her damp temples, and she shivered at the faint echo of pleasure that still coursed through her.
“I still want you safe,” he murmured. “Need you to be safe.”
“But I need to do this,” she insisted. “Whatever else I may be, I can’t hide from this. I need to know what happened to the children. And to me.”
And this time he didn’t argue.
A soft tapping at the door wormed its way into Esme’s sleep but it was only when Gavin slid from under her sprawled arm and out of the bed that she came fully awake.
“What is it?” she mumbled as he pulled on his trousers, quickly securing those damned fastenings.
“I suspect Declan wants to know when we’re going to be ready to go.” Gavin searched through the discarded clothing scattered around the floor, came up with his vest. “And I wouldn’t mind knowing what news he gathered last night.
His hand on the door he glanced back over at her. “I don’t suppose you changed your mind?”
Esme shook her head.
The quiet pleading was clear under his words.
He wanted her to be safe, somewhere away from whatever dangers lay in way for them.
And, in a way, it was tempting.
It would be so easy. Let Gavin and his brothers take care of things.
They had resources, skills she didn’t.
But she just couldn’t do it.
“I have to know what happened.” She sat up, pulling the sheet up to cover her breasts. “It’d be nice to have some answers, both for them, and for myself.”
Lips pressed tight, he nodded once, then his eyes softened. “I don’t blame you. I’d want answers too, if I thought there were any to be had.”
He slipped through a crack in the door, and she listened to his low rumble as he talked with someone else.
Declan.
Time to get going then.
Esme started redressing, not in her comfortable clothes unfortunately, but in the long confining gown of the town’s woman she was pretending to be.
Skirts finally smoothed down, she began re-braiding her hair.
If she didn’t have to walk, or run, or do anything really, the dress was rather pretty, the deep blue color almost the exact shade of the sky, just as day turned to night.
But the veil had no excuse for existing. It could wait until the last minute.
Gavin came back, as she was finishing up, his features grim. “Declan heard about the attack at Hendrik’s caravan. Apparently, most of the merchants he spoke with didn’t think it was such a bad thing to have some of their competition out of the way.” He began roughly tossing his few things into the bag, until Esme moved him out of the way so she could repack it properly. “Declan’s rethinking who he does business with,” he growled.
Esme shrugged. “Then he’ll have very few options in most of the towns. I’m not sure he can afford to have such high standards, not if he’s going to continue building a trading network.”
Once they were ready, she found herself strangely reluctant to leave the room.
It had been comfortable, not a surprise for the best room in the inn… but it had been more than just physical comfort.
Esme glanced at the bed, neatly made up now, but she still imagined she could see the traces of where their bodies had lain together.
Even that, had somehow been far more than physical. A swirl of emotion ran through her, too tangled to separate, to analyze. And somehow, that was disturbing. She had spent more than half of her life trusting her ability to read emotions, to know or at least guess what another person was feeling.
How could she be so uncertain about herself?
Downstairs, Gavin and Declan went to see to the loading of the wagon. Mistress Neve bustled up, wreathed with smiles, to guide Esme to a table by the fire.
“I’d worried that it was going to rain today, but the sky has cleared up nicely, thank the Lady,” she said. “Should be a pleasant day of travel for the rest of your way. I’ll bring you some toast and tea to start the day.”
Esme had to wonder... Would Neve still have been as kind if she’d known this was no townswoman seated at her table? Or would she side with the merchant’s Declan had spoken with?
No.
Neve was kind, through and through. Just because some people here held onto their prejudices, that was no reason to doubt the rest.
“That’s all right,” Esme answered with a smile. “I’m not very hungry.”
Mistress Neve froze, cocked her head and looked over Esme