Bridgette gasped and rushed close to Marion. “Marion MacLeod, what do ye ken?”
Marion smiled slyly. “I’ll tell you all I can.Afteryou tell me what has occurred between you and Lachlan.”
Bridgette’s throat went suddenly dry. “What makes ye believe something has occurred?”
Marion rolled her eyes. “I have been watching you.”
“Ye pledged nae to meddle.”
“Lucky for you, I decided that was one vow that simply had to be broken.”
Bridgette snorted.
“So,” Marion urged, “Tell me.”
Bridgette quickly told her of her visit to see Eolande, the seer’s prediction, running into Lachlan, and their vows to wait for a time to come that they may discover what was between them. “I wish I could ken for certain if the time will ever come for us.”
Marion gaped at Bridgette. “You don’t need time for that! Honestly, you and Lachlan are blind to the truth! You love him! It’s why you have not been able to forget him. It’s why you cannot give your heart to Graham. I’d hazard you fell in love with Lachlan the day he kissed you in the woods four years ago.”
Shock hit Bridgette full force and made her body tremble. She never would have made such a vow if her heart were not fully engaged. If he’d asked her to wait forever, she would have. God’s bones, she loved him!
“What is it?” Marion asked on a gasp, her hold on Bridgette’s arm increasing.
Bridgette realized she’d started to sway. She steadied herself as she looked at her friend.
She stared at Marion for a long moment, amazed at her revelation. “I love him.” Her voice had dropped to a whisper, but she could hear the awe in it. “I do, and I did nae even fully ken it until this moment.”
Marion smirked. “I recall you once telling me that you had loved Lachlan for as long as you could remember,” she teased.
Bridgette waved a hand. “Och! I could nae verra well admit to ye—and so soon after meeting ye—that I lusted after Lachlan! That hardly would have been proper. Ye would have thought me a woman of questionable morals.” Bridgette quirked her mouth, recalling how she had believed herself in love with Lachlan for a short spell when she was eight summers. Maybe the love had always been there, simply waiting for her to recognize and embrace it.
Warmth enveloped Bridgette at the newfound knowledge of how she truly felt, but the icy coldness of fear swiftly followed. It gripped her heart in its merciless hold. “He dunnae ken if he loves me,” she whispered. “He said so. He said he dunnae ken exactly what the thing between us is and that we need time to discover what drew us together.”
Marion patted Bridgette on the arm. “He’s a clot-heid,” she said matter-of-factly. “Most men are until a woman comes along and smartens them up. You simply need to be patient as it may take him time to accept his heart. It took Iain time, but look at him now.” Marion grinned. “If you recall, there was a time I wasn’t even sure Iain desired me. At least you know for certain that Lachlan desires you.”
Bridgette’s face flushed as she remembered their heated embrace.
“Bridgette!” Marion gasped. “What have you not told me?”
Bridgette’s skin went from warm to scalding. “We may have shared a chaste kiss.”
“Och!” Marion said, taking a Scottish word and making it sound humorously wrong with her English accent. “I doubt you or Lachlan MacLeod know how to kiss chastely, but I will not pry.”
“Thank the Lord for that,” Bridgette said, to which Marion chuckled.
She cocked her head to the side. “Tell me of your earlier encounter with Lachlan and Helena.”
Bridgette quickly recalled Helena’s words and obvious jealousy, and as she did, Marion nodded. “I’ve suspected for a bit now that though she pledged to marry him for evil purposes, she now desires Lachlan and likely does not mind the prospect of joining with him and binding them in marriage for life one bit. ’Tis in the lustful way she stares at him.”
Possessiveness and uncertainty gripped Bridgette. “Do ye think he has joined with her?” she choked out.
Marion had already bent over and was searching through the brush again, but she popped up and gaped at Bridgette. “No! Of course not! He’s pestered me on a daily basis to see if I have located the herbs I need to make the paste, and he made it very clear that he had no desire to join with her.” Marion let out a disgruntled sigh. “Wemustfind some opium poppy! But with the harsh winter I fear it’s all been killed and we will not be able to collect any until the new growth in the spring. And with the king arriving any day, he might demand that Lachlan seduce Helena to learn what they need, and I worry greatly that Lachlan would refuse. I’m quite certain that would cause grave problems given that Iain has said David returned a much sterner ruler—one who equates obedience with faithfulness.”
Bridgette immediately got to her hands and knees and started searching for the plant Marion needed. Together, they stayed that way until Bridgette’s back ached. Just as she started to stand up in hopelessness, she thought she spotted the plant. Her heart raced as she reached out and yanked it out of the ground by its root. Holding it up, she asked, “Is this what we have been looking for?”
Marion scrambled over, took the plant, and grinned widely. She hugged Bridgette to her, almost crushing the opium poppy. They gasped, parted, and both began to laugh.
Once they had calmed themselves, Bridgette spoke. “Will ye make it tonight?”
