"Stop her!" Marcus shouted down to the guards, then hurried down the stairs.
Her gaze met his as he leapt from the battlement steps into the courtyard. "Out of my way," she ordered.
"Woman, only yesterday you fled from me as if I were an ogre. Now you dispense imperious orders as though you are a queen. Where are you going?"
"To find Tavis and box his ears. Then I'll drag him and his sister back."
Marcus raised a brow. "Tired of chasing the little fools all over God's green earth? A pity they won't listen to good advice. Come down from there." He reached to pull her from the mare's back.
She slapped his hand. "They purposely sneaked out."
"Disobedient brats," he said.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Never mind," he said.
"Never mind?" she choked. "If I hadn't heard it myself, I wouldn't have believed it." She jerked on the reins. "Out of my wa—" Elise shrieked when he yanked her from the saddle.
Marcus brought her face level with his. "Yesterday, you left against my command. Will you attempt to disobey me again today?"
Her eyes narrowed. "I planned to enlist Brady's help in finding the children."
"And if he's not available?"
"He's the stable master. He is always in the stables."
"Aye," Marcus said. "But if he isn't, you will use good sense and return to the keep?" He added before she could argue, "I'll fetch the children."
Her eyes lit. "I'll wait while you get a horse."
He released her, then pried the reins from her fingers and mounted. "I will go."
"But—"
"Elise," he growled, "are you saying I cannot deal with two errant children?"
"No-no, of course not. It's just that Bonnie is so little, and Tavis—" Her eyes blazed. "The boy is going to get them both killed."
"Why does he take his sister with him?" Marcus asked.
"He doesn't. She's a clever child. She watches, then follows."
"Bloody hell," he said under his breath. "She is but seven."
Elise laid a hand atop Marcus's hand, which rested on his thigh. "Why does Tavis persist in going out like this? I thought you dealt with his father's murderer."
"Revenge is never satisfied," Marcus replied.
Her fingers moved against his and he looked at her hand. His gaze caught on the long, thin scar on the outside edge of her palm. He had noticed it before, had meant to ask her—She snatched her hand back.
Marcus looked down at her and smiled softly. "It is all right, love. I will bring them safely home." He brushed a finger across her cheek.
She looked startled and a blush crept up her cheeks.
Marcus urged his horse forward, satisfied.
Two hours later, Elise looked up from her seat in the kitchen to see Marcus enter with Bonnie on his shoulders. A general round of praise went up from the women. He gave a gallant bow, very obviously pretending to forget Bonnie, then grabbed her at the last moment and shoved her back into place on his shoulders.
Warmth rippled through Elise at sight of him pausing to pluck slices of apples from a bowl on the counter. She silently cursed her schoolgirl giddiness. Marcus popped a slice into his mouth, then passed one to Bonnie. Elise's thudding heart kicked up a notch when he looked in her direction. He started toward her and she hastily returned her attention to the potatoes she was peeling. He pulled Bonnie from his shoulders and lowered himself into the chair beside Elise. Bonnie settled on his lap and leaned back in the crook of his arm. Absorbed in her apple, she munched contentedly.
"I think we need not worry any longer about Bonnie running after Tavis," Marcus said.
Elise looked to find a lock of hair had fallen across his forehead, making him look very much like a large child himself. She resisted the urge to smooth the lock back into place.
Focusing instead on her potatoes, she said, "Why is that?"
"Because he won't be taking any more trips."
"How can you be sure?"
"I told him not to."
Elise sighed. The boy would probably obey without even a whimper. She hazarded a glance at Marcus. He was grinning.
Her heart unexpectedly constricted. How would she live without seeing that smile every day?
When Elise entered the kitchen the following afternoon, she frowned at finding the room empty. Winnie napped in the early afternoon and several of the younger women tended to their families' needs, but Jinny was usually present, starting preparations for the evening meal.
Jinny's voice abruptly sounded from the eating hall. "Please, milaird, let me go."
"Come now," a male voice boomed, "'tis only a friendly gesture."
A round of riotous laughter followed this statement.
"Nay, laird," Jinny pleaded, "I dinna' want you to be friendly."
"You haven't given me a chance," the male voice began as Elise retrieved a large cast-iron pan from the ten plate stove located against the wall near the hearth. She crept toward the door leading to the great hall and heard, "I can be verra friendly, given the proper incentive."
From the kitchen door, she saw Jinny, held on a man's lap, twist in an effort to avoid his kiss.