Page 100 of The Highlander's Kilted Bride
Crouching down, Kade ran his hand along the edge of the small cliff. It seemed fine to him, dry and quite firm. He stood and paced several feet in both directions, looking for the likely spot of Johnny’s fall. But the embankment appeared undisturbed, with a solid cover of grass and heather right up to the edge.
Angus came puffing up beside him and glanced down. “Och, the poor laddie took a tumble.”
“Kade,” Royal called from down below. “Can you come down and lend a hand?”
“On it.” Kade glanced at Ainsley. “Where’s the path to the beach?”
She pointed to the left. “It’s behind those bushes. Be careful, though. We don’t need you tumbling down.”
“Not to worry. I have no intention of taking a tumble,” he said as he headed for the path.
“Neither did Johnny,” she called after him.
Kade suspected that Ainsley was more right than she knew.
* * *
It had taken a bit of maneuvering, but they finally got Johnny safely loaded into the biggest of the boats. Although it looked like the poor lad had broken his collarbone, matters could have been much worse. Kade thought it something of a miracle that Johnny hadn’t cracked his skull on the rocky beach.
After helping one of the sailors shove the boat into the water, Kade hopped in and then clambered to the front to check on Johnny, who was lying on a stack of boat cushions that Charlie had gathered into a pile. Lady Kinloch sat beside her son, dabbing his brow with a cloth while speaking to him in a soothing tone. The lad would be fine with rest and a bit of time. Still, Kade knew that sort of injury hurt like the devil.
Lady Kinloch glanced up at him, looking harried. “Oh, Mr. Kendrick, I’m so sorry you had to splash about in the water with the sailors. What a dreadful way to treat our guests.”
Apparently, his little contretemps with Charlie back at the chapel had been forgotten, at least for the moment. Between Johnny’s fall and Melissa’s descent into a fit of the vapors, the poor woman’s hands had been full.
“I was happy to help, my lady.” Kade smiled down at Johnny. “How are you feeling, old son?”
Johnny, although pale and sweating, managed a smile. “I’ll be fine. Thanks for your help, by the way. Sorry to be such an awful pain.”
Kade braced himself against the side of the boat as it heeled around and headed toward Ballachulish. “No worries, lad. We’ll get you back home in no time. There’s a good, stiff breeze behind us now.”
Charlie smoothed a lock of damp hair off her brother’s forehead. “Johnny, how did you fall? The embankments are quite firm and dry at this time of year.”
He started to shrug but then grimaced. “I . . . I don’t know. It all happened so fast. I suppose I just slipped.”
Charlie frowned. “You were walking along and then just slipped?”
“What difference does it make?” he snapped. “I slipped and fell like a damn fool. There’s nothing more to it.”
“Charlotte, there’s no need to pester your poor brother,” Lady Kinloch said. “I do believe there’s a bottle of port in one of the picnic baskets. Please fetch Johnny a glass. It will help with the pain.”
Charlie blew out a sigh. “All right.”
Kade helped her up and moved with her toward the back of the boat.
“It makes no sense,” she said in a low voice. “Johnny and I know where all the dodgy bits are on that island. It’s hard to believe he’d fall like that, especially in such dry weather.”
“Yes, I checked the edge of the cliff myself and there was no evidence of the edge crumbling. The grass was trampled down a bit, but that’s all.”
“You’re sure?”
He nodded.
“Charlotte,” her mother called. “Stop dawdling with Mr. Kendrick. You’ve caused quite enough trouble on that score for one day.”
Ouch.
Apparently, her ladyship had not forgotten after all.
