Besotted (The Fairest Maidens #3) - Jody Hedlund Page 0,38
“I need to get ready.”
Strengthening my leg would be the easy part. Saying farewell and leaving Rory behind would be the hard thing—perhaps the hardest I’d ever had to do. But it was for the best. Especially for her. I couldn’t forget that.
Chapter
12
Aurora
I avoided Kresten for as long as I could by spending the majority of the day helping Aunt Idony harvest the root vegetables in the garden. Though we wouldn’t have need of them during the winter, we would eat what we could over the next month and then have Chester distribute the rest to our nearest neighbors.
But even as I avoided the cottage and the temptation to visit Kresten, my thoughts returned to him again and again.
Thankfully, the October day was sunny and warm, a hint of cooler temperatures nipping my cheeks and nose. I sat back on my heels and admired the leaves, vibrant with the colors of autumn—fiery red, burnt orange, and flaming yellow.
Beside me, Aunt Idony did likewise, her hands dark with soil, her fingernails crusted, and her cheeks smudged. She made a sudden tsking noise, pushed herself to her feet, and slapped her hands together to dislodge dirt.
“I did not give you permission to walk so far a distance,” she called.
I followed her gaze, and my heartbeat stalled at the sight of Kresten limping next to Jorg in the cleared area to the side of the gardens. I climbed to my feet as well. What was Kresten doing out of bed? He wasn’t ready. His wound needed more time to heal.
Kresten leaned on Jorg. His handsome face was taut, the telltale sign of his pain. As he ignored Aunt Idony’s chastisement and continued walking, a new realization seized me. He was leaving. Perhaps not at this moment, but the determination in his expression was signal enough to know he was preparing to go.
As if recognizing the same, Aunt Idony wound through the garden and circled the cottage, heading toward him, a frown creasing her brow. She would make him return to bed. Surely she would. And then everything would return to the way it had been. Tonight, he and I would start a new game, and I’d read to him again.
I’d been silly to let his slight from yesterday hurt me. He likely hadn’t meant anything by it. Naturally, he’d been as confused as I by the intimate moment when we’d almost kissed. And now, I needed to show him all was well, that I wasn’t holding anything against him, and that I wanted him to stay.
“You’re going to hurt yourself,” Aunt Idony remarked as she walked beside him.
I couldn’t hear Kresten’s muffled reply, but I guessed he told her he wasn’t planning to stop, especially as he pressed forward along the edge of the clearing with Jorg’s continued assistance. I waited for him to spot me and for his eyes to light up as they usually did. But if he realized I was there, he gave no indication.
Aunt Idony huffed and then strode to the cottage, disappeared inside, and returned a moment later holding a cane fashioned from the blackthorn that grew in profusion around the area. “I’ve been waiting to give this to you when I thought you were ready. But if you insist on doing this today, then take it.” She pressed the cane into his hand.
He halted and stared at the smoothly carved stick, frustration waging a war on his face. After a moment, he lowered it and used it to take a step. He nodded at Aunt Idony. “Thank you.”
She watched him hobble forward, putting more weight on the cane than Jorg. “Do not tax yourself.”
Again he didn’t respond, which only served to disperse the dismay within me. As I resumed my duties in the garden, I couldn’t keep my attention from straying to him all too frequently. And I was ashamed to admit my prayers for his healing had ceased.
Later in the evening after supper, when Chester stepped outside to feed the livestock, I approached Kresten’s chamber, hoping to make things right between us. As I peeked into the chamber, I was surprised to find the candle extinguished, and that all was silent and still. I could see his outline on the bed under the coverlet.
“Kresten?” I whispered.
Jorg stepped out of a shadowy corner. “He’s already asleep. The walking today wore him out.”
I watched Kresten, hoping for some sign of recognition, that perhaps I’d awoken him. But he faced the wall and didn’t move.