Tall, Dark and Wolfish (37 page)

"What can I do?" Wil asked softly.

"She needs to be warmed."

Wil stepped into the hal way and directed the servants to light a fire in the grate. They scurried to do his bidding.

"Why did you let her do it?" Ben cried softly as he held her close to him.

"We didn't know."

Servants began to pour into the room. One stoked the fire while another added layers of counterpanes until the room was fil ed with a radiant heat. Then

they were al alone again.

Ben held her like that for what seemed like hours. She slowly warmed against him, but didn't wake. Her eyelids never fluttered. The slow, even cadence

of her breathing never changed. Her heartbeat never quickened. What he would have paid at that moment to hear her heartbeat speed up. He didn't care

if it was in anger, in fear, in passion. He simply wanted her to be healthy.

Why had he said those stupid things that drove her away from him? Of course he loved her. How could he not? He just hadn't wanted to admit it to

himself. He'd wanted to protect her, but instead he put her in danger. If she didn't wake, he'd never forgive himself.

When morning came, Wil tried to get Ben to take a break. But he stoical y refused. He needed to be with her. If she drew her last breath, he would be

there.

"You need your strength," Wil reminded him. "Go and take a walk. Get something to eat. I'l sit with her."

He looked down at her sleeping form. His Elspeth was warm. Her lips were no longer blue. Her cheeks were a rosy red. But she refused to wake.

"Trust me. If she wakes, I'l cal you," Wil said. "I'l not leave her."

Ben rose, dressed, and stepped out the front door. He walked into the yard and kicked the stone wolf in his path. He didn't even feel the pain. He wanted

to vent his frustration. He wanted to hurt someone. He walked down the winding path into the woods, a heavy rain immediately soaking him. Had it been

raining when he'd stepped outside? He couldn't remember.

He took a few more steps. The rain stopped and the sun shone. Then, within moments, it poured again.

"Rhiannon?" he asked quietly. He must be losing his mind. He scrubbed his hand across his forehead.

A few feet before him, a smal plant emerged from the ground. It flowered prettily. Ben bent and looked at the plant offering. Only Sorcha could present

such an item.

"What do I do?" he asked. Another blossom appeared, as if to say
Pick me, you idiot.

He picked the purple blossom. A pinecone dropped from a nearby tree and hit the top of his head. What else could go wrong? He kicked the cone from

his path. Four more dropped from the sky. He raised his arms above his head to block more fal ing objects. "I get the idea," he growled as he picked up a

pinecone. A ginger root tugged at the toe of his shoe. He looked up at the sky and said, "That's for me, too?" A pinecone hit his head.

He shook his head with wonder and dug up the ginger root. "You know I have no idea what to do with these things or how much of each to use," he

cal ed. He hoped no one was watching him, but he real y didn't care. The root and the flower immediately shriveled into dried bits in his hand. Then a

gentle wind blew. The majority of the dried leaves left his palm, leaving only a smal bit behind.

He raised his eyebrows and said, "Now we're getting somewhere." He held up the pinecone. It fel apart in his hand and left four tiny seeds.

"What do I mix them with?" Thunder crashed in the sky and rain poured from the heavens, soaking him immediately. He closed his fist to keep his

precious ingredients safe. When the water stopped, he stood with his eyes closed, a bemused look on his face as he blew water from his face and shook

his head like a dog. "I assume that means water." He nearly chuckled. "Is that al ?" The sun shone brightly.

He turned and jogged back into the house, stopping to make a fresh pot of tea, and steeped the ingredients in his hands, adding them to the brew.

When it was done, he carried the tea upstairs on a tray.

Wil sat on the edge of the bed, rubbing the tips of his fingers across Elspeth's lifeless hand. "What do you have there?" he asked.

"A brew from the witches."

"In Scotland?" Wil looked befuddled.

"In Scotland," Ben confirmed.

"Why are you al wet?"

"It was one of the clues." He shrugged as he raised a smal spoonful of the brew to Elspeth's lips. She took it in without gasping or choking and

swal owed slowly. It was the first movement she'd made since she'd passed out.

"When you get yourself in a mess, you real y know how to do it, don't you, Ben?" Wil asked.

"This isn't a mess, Wil iam. This is love."

Forty-five

Elspeth blinked her eyes open as late afternoon light poured into the room. Weak, she tried to turn to her side, but she couldn't gather up the strength. She

looked to her side and found Wil flipping through
The Times. Her heart sank when she realized it wasn'
t Ben.

Not that she should have been surprised. Though she loved him with al her heart, nothing had changed. She must have made some sort of sound,

because Wil dropped the paper and sat forward. He smiled with relief. "Thank God. We were so worried."

She tried to sit up but couldn't manage to make her limbs do anything. "Water," she whispered.

"Of course." He leapt from his seat and poured some from a pitcher, sloshing most of it on the floor in his haste to bring it to her.

He helped her sit and brought the cup to her mouth. It was like nectar from the gods, and she drank her fil . Only when she finished did she realize that

the counterpane was down around her waist and she had nothing on.

Elspeth gasped and Wil 's eyes widened. Apparently he didn't realize it either. Quickly, he pul ed the blankets up to her neck and tucked them around

her. "Ben doesn't need to know about that," he said quietly. Then he added with a wink, "He'l accuse me of trying to seduce you in your weakened state."

Just hearing his name tore at her heart. It was best to think of other things. She shook her head. "My father," she managed, her voice sounded raspy.

Wil started for the door. "I've got to wake Ben first."

"Just my father."

He glanced over his shoulder at her but didn't say a word as he stepped over the threshold.

When Ben heard a soft knock, he bolted off the bed he was napping on, rushed across the room, and opened the door. Wil stood before him, frowning.

"Is she awake?" he asked.

Wil nodded. "She's asking for the major."

Ben took a step backward, realization dawning on him. "But not me."

Wil winced. "Forster has a claim on her, but she's
your
wife. I think you should go to her anyway. She can talk to him later."

It wouldn't do any good. She was a stubborn lass when she wanted to be. Apparently, in her eyes he hadn't yet paid for his sins. He certainly didn't want

to fight with her, not when she was in a weakened state. Ben sighed. "How is she?"

"She looks frail, but her color is back. She's said a few words, but her voice is scratchy."

"Make sure she drinks the tea."

Wil stepped closer to him, so there was only an inch between them. "You should go to her, Ben."

He had every intention of going to her, when she was stronger and he could make her understand. Or when she asked for him. Whichever came first. "In

good time. Get Forster. Make sure she drinks the tea."

"She loves you."

Ben knew that. He could feel her inside him, in his heart, his soul, his very essence. She'd healed more than his broken arm. "It won't be good to upset

her right now, and I think my presence would do so."

With a curt nod, Wil left him and started for the staircase.

Ben rested his forehead against the wal . How could he make things right? There had to be something he could do.

The little maid from the night before bustled into Elspeth's room. It looked as though the young girl was blushing. "Lord Wil iam said you needed help

getting dressed."

The reason for the blush was obvious now. Elspeth cleared her throat. "Thank ye."

The girl retrieved Elspeth's dress from the day before and shook out the wrinkles. Then she pul ed back the counterpane and slid the gown over

Elspeth's head. How awkward for someone else to dress her! She felt like a rag dol being pushed and pul ed in odd directions.

"The major is so relieved you're awake, milady," the maid said as she smoothed the dress over Elspeth's body.

"How long have ye worked for the major?"

She shrugged. "A little more than a year now. Ever since he returned from the Continent."

"Is he a good employer?"

"The best, milady." The girl tugged the gown down around Elspeth's ankles. Then she pul ed the counterpane back up to her waist.

"And honest? Does he seem honest ta ye?" Did she dare believe al that he'd told her? Did he real y not know about her? Had her mother real y not

been in contact with him?

Clearly affronted, the maid raised herself up to her ful height, which wasn't al that tal . "Who said otherwise? Major Forster is the most honorable of

men!"

"That's quite al right, Mol y," the major said from the doorway. "I'm certain my daughter was just curious."

"I—um…" Elspeth felt her face heat and was certain her cheeks were the color of her hair. She real y must be more careful around Lycans, with their

superior hearing.

The major laughed. "You remind me so much of her. It'l take some getting used to. For both of us, I imagine." He crossed the floor and took the seat Wil

had vacated earlier. Then he leaned forward, took her hand in his, and squeezed. "How are you feeling, my dear?"

"Fine," she replied softly.

One of the major's dark eyebrows rose disbelievingly. "Fine?"

She shrugged. "Just a little weak. I'l be fine in no time."

Her father pursed his lips. "You knew what would happen, didn't you? That you'd col apse?"

Elspeth's eyes dropped to the counterpane. She hadn't known for sure, but she'd had a pretty good idea. "I couldna let him suffer."

"He was furious with us for letting you put yourself in danger. If I'd known…"

"Ye wouldna have stopped me." She raised her gaze to his. "I ken he doesna feel the same about me that I do about him, but I could never let him be in

pain."

Her father's features softened, and he smiled wistful y at her. "So much like Rose."

She hoped not. She didn't want to spend the rest of her life mourning Ben the way her mother had mourned her father. It was an awful way to live. "How

did you go on without her?"

He snorted. "Badly. I was fortunate there was always a battlefield that required my attention. But at night there was nothing to distract me from my

memories of her. Was she happy?"

"She missed ye. But she had me and my grandfather and the coven…" Her voice trailed off when she saw his countenance fal .

"I'l never forgive myself for listening to Fiona Macleod. I should have seen Rose with my own eyes. At the time, I didn't think I could bear to see her as

another man's wife. I was a coward."

Elspeth's heart ached for him, and she understood completely. When Ben went on to find his happiness with another, she didn't think she could ever see

him again. She couldn't imagine anything more painful. "I doona think ye're a coward."

He sighed and she noticed tears in his dark eyes. "You have a compassionate nature, my dear."

"Where do we go from here, Major?"

Her father shook his head. "Wherever you want, lass. I'm your humble servant."

"No' a servant," she choked on a laugh. "Ye're my father."

"I don't know how to make up for lost time, but I'l do whatever you need, help you anyway possible."

"Thank ye for that." She sat up straight and fought back the tears that threatened to spil down her cheeks. "I'd like ta stay here with ye for a while. I'd like