the back of her head, holding her to him. He felt her tremble, and yet there was nothing shy in the way she returned his kiss, her hands just as eager as his own.
The world around them disappeared, and for long moments, they were the only two people in existence. “Ye seem quite eager this morning, lass?” Keir murmured against her lips, kissing her again.
“As do you,” Sarah retorted with a smile, the tips of her fingers tracing the line of his jaw, sending teasing shivers down his back. Then she stilled, and something in her gaze changed. “I told Kenna that she could not have you, that you were mine.”
Keir felt the breath lodge in his throat, and for a long moment, he simply stared at her, mesmerized by the sudden fire in her eyes. “Fierce and brave,” he murmured, awestruck, “and utterly bewitching.”Aye, I chose well. There’s no other like her.
Sarah chuckled, a touch of crimson blossoming upon her cheeks. Yet she did not bow her head. Her eyes, though, took on a thoughtful expression. “And I think Eoghan spoke to Kate. She seems… different these past few days. I thought of speaking to her myself, but perhaps it would be better to give her some time.”
Keir nodded. “Aye, that seems wise.” He grasped her hands, delicate and small within his own. “Ye’ll always be her sister, but ye’re no longer the only one who cares for her, who watches over her.” He thought to see a touch of regret flash up in Sarah’s eyes. “Dunna be saddened by it, lass. ’Tis a good thing. Yer sister will find her place here, and she will come to see that she isna alone. ’Twill give her strength to explore the person she wants to be.”
Sarah heaved a deep sigh. “You’re right,” she murmured, and a tentative smile appeared upon her face. “Long ago, it was only the two of us, and I suppose a part of me clung to that bond. But it will not lessen simply because she now has other people in her life as well, will it?”
Keir pulled her close. “Never,” he told her, then grasped her hand and pulled her along. “Come, lass. There’s something I wish to show ye.”
Chapter Forty-Five
A SHARED LIFE
Sarah stood outside a door, belatedly realizing that it was the door to Keir’s chamber. In all this time, she had never been near it, never been inside it, never ventured close. Keir had always been the one to come and find her.
“Will ye come inside?” he asked, holding the door open for her. “After all, in a mere two days, this will be yer chamber as well.”
Feeling strangely nervous, Sarah nodded, then tentatively stepped across the threshold, Keir following her inside.
Through the large windows of his chamber, Sarah could see the vast expanse of the sea to the south. She could hear it crashing against the rocks below as well as the cries of seabirds circling overhead, hunting for fish. Inside were only a few pieces of furniture, but the most prominent was the large bed placed by the eastern wall. An ancient tapestry of a red-haired woman, whom Sarah assumed to be Yvaine, the legendary figure, hung above a wooden chest beside the fireplace, and a large broadsword had been mounted on the wall across from the bed.
“Of course, we can make changes,” Keir remarked with a smile, his blue eyes seeking hers, as though he suspected her slight unease. “Ye need to feel at home here.” He reached out a hand and grasped hers, his gaze still watchful. “Tell me what’s on yer mind, lass.”
Sarah shrugged, her mouth opening and closing. “I don’t quite know,” she replied honestly, uncertain what the tingle meant that trailed down her back. “As much as I…” She sighed, her gaze sweeping around the room. “I never quite pictured…” Indeed, in her mind, her future had only ever been an abstract concept. Now, here she stood in Keir’s chamber, and suddenly images unfolded of the new life they would have together.
It was overwhelming.
“Life will be different, no doubt,” Keir remarked as he moved toward her. One hand settled upon her shoulder while the other grasped her chin, his blue eyes slightly narrowed as they looked down into hers. “Is there something that causes ye concern?”
Again, Sarah felt at a loss, uncertain how to answer him, not because she did not wish to share her thoughts, but simply because she did not know what they were. “What will our life be like?” she asked instead of replying.
A smile tugged on Keir’s lips. “Well, I certainly hope ’twill be easier to have time alone with ye. To speak without being interrupted. To sneak down to the kitchen in the middle of the night or dance in the moonlight.” He chuckled. “Ye’ll not be rid of me ever again.”
Sarah sighed, feeling her heart warm and the images in her mind take shape. They came into focus, their edges no longer blurred. “That sounds wonderful.”
Keir leaned down and placed a kiss upon her lips. “I’ll be seeing ye first thing in the morning and falling asleep to the feel of ye in my arms.” He sought her eyes, then glanced sideways at the bed.
Sarah followed his gaze and swallowed, understanding his implication.
