Page 25 of The Thief
Chapter Six
Scarlett walked down the hallway of the hospital, her mind on the little girl she had just left. She had been sitting with her all day, just enjoying the little girl’s company. Alathea had come in last night with stomach pains and had to be treated overnight to ensure that the medicine she had been given was working to fight off her illness. When Scarlett arrived with Alastair the next morning, the nurses had told her about Alathea and Scarlett had gone right to her room to see the little girl.
When Scarlett walked through the door, Alathea had squealed in happiness.
“I always wanted to meet a princess,” she whispered into her hands, a pink blush coming to her cheeks.
Scarlett smiled. “I have never met anyone named Alathea before. It is a beautiful name. How old are you?”
Alathea smiled and whispered, “Four.”
Scarlett sat down on the bed, taking Alathea’s small hand in hers and whispered to her, “You are very sweet, Alathea.”
“Thank you.”
Scarlett had asked her a few more questions and had finally gotten Alathea to open up and talk to her, filling Scarlett’s heart with love.
Her parents had thanked her repeatedly for coming in there to sit with her, but Scarlett had told them it wasn’t a problem at all and that she had been more than happy to sit with her.
The doctor treating her had come in a few times to see her while Scarlett visited, but he had told her that Alathea should be well enough to be released tomorrow. Alathea had been really sad to leave but Scarlett had reassured her that she could come see her any time she wanted.
The little girl’s smile had returned and had made Scarlett very happy.
She had been trying the last few weeks to keep her mind off what was going on with the search for Catriona and had thrown herself into spending each day with one of the children at the hospital.
One day, she had organized a picnic outside for the children, making sure to even include the sicker children in the fun; she couldn’t imagine being stuck in a stark room while others were outside having a lot of fun.
Scarlett sighed and looked around the nurse’s station, not seeing Alastair there like she usually did at this time. She looked up and saw three nurses walk by, all of them smiling and waving at her. She smiled and waved back and watched as they walked away.
She was glad for the distraction of the hospital.
Scarlett had planned to go see others who were in the hospital, but hadn’t had the chance to organize it just yet. She wanted to make sure that there wasn’t something that would hinder her visit to the rest of the hospital.
She had seen him when he had come to check up on Alathea, but Scarlett had a sneaking suspicion he had also come to check up on her as well. He was always making sure she was all right, and always ate lunch with her, even if he was a little bit late.
She smiled to herself as she thought of him.
He had been so courteous these last few weeks and it had been so nice for Scarlett.
She had never been paid so much honest attention before.
When Alastair and Scarlett spoke, he listened to her, hearing what she had to say and not caring that she was the king’s niece. She had never had a serious suitor; she had never felt their intentions to be true because she was related to royalty. She had been led to believe that no one was ever genuine because of her relatives. Alastair wasn’t like that though; he never brought up the royalty or the crown, making her feel as if she were a person and not a pawn to be used.
She looked around once more for him and when she didn’t find him, she walked up to the counter and waited until the nurse finished her other conversation. When her conversation with another nurse was done, the nurse at the counter turned to her, a smile on her face when she saw Scarlett.
“Hello, Bella, how is your family doing? Has your husband finished his harvest on Obsidian Ridge yet?” she asked.
“He hasn’t yet. He should be done with it by the week’s end. I am just so thankful that the harvest was full this year. Last year, it was barely half of what it is this year.”
“I am glad for you. We have had more rain than last year, and it has been a much more fruitful year because of it. Do you perhaps know where Alastair is? I didn’t see him on my way up here.”
Bella smiled and said, “I saw Alastair go down to the nursery. There was an upset baby that needed his attention.”
She sighed dreamily and said with a sly smile, “If I wasn’t married, I would want a man such as Lord Alastair. He is so great with the babies. My husband is a wonderful man, don’t mistake me, but Alastair is also a great man.”
Scarlett rolled her eyes at Bella, knowing that she was giving a not so subtle hint to her.
“Thank you, Bella. I hope you have a good evening.”
