An Auctioned Bride (Highland Heartbeats #4)(56)

He sighed and realized Dalla looked up at him in startled dismay before calming. No, he didn't regret going into the tavern for that mug of ale. He was glad that he had. She was his now.

“Come,” he told her. “Derek wishes to have a word with you.”

“About what?” she asked, swiping at her eyes, casting a wary glance toward Derek.

“He did not say, but he is helping us, so the least you and I can do in return is to cooperate with him, don't you think?”

She nodded, rose, swept her fingers briefly through the hair that had fallen from her braid and framed her face, glanced down and brushed straw from her clothing. Then, with only a little hesitance, she strode toward Derek.

Hugh watched, ready to jump in if it appeared that Derek said or did anything that he didn't like, but his brother, clasping his wrists behind its back, simply looked down at Dalla, and spoke softly to her, with an occasional nod or shake of the head from Dalla.

He couldn't get over the fact that he was once again reunited with Derek. They had so much catching up to do, and he had so many questions for him, but they couldn't take the time, not now.

Preparations for the sail were being completed in haste, and as Hugh watched Derek and Dalla, he hoped their escape from the region would go as planned, without difficulty. Then again, he wasn't na?ve. They were in a dangerous predicament; one that he had involved his brother, albeit reluctantly.

By the time Dalla returned to him, Derek had disappeared outside.

Hugh heard him shouting to his crew, preparing his ship for sail.

“What did he want to talk to you about?” Hugh asked her quietly as she neared his side.

“He wanted to know what kind of man my uncle was, and my father.” She paused, frowned in thought, turning to glance between Hugh and the half-closed door of the building. “I still can't believe this is happening. I don't think your brother believed me when I said I wasn't sure of the reason why my uncle would stoop to such drastic means, or why he wants to get rid of me.”

Hugh could understand that. It was a difficult scenario to imagine, but then again, he and Derek didn't belong to a royal family. “Anything else?”

She nodded. “He wanted to know if I was truly married to you. I told him that I had signed the document making it so.”

He simply nodded and gestured for her to sit on a nearby bale of hay, then he turned to watch the activity as his brother, Broc, and a few sailors entered, grabbed a box, some fish, or kegs, thinking that he could at least help with loading supplies.

Hugh beckoned for Derek and offered to help.

“I don't want you to be seen outside of the building until the moment we board ship. My crew is just about ready. I'll tell you something though, Hugh. I don't like sailing off into the darkness into an approaching storm, no matter the reason. You keep a careful watch on her and your horse. I will not be distracted.”

“Understood,” Hugh said, concerned by his brother's tone of voice. In it, he heard worry, and once again a surge of regret built inside him. He’d had such different expectations for his reunion with his brother. “Derek, I want to thank you for—”

“Don't thank me yet,” Derek interrupted, turning to shout a direction at one of his sailors. “You can thank me when we get to where we're going in one piece. If we do.”

“Derek—”

Derek turned to him and once again and offered a grin. He placed both hands on his shoulders and Hugh returned the gesture. Just like old times. They locked eyes, and Hugh realized that no explanations, no regrets, no guilt was necessary.

Derek clapped him on the shoulder. “What say we have another adventure, eh?”

Hugh grinned as well, the burdens of his heart lifted, at least momentarily. This was the way it should be, the way it always should have been. He and his brother, together. Maybe, just maybe, if they managed to reach the western coast of Scotland and then once again made their way overland to Duncan Manor, Derek would agree to stay for a while. Maybe a month, maybe more. But even if he decided to go back to the sea, Hugh knew that the time he spent with his brother now was… it was like old times. The two of them against the world.

Only now, the stakes were great and potentially deadly.

“Let me get back to it. We'll be ready to launch within the hour.” Derek gestured over his shoulder with his thumb. “You go take care of your bride. I have a feeling she's a bit hesitant.”

Derek moved off while Hugh turned to Dalla, sitting quietly on a bale of hay, her fingers idly playing with the end of her braid. She had a faraway look on her face, and even in the dim light of the building, he saw her pale features.

He hadn't thought of her hesitation, what setting foot aboard a ship might do to her. Fear, the memories of being kidnapped and thrown into the hold, and now, once again, she would be asked to stay in the hold while the ship rocked on the waves.

He stepped toward her. “Dalla, Derek will do his best to make sure that we reach our destination in one piece. As you know, however, there are no guarantees.”

“I know,” she said without looking up. “I'm sorry that I am ultimately to blame for all of this—”

“No, you are not. Did you ask to be kidnapped?”

“No.”

“Did you ask to be sold as a captive?”