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Giving his head a shake in an effort to wake up, Niels peered along the hall to the stairs. He could hear the sounds of activity floating up from the great hall below, and wondered what time it was. It must be early yet, he decided, because no one had come out of their rooms. Not Edith, and not any of his brothers. He would have heard if Edith's door had opened, and his brothers would have made sure he knew they were up by kicking him awake and taunting him mercilessly for falling asleep. So it had to still be quite early.
Niels had barely had the thought when movement drew his gaze toward the stairs. He saw Rory moving up the hall toward him with a bowl in hand. Restraining a groan, Niels wiped his hands over his face and tried to look more alert. It seemed one of his brothers was up and had witnessed his failure in guarding Edith. It made him wonder why Rory hadn't stopped to wake him up on the way below stairs.
"Good morn, brother," Rory said cheerfully, stopping beside him.
Drawing one knee up, Niels rested an arm nonchalantly on it and grunted. It was as much of a good morning as he could manage just then.
"Is all well?" Rory asked. "Edith is safe and fine?"
"Aye," Niels growled.
"Hmm. And how would ye ken that when she's below stairs breaking her fast with Geordie and Alick and ye're here?" Rory asked mildly.
Niels's head whipped toward his brother. "What?"
"Aye, she's been up and about fer a good hour now, along with everyone else," he informed him with amusement.
"Well, why the devil did ye no' wake me?" he snarled, launching himself to his feet.
"Edith would no' let us. We came out just as she was heading for the stairs and she insisted we no' wake ye. She said 'twas obvious ye were exhausted what with yer no' waking when she tripped over ye," Rory finished acerbically.
Cursing, Niels raced for the stairs, ignoring Rory's laughter.
Last night had been Niels's third night guarding her door from the hallway, and he couldn't believe he'd failed so miserably at it. Although, perhaps he should have expected as much since he hadn't slept at all the two nights previously. Niels hadn't been able to find restful sleep since kissing Edith in the clearing. Kissing her had been a huge mistake. Niels had known it even as he'd done it, but hadn't been able to resist her. She'd been temptation incarnate to him in that clearing. Her hair had looked almost aflame with the sun shining on it, and it had smelled sweet from her bath in the loch. Once his body had brushed against hers as he reached up to help her hang the sack from his saddle, he'd been lost.
Edith hadn't helped matters much. She'd been like fire in his hands, her mouth clinging eagerly to his, her body responding passionately to his caresses. God, her nipple had been hard before he'd even slipped his hand inside the neckline of her gown to catch and pinch it. And the way she'd thrust into his touch when he'd cupped her between the legs . . . The memory was enough to have him hard even now. At the time Niels had wanted nothing better than to drop to his knees, push her skirt up to her waist and lap up the wet heat he was sure waited for him between her legs. He might even have done that had Ronson's shriek not brought them both to their senses.
That thought made Niels grimace. At the time, he'd actually managed to forget all about the boy being with them. He had no idea when the lad had left the clearing with Laddie, or what he'd seen before leaving. But Niels thanked God he hadn't tugged Edith's neckline down in front of the boy, baring her breasts for easier access as he'd wanted.
Sighing, he stopped at the top of the stairs and peered down over the great hall, looking for his brothers. Geordie and Alick had arrived back from MacDonnell last night after the rest o' the keep had gone to bed. Exhausted from their journey though they were, Alick had still offered to guard Edith's door for him to give him a break, but Niels had refused and sent the younger man to bed. Now he thought perhaps he should have accepted the offer. He had been less than useless snoring away outside her door, especially if her tripping over him hadn't woken him. If that were true, then anyone could have just stepped over him, entered the room and killed Edith. Not that that was a real concern anymore. They were pretty sure Victoria was the culprit and she wasn't here. Still, pretty sure wasn't positive and it was better to be safe than sorry.
Niels's gaze slid over the people bustling this way and that in the busy great hall below, and then he suddenly relaxed against the railing as he spotted Edith. She stood out in the crowd, a bright figure in pale green with fiery hair. She was chatting with Tormod, Geordie and Alick, he saw, and smiled when she laughed. The sound was like a bell in the room, clear and sweet, and Niels found himself wanting to hear more of it.
"She does no' understand why ye're acting as ye are toward her."
Niels glanced over to see that his brother had followed him and now stood at his side, peering down at Edith.
"Acting how?" Niels asked, though he knew the answer. He'd been pretty grumpy and grim around Edith since the clearing. He'd also been placing Tormod or Ronson at the table between him and Edith at meals, and keeping his distance. Guarding her, but at more than an arm's length, never close enough to touch. Niels would like to say his exhaustion was the reason, but it wouldn't be true.
"Acting like she disgusts ye," Rory said quietly.
Niels almost laughed at the suggestion, disgust was far and away from how he felt about the woman. That was the problem.
"I think she likes ye," Rory added when Niels didn't comment.
He stiffened at the suggestion, but said nothing.
"I think ye like her too," Rory added.
"O' course I do, she's a lovely woman. Smart, pretty, funny, beautiful, good-natured, lovely, kind to her people and beautiful."
"Ye said beautiful twice," Rory said with amusement. "Four if ye count lovely and pretty as the same word as beautiful."
"Leave off, Rory," Niels said wearily. "Ye ken there can never be anything between us."
"And why is that?" Rory asked with interest.
"Because I'm a third son with no prospects just like Brodie with Victoria. Only I'd ne'er lie to claim her. She deserves better."
"Ye're the fourth son actually," Rory said quietly.
Niels turned to skewer him with a glare. "Would ye bring up our Ewan at a time like this?" Before Rory could respond, he added grimly, "He's dead and gone, let him rest."
"Fine." Rory glanced back to Edith, but added, "Howbeit she can no' possibly deserve better than you. Ye're one o' the finest men I know."
"The other finest men being our brothers," Niels suggested with amusement.
"Aye," Rory acknowledged without apology. After a moment, he added, "Besides, Edith has no prospects. Saidh said her betrothed died years ago while still a lad, and ye ken as well as I do that Brodie'll ship her off to a nunnery the minute he gets back."
"Aye, well, ye heard her the other day. She has plans to avoid that by marrying a nice wealthy laird with a castle and people fer her to run," he reminded him.
"It will no' happen," Rory said with certainty, and when Niels frowned at him, shrugged and said, "Do you ken o' anyone who fits that description?"
"Aye, one or two," Niels said unhappily.
"Any ye'd recommend to her?" Rory added.
"Nay," he said at once. Neither man was husband material. One was notoriously violent, having beaten two wives to death. Hence the reason he could not even buy a wife at this point. The other could no' pull himself out o' the wine barrel long enough to sign a contract. Neither was good enough for Edith. Hell, he wouldn't even recommend them to the likes of Victoria, who might very well be a murdering witch.
"Exactly," Rory said firmly. "She'll no' find a husband and will end up a nun."
Niels's hands tightened on the rail. The very thought of Edith as a nun made his stomach twist. It seemed to him to be a sacrilegious suggestion; vibrant, fiery Edith as a nun, never experiencing love or loving, never having children or a home.
"I think ye should marry her," Rory said.
Niels closed his eyes
briefly and then shook his head. "I have nothing to give her. According to me plan it will be four more years ere I could give her a home or--"
"She'd be welcome at Buchanan with ye, Niels, and ye ken it."
"Aye, but she--"
"Is no' Victoria," Rory said solemnly. "Ye heard her as clear as I did when she said she'd be happy with a cottage and bairns."
Niels hesitated and then said, "What if she does no' want to marry me?" he asked, and then admitted, "I want her. But I do no' want a wife who only marries me to save herself from having to become a nun."
Rory laughed softly at the suggestion. "Brother, the woman has been eating ye alive fer days with her eyes. She tracks yer every move, kens where ye are every minute and does no' miss a word ye say. And judging by the look in her eyes as she does it, the nunnery is the last thing she thinks o' when she looks at ye." He peered down at Edith now almost wistfully, and admitted, "In truth I'm terrible jealous. She looks at ye the same way Saidh looks at Greer, and Murine looks at Dougall. I can only hope that someday a woman will look at me like that."
