Blaire spoke up, ganging up on me with Bri. “Nay, Adelle. ’Tis no warm in here at all. I doona believe ye are having a flash of warmth. I think Bri is right, ye’re blushing.”
“Why don’t the two of you just bugger off?” I stood and left the dining hall so that I could find some cold water to splash on my face.
Chapter 12
They’d stayed close to the castle, finding shelter for them and their horses in the village, but the hunt had done them all good. Hew was accustomed to spending his days working hard on his land. He didn’t like being cooped up in the confines of the small cottage each day.
He’d wanted to learn more about Adelle while away but had hoped he would be able to keep his growing feelings for her a secret. He’d been completely unsuccessful. It seemed all of the men had assumed his sudden eagerness to join in the castle activities had something to do with her.
As they made their way to their rooms in the inn they’d rented for the evening, Arran nudged him in the ribs as if they’d known one another forever. “Did ye enjoy Adelle’s company last night? Ye must have, for I know I was unable to convince ye to step inside the castle walls.”
Hew couldn’t lie to him. Just the thought of her made something deep within his chest hum with an excitement he’d thought himself no longer capable of feeling. “Aye, lad. I verra much enjoyed the time we spent together.”
“And ye find her a bonny looking lass, do ye no?”
The lad was forward, but Hew expected it was how he was with everyone. Arran didn’t seem the kind of man to mince his words no matter who he found himself in the company of. “Aye, she’s as beautiful a lass as I ever have seen. Do ye know her well, Arran?”
“Aye. I’ve spent much of the last year with her. She’s wonderful, a little more forthright with her words than most lasses, but I wouldna have her any other way. Mary, Blaire, and Bri are much the same way, so perhaps that is why I doona mind her so much. I find fiery lasses to be the best company.”
“Nay, I doona mind it either. Me wife was verra much like that. She always said whatever came to her mind. ’Twas a treasure to be with a woman I never had to wonder what she was thinking.” Hew smiled, slightly surprised at himself. It was the first time he’d spoken of his wife in years that sadness hadn’t crept into his heart.
“Well, ye never have to wonder what Adelle is thinking, ’tis certain. Ye shall be joining us for the meal on Christmas Eve, aye? It would disappoint her if ye dinna, and I can tell by the sparkle in yer eye when ye speak of her that ye doona wish to do that.”
The last thing he wanted to do was upset Adelle in anyway. He was slowly beginning to want to do nothing more than please her. “Aye, lad, I’ll be there. Ye are right, I doona wish to disappoint her at all.”
*
The men arrived back at the castle midday on Christmas Eve. The prizes of the hunt were such that I was immediately forced to join Mary in the kitchen so that we could get to work preparing the meat. Bri and Blaire somehow evaded the kitchen. I suspected they were both spending private moments with their husbands, who they’d not seen for a whole three days.
It seemed a bit ridiculous to me that such a short period of separation seemed to cause them both such distress, but the truth was I was a little envious of the relationships they had found. I’d never had that with Bri’s father. We both celebrated at the absence of the other. Even after our divorce, I’d never dated anyone long enough to allow my feelings to get all that strong.
By the time all of the food was prepared, everyone but Mary and I sat waiting anxiously in the dining hall, ready to devour the feast that was about to be placed before them. I’d just stepped into the room when I tripped on the bottom of my dress, causing me to slip forward.
I was certain I would land on the floor, spilling the precious bread basket I held in my hands, but Hew’s quick hands suddenly set me right. He’d jumped up to pull a piece of garland out of his curious puppy’s mouth and had passed by just in time to keep me from my fall.
“Are ye all right, lass? Mary would kill ye if ye dropped the food.”
“Yes, she most certainly would. Thank you.” I looked up at him, instantly lost in the greenness of his eyes. He didn’t let go of my forearms, and it took Arran’s voice from the table to pull us away from our locked gazes.
“Look up. Ye have both found yerself beneath the mistletoe. Ye must kiss her, Hew. ’Tis bad luck if ye doona.”
Our eyes met once more. I was certain he wouldn’t kiss me. It had been much for him to kiss my cheek in private. This would be too much to ask of him.
He didn’t glance away. Instead, leaning in close until his lips were just a hair’s width from mine, he whispered, “It seems that I must. I willna have bad luck following ye, lass.”