Page 74 of The Guardian's Bride
He grinned. “No wonder I have a headache, with you two.”
“Watching you and Lady Rowena,” Lady Jennet said. “I see what is in your eyes when you look at her.”
“And what is that? Sunlight?”
“Hope. And a spark you have not had for years—very like love.”
He tapped a piece of oatcake on the table. “And in her eyes?”
“Love like sunlight.” Jennet smiled and glanced at Marjorie. “You too, my dear. I am old enough now to speak my mind. I want to see you both married before I die.”
“My lady, you always speak your mind,” Aedan said. “And you are not that old.”
“Ask Lady Rowena to marry you,” his aunt returned.
“What if she does not share your opinion?”
“Ask her, or ask her family,” Marjorie said in agreement with Lady Jennet. “Though she is a widow—she told me so when we chatted—so she can decide for herself without waiting on her kinsmen. Just as I can,” she added with a lifted chin.
“I have no objection to Patrick Wemyss, so decide as you like. But I believe Lady Rowena is content as a widow because she can devote herself to healing arts.”
“If you know that about her, then it is a good sign that you are getting to know one another.”
“We are.” He was careful not to look up, lest his feelings shine in his eyes.
“She is good for you, if you would see it. She knows your mind. And knows you make light of things even when you take them to heart.” Jennet twisted her mouth awry. “She sees through you, lad.”
“She does,” he admitted. “I rather like that.”
“I am sure you do. And you are good for her,” his aunt said.
He looked up. “How so?”
“She relies on you. She seems more assured when you are near. For all her calm as a healer, and for all her backbone,she hides an uncertainty within,” Lady Jennet said. “But she is steadier around you. Fear throws her off balance at times, but you can teach her how to stand straight, in a way.”
“Off balance,” he repeated, thinking of Rowena aboard ship. “True, sometimes.”
“I have my grandmother’s Sight. You know that.”
“I do, and I have tried to listen to that. Ladies, we can banter this about all we want, and I am grateful for your thoughts. But I am not in a position to marry.”
“You are. You just refuse to see it,” Jennet said.
“I am dedicated to serving my king. And that means taking risks.”
“Risk is not exclusive to men. Women take grave chances all the time. Consider childbirth.”
“I know,” he said curtly, having lost a wife to that.
“Your work for the king put you in that infirmary, and in Yester dungeon, where you met Lady Rowena. She took a risk to follow a man she did not truly know,” his aunt said. “She has a strong and worthy spirit. You would be a fool to let her go.”
“I have my reasons to play the fool. But some of what you say is true.”
“It is all true,” his sister said. “Marry her before she is out of your life.”
He nodded, thoughtful, silent. Then he smacked his hand on the table. “Very well, I will try. Good night, my dearies.” He stood, pleased to see them gape as he left the hall.
Chapter Twenty
