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‘I’m thirsty.’
Benneit glanced past her towards where Angus and Nurse were seated by the door. He gently put down Jamie’s hand and stood.
‘I will return directly, Jamie.’
The three disappeared and the room sank into silence again. Jo watched Jamie’s quivering lower lip.
‘Did I ever tell you about my dog Bumblebee?’ Jo asked.
‘You had a dog named Bumblebee?’
‘Well, he wasn’t strictly mine like Flops is yours. He belonged to the farmer down the lane, but I made believe he was mine and he was certainly of no use as a sheepdog. He was far too small, for one thing, and the only thing he chased were butterflies and bumblebees. But he had one skill no other dog ever had...’
She let the words hang until Jamie detached his eyes from the door and looked at her.
‘What could he do?’
‘He could talk to other animals, especially donkeys. He used to jump on the back of the farmer’s donkey and ride it down to the pond where there were the most flowers and butterflies. I think cats understood him, too, but they ignored him so I was never certain.’
Jamie’s mouth softened into a smile so like his father’s her heart became a tightly clenched fist before releasing with a sigh.
‘I think they understood. Cats are smart.’
‘So they are. Well, one day...’
Halfway through her elaborate tale, Benneit and Nurse returned with a cup of a brew smelling of chamomile and mint. Benneit raised Jamie gently and spooned the tea into his mouth, waiting between each sip. There was a methodical rhythm to his motions and again she noted he was surprisingly unawkward in his care. He had done this before, set himself and Jamie apart from the world. She was an interloper.
Jo again considered leaving but did not move. She glanced over to where Nurse sat with practised patience by the wall, expecting to receive the usual blank stare or some sign of condemnation at her insistence on staying. To her surprise, Nurse’s wrinkled visage softened into a smile, her blue eyes bright and warm. It startled Jo so much she smiled back and then looked down, as embarrassed as if she had been caught staring at Benneit.
When the cup was empty, Benneit eased Jamie back down into the bed and covered him, and they sat as Jamie lay with his eyes closed, his breathing settling. Soon Jo felt the tell-tale twitches in Jamie’s legs against her thigh that spoke of sleep, but it was only when he breathed the single shuddering breath as he entered deep sleep that Benneit stood. Jo followed him and Nurse into the corridor.
‘I’ll sleep with the door open to Jamie and call you if he wakes,’ Nurse Moody said and returned to the room.
Jo glanced at Benneit and then down at her crumpled, water-stained skirts. Her beautiful dress was ruined.
‘You should change your cravat if you mean to return downstairs, Your Grace.’
He caught her hand as she passed, his gaze serious as it swept over her.
‘Thank you.’
‘Pray, do not be foolish.’
‘Is showing gratitude being foolish? Why did you not send for me, though? I only learned he was ill when I asked Ewan where you were. You should have told me Jamie was ill. I told Angus the same.’
‘I did not want to take you away from your guests, at least not until I knew what was wrong.’
‘It is not your place to decide that.’
That struck harder than any whip, in particular after the intimacy formed in Jamie’s room during the past hour. She tugged away and proceeded towards her rooms.
‘Wait, Jo. I did not mean it like that...’
‘Your guests are waiting, Your Grace.’
‘No, they are not, I said my goodbyes when Angus went to fetch the tea. Now it is well past midnight and they have all no doubt retired. This isn’t London.’
‘Goodnight, Your Grace.’
‘Wait. Jo, I am grateful, truly, but Jamie is mine to care for. For his own good he should not become too dependent upon you. If you care for him...’
She had opened the door to her room but at those words she rounded on him, choked with pain and rage far more potent now than it had been two hours ago as she watched him with Tessa McCrieff.
‘If I care? How dare you? You may go to hell, Benneit Lochmore!’
‘Hush. Stop yelling. I did not mean to upset you.’ He crowded her into her room, his hands raised.
