Hew’s eyes sparked a brilliant green, lighting flutters in my stomach once more. “Aye, lass, ’tis Mary that I speak of. Do ye know her then?”
Stunned, I had based my mental image of Mary’s brother based on her appearance and envisioned a short, round, aging bald man who talked loudly. This man was none of those things. His voice was deep, but he spoke quietly and said nothing more than required by the conversation. “Yes, I know Mary quite well. She’s just around the corner here, along with everyone else from the castle. We’ve been cutting a tree down for Christmas. Does she know that you’re here? Mary and I were away yesterday, we only just returned this morning.”
He shook his head. “I doona know if she is aware of me presence yet, but I guess ’tis time that she is. Will ye lead the way there for me, lass?”
“Of course.” I turned and waved so that he would follow me. I felt self-conscious with my back exposed to him. With every step, I damned myself for pinning my hair up into a hideous bun before we trecked out into the snow.
The group saw me first, and Mary immediately tore into me for stepping away from their company. “Adelle, what is the matter with ye? Why did ye run off without telling us where ye’d gone? Ye could have frozen to death…”
She paused when she caught sight of her brother and moved her short, stumpy legs faster than I’d have ever thought possible as she charged through the snow to throw herself into his arms.
Hew let out a puff of air as she squeezed him and then pushed her away as gently as he could. “Be careful, Mary. Ye shall squish the wee pup I hold in me arms.”
Mary glanced briefly down at the sleeping dog but was un-phased by the adorable bundle. Bri and Blaire, on the other hand, immediately went to snatch the pups from each of our arms.
“What are ye doing here, Hew? I havena seen ye in years. God, ye look good, brother!” Once Hew was free of the puppy, Mary threw her arms around him again.
“I was on me way to Mae’s grave, but the storm caused me to seek shelter here. I only arrived last evening.”
The sadness I’d seen earlier in Mary briefly crossed her face, and I wondered greatly about the identity of Mae. The pain showed only for a moment before Mary whirled away from her brother to face the crowd of all of us watching curiously.
“I see, and which one of ye knew he was here and dinna tell me the second I arrived with Adelle this morning?”
Bri, Blaire, Eoin, and Kip all looked back and forth at each other, clearly in the dark, while Arran glanced sheepishly at the ground. Eventually, he spoke up. “’Twas I, Mary. I apologize. I’m a fool. I got so caught up in the lasses’ excitement over finding a tree that I forgot to tell ye.”
I thought for a moment she would march through the snow and smack him, but her happiness at seeing her brother seemed to override her annoyance at not learning of his presence until now.
“Shame on ye, Arran, but ’tis no matter now. Why doona the rest of ye go on back to the castle with the tree? I shall join ye shortly after I spend some time speaking with me brother, aye?”
Eoin spoke as he directed us all back to the castle. “Aye, Mary. Spend as much time as ye wish. I suppose we willna starve from only one more night of Bri and Blaire’s cooking. Yer brother is welcome to dine with us, but if ye wish to spend some time alone together, I can bring ye food later this evening.”
I was surprised when Hew responded to Eoin instantly. “I would be much obliged to ye if ye would allow us to dine in the cottage. I shall repay yer kindness in some way.”
He obviously didn’t want to dine with everyone. Not that I could blame him. We were a bit much to take. Still, his quick rejection seemed a little odd. He walked over to Blaire who was holding his new puppy. After she extended it in his direction, he and Mary turned to make their way back to the cottage.
*
As we returned the short distance back to the castle, both Bri and Blaire squeezed in tight on either side of me while I balanced my puppy in between my open palms. The girls leaned in close so that they could hear the other’s whispers.
“Mom, holy cow, would you ever have thought Mary’s brother would look like that?” Bri nudged my side playfully.
I smiled, laughing as I shook my head. I leaned into her, nudging her back. “No, not in a million years would I have expected that.”
“Ye did find him a handsome lad, aye Adelle?” Blaire spoke next, her voice as quiet and excited as Bri’s.
“Oh yes, very much so. He’s quite striking. Why do you ask?” He was married, of course. All the good ones were.