Pushing off hard, they flew down the snowy landscape, both of them howling with delight as the cold wind rushed across their faces. When the sled finally reached the bottom of the hill, it stopped rather abruptly, uprooting both of them from their seats, sending them tumbling out into the snow.
They landed in a twisted pile. Adelle was on top of him laughing so hard that the trembling of her chest shook his own.
“Are ye all right, lass?” Their fun would be spoiled quickly if his idea caused her harm.
She smiled brightly, bending to quickly kiss him on the tip of his nose. He found himself wondering how a lass could manage to keep her teeth so brilliantly white. They were stunning, just like every other part of her.
“Yes, I’m fine. Let’s go again!”
She leapt off of him and was halfway up the hill before he could manage to roll over and climb his way out of the snow.
Chapter 17
“Wakey, wakey…”
Bri’s voice lured me out of a deep sleep. I awoke to find Bri and Blaire sitting on either side of me, grinning in anticipation.
I rolled onto my stomach, shielding my face from the both of them, groaning as I spoke. “What do you want? Just leave me alone. I’ll wake up sometime tomorrow.”
Bri stuck her hand into my hair, mussing it about so that I would turn back over onto my back. “You missed breakfast, so did Hew. Mary’s not pleased with either one of you, and she said that you will just have to wait until evening to eat because she wasn’t going to warm anything for you once you woke up.”
I obliged her and rolled over, sitting myself up so that I was eye level with both of them. Endlessly hungry, I could out eat almost any man. No way would I wait until evening to eat. “Like hell I will. I am more than capable of feeding myself. That bossy biddy will not dictate when and what I eat.”
Bri looked over at Blaire who laughed knowingly. “What did I tell you, Blaire? I knew she would say something like that.”
I cleared my throat to draw her attention back to me. “Hicumm…excuse me. I’m right here you know. Now, what are the two of you doing in here?”
I knew well enough why they’d come, but Blaire obliged me by answering my question. “Why do ye think we have come? We wish to hear all about yer afternoon yesterday.”
I couldn’t help but grin thinking back on the day. It had been a wonderful afternoon and ages since I’d laughed so hard. My stomach would be sore for a week from the effort of it. I ached from head to toe, bruised from the many spills I’d taken into the snow, but every tight muscle was worth it. “Well, we honestly didn’t do much of anything except sled down the giant hill near the cottage about a thousand times.”
Bri smiled as she held onto her swollen belly. “Did you have a good time?”
“Aye, o’course she did. She canna keep from grinning.” Blaire winked at me but pointed to my face in concern. “Ye seem to have had a wee bit too much fun though, Adelle. Ye are mighty red.”
I reached up and touched my face, flinching at the pain. My cheeks felt quite swollen. There was little in the way of sunscreen in this time, and I’d not thought to cover my face, even after I learned we were to spend the day sledding. “Oh my, I’ll have to see if Mary has any herbal salve I can put on this to calm it down a bit. How bad do I look?”
“Completely terrible.”
My eyes widened in surprise. With each passing day Bri grew more uncomfortable in her pregnancy, and she was becoming increasingly blunt with her words. “Ouch. Thanks, Bri, but I suppose it’s my own fault. I really didn’t think about sunscreen at all.”
Blaire glanced at Bri with shocked eyes and did her best to comfort me. “It isna all that bad, Adelle. It shall heal itself eventually.”
“Eventually?” That was not okay with me. It needed to be completely healed by tonight. After our afternoon of sledding had concluded, Hew had very seriously and nervously asked that I dine with him in the cottage this evening. He said he had something very important he wished to tell me.
“Aye.” Blaire looked at me nervously.
I knew it wasn’t her fault, but she could tell I was agitated by her response that it would take some time to heal.
“I know that ’tis no pleasant for ye, but it shall take at least a week for ye to look like yerself I’m afraid.”
“Awesome.” I didn’t know what else to say. Nothing could be done for my stupidity. I would look scary as hell when I arrived at the cottage this evening. Perhaps we could dine outside in darkness. Even if we both froze to death, it would be preferable to frightening the poor man to death with the abomination which was now my face.
*