“Was the glass what the maid was cleaning up when we came out into the hall?” Una asked with a frown as she watched Jettasmear a dark, odiferous substance over the bottoms of Dwyn’s feet.
“Aye.” Dwyn sounded weary, Geordie noted with concern, and supposed it was the strain of suffering in silence that causedit.
“It looked like it was all over the floor in front o’ the garderobe door,” Aileen said with a scowl. “Ye should have comeback fer yer slippers rather than try to traipse through it.”
“I did no’ traipse through it deliberately. It was no’ there when I went into the garderobe, and I did no’ notice it until’twas too late on the way out,” Dwyn explained patiently.
“Ye mean someone broke a goblet there while ye were in the garderobe?” Una asked now.
“They must have, though I did no’ hear a bang or crash of it happening,” she said.
“Ye did no’ hear anything?” Aulay asked with surprise.
Dwyn shook her head, but then paused and tilted her head slightly before saying slowly, “I did hear a tinkling sound, likebroken glass clinking together.” She shrugged. “Perhaps the goblet was broken in one o’ the rooms and someone gathered ittogether to dispose o’ it down the garderobe, but it fell out o’ whatever they were using to carry it.”
Geordie recalled the way the pieces of glass had lain on the floor. They hadn’t made a starlike pattern, but had covered thefloor almost from wall to wall in front of the garderobe . . . as if they’d been sprinkled there. Glancing to Aulay, he notedhis concern mirrored on his brother’s face and felt his mouth tighten.
“There,” Jetta said with a sigh as she finished wrapping Dwyn’s feet with strips of clean linen.
“Thank ye,” Dwyn murmured as Jetta got to her feet. “I’m sorry to have been so much trouble.”
“You have been no trouble,” Jetta assured her, and then moved forward to stop her when Dwyn raised herself as if intendingto get up. “Oh, you cannot stand up, Dwyn. Your weight might split the cuts open and start them bleeding again.”
“But I canno’ stay here,” Dwyn said with dismay.
“I’ll carry ye, lass,” Geordie announced even as he scooped his hands under her bottom and lifted and then shifted her forwardso that he could get off the bed. It wasn’t until he was standing that he noted the shocked looks on the women’s faces, andthe way Aulay’s eyebrows were raised. It made him realize that his behavior was entirely too familiar.
“Me apologies,” Geordie muttered as he slid his arms under Dwyn and lifted her off the bed. He had no desire to cause herproblems or embarrassment, and acting comfortable touching her so intimately could do that. The least it would do was bringabout questions from others.
“Wait!” Una said with sudden alarm as Geordie straightened with Dwyn in his arms. When he paused, she turned to ask Jetta,“How long must she stay off her feet, Lady Buchanan?”
Jetta paused in gathering her items together to tell Dwyn, “I shall want to check on you tomorrow, but I do not think youshould walk on them for at least a couple days. Hopefully if you stay off of them for a bit, they will scab over enough toallow walking.”
“Oh, no,” Aileen said with dismay. “She will no’ be able to dance at the feast.”
“She might. That is not for three nights. Her feet might heal enough by then.” Despite her words, Jetta didn’t sound as ifshe believed it.
“’Tis fine,” Dwyn said quietly.
Geordie glanced down, trying to see her expression, but Dwyn had her head slightly bowed and turned away. He couldn’t tellwhat she was thinking. But when she added, “We should leave ye to retire,” he took the hint and started for the door.
Aileen and Una immediately rushed ahead to open the door for him to carry her out.
“We are just down here, m’laird,” Aileen said, rushing around him to lead the way. “We are in—”
“My room,” Geordie finished for her with amusement.
“Really?” all three women asked at once, and Dwyn tipped her face up to look at him.
“Aye,” Geordie assured her, smiling into her wide blue eyes and then letting his gaze sweep over her breasts. They were mostlybehaving at the moment, with just the tiniest edge of the top of her nipples showing above the gown, but they were still lovelyto look at and tempted him to do things he shouldn’t, and couldn’t, with her sisters there.
That thought made him shift his gaze to Una and Aileen. Both girls were beaming at him as if the fact that they were stayingin his room was somehow a fine trick, and then Aileen turned and rushed ahead to open the door for him.
“Which side o’ the bed would ye prefer, lass?” Geordie asked as he carried Dwyn into the room.
“The far side, nearest the window, please,” she murmured apologetically, and Geordie grinned at her. He always slept on thatside himself, so understood the attraction. However, his father had always said a man must put himself between his woman andany possible attack, so he’d have to sleep on the side nearer the door were they to marry.
Geordie stopped walking at the corner of the bed when he realized where his thoughts had taken him. Marriage to the wee lassin his arms. Despite his earlier assertions to his brother that he was not ready to marry, the idea was an appealing one.Were they married, he could join her in the bed and—
“Am I too heavy, m’laird? If ye’re tiring, ye can just set me down here at the foot o’ the bed. I’m sure I can pull meselfup to the top without putting pressure on me feet.”
Geordie blinked his thoughts away, and scowled down at Dwyn for the suggestion. “Ye’re no’ heavy, lass,” he assured her, andcontinued around the bed. “I
