“I dinna mean to intrude on ye. Would it be better if I came back another time?”
“No.” I let go of Cooper and stood, wiping my face with the back of my hand. “You’re fine. We’re just a little weepy today.”
He nodded uncomfortably. “Do ye know if they are in need of fish today?”
We hadn’t had a guest in over a week, and there were stacks of dried herring sitting in the cupboard. Still, I didn’t have the heart to turn him away. “Let me see if Isobel or Gregor are around.”
I turned to find Isobel standing in the doorway. “No, Clyde, we doona need fish from ye. Have we ever? Why would we start today?”
“Isobel!” I turned astonished eyes on her. Even though she had voiced her dislike of him to me several times, she was never actually hateful toward him.
“Doona ye ‘Isobel’ me, Jane. Can ye no see what he’s doing? He only stops in to see ye. He doesna care if we buy his fish or no.”
I looked over at Clyde who, despite the blush in his cheeks, recovered well and rose to Isobel’s attack in a way I did not expect.
“Aye, I know that ye willna buy my fish, but what is the harm in stopping to see sweet Jane? She’s a beauty, and I’ve held my tongue long enough. I doona care if she knows it.”
Isobel dropped the coverings she had gathered up in her arms for airing and stepped toward him much like she had Adwen that day in the sitting room.
“There is harm in it. She is no yers to look at nor gawk after. Now get gone from here before I get my broom handle and stick it up yer arse.”
Cooper’s tears seemed to vanish as he hunkered down into hysterical giggles.
Sensing the truth in Isobel’s warning, Clyde shot me a small smile and nod before turning to leave.
I waited until he was out of sight to speak.
“Isobel, what the hell has gotten into you?”
She crossed her arms and looked at me like she’d done nothing wrong. “I doona know what ye mean. Do ye wish to spend time with a man like Clyde? I canna see it myself.”
“No. Of course I don’t, but I’m more than capable of deciding and telling him that myself. I don’t need you to do it for me. And what did you mean by I wasn’t his to gawk at? Whose am I? Certainly not yours.”
I could see her grind her teeth together before she spoke. She said nothing as she returned to gather up the bedding she dropped, gesturing for Cooper to come and help her.
“Ye are Adwen’s and always will be, I doona care what ye say. Now.” She pointed toward the inside of the inn with one finger. “Gregor is no here at the moment and, as ye can see, I have me hands full. There’s a man standing in the dining room. Go see to him and ask him if he’ll be staying the night.”
“A guest?” I couldn’t believe she assigned that task to me after days with no patrons. “Don’t you want to do that yourself? I can see to those with Cooper.”
Her face flushed red in an instant. “Do I look like I want to take care of it myself? Please, Jane.”
Shaking my head in disbelief, I watched her and Cooper walk away before stepping back inside. The sun cast a shadow on the man standing within, and I couldn’t tell who it was until he turned toward me. When he did, I had to grab the edge of the table to keep myself steady.
It was Adwen.
*
“Hi.” It was all I could manage to say as I stared at him. Every inch of me wanted to run toward him, but he took no step toward me so I stayed where I stood.
He was darker than the last time we were together, tanned and slightly dirty. He looked even better, and the circles beneath his eyes were gone.
He smiled but said nothing. I carefully removed my hand from the table, feeling more steady with every second.
“You haven’t been at Cagair Castle.” I didn’t know why I said that to him. It just seemed the most obvious observation. He didn’t look traveled in the way one did after a few days gone from home. He looked as if he had been away a very long time.
“No.”
The sound of his voice made me want to weep.
“Where did you go?”
“Many places. It doesna matter.”
He was tense, and I could see the rise and fall of his chest from across the room. I wanted to feel him, to touch his hands and the strength in his arms. I’d pushed every feeling I had for him down so deep inside me that I thought they could never get out. One look at him, and I thought I might explode from the rush of emotions.
“What are you doing here? It’s not fair, Adwen. It’s painful for me to see you.”
“Jane.” He did move then, closing the distance between us in two long strides. His hands trembled as he gripped either side of my face. “Do ye still love me?”