Part 13 (1/2)
”Oh, Maggie, never say Coll has made an offer?”
”Not yet.” Maggie tucked a loose curl back in her cap. For a moment she got the stubborn line between her brows her father would have recognized very well. ”But he will. Rena, it can't just be wishful thinking. I love him so much.”
”Are you certain?” Rising, Serena crossed over to lay a hand on Maggie's skirt. ”We were only children when we talked that way. I know you had your heart set on him, but you're not a child anymore, and Coll's a man.”
”It is different.” With a sigh, Maggie rubbed at a spot on the mirror.
”When we were children I would think of him as a prince.”
”Coll?” Serena couldn't prevent a sisterly snort.
”He was so tall and bonny. I imagined him fighting duels over me, sweeping me up on his horse and carrying me off.” Laughing a little, she stepped down a rung. ”But now, these past few weeks, being around him has made me see him in a whole new way. He's a steady man, dependable, gentle, even shy in his way. Oh, I know he has a temper and can be reckless, but that's the part that makes him exciting, as well as steady. He's not a prince, Rena, and I love him more than I ever knew I could.”
”Has he kissed you?” Serena asked, thinking that Brigham was more like Maggie's childhood vision of Coll. The earl of Ashburn was a man for duels and carrying off.
”No.” Maggie pouted for a moment over it, knowing it was wrong to wish he had just once taken command of her. ”I think he was about to once, but Malcolm came in.” Maggie fluttered her hands. ”Do you think it's wrong for me to want him to?”
”No.” Serena's answer was flat and honest, but Maggie was dreaming and didn't notice the tone.
”I miss my mother more now than when she died,” Maggie mused. ”Not being able to talk to her about all of this. To ask her if being with my father ever made her feel as though her heart had turned upside down.
Tell me the truth, Serena, do you really think he loves me?”
”I've never seen him act so stupid around anyone else. Stammering, going around dreamy eyed and slack mouthed. Whenever he looks at you he either goes pale or colors up.”
”Truly?” Maggie clapped her hands in delight. ”Oh, but the man's slow.
I'll go mad soon if he doesn't stop looking and take.”
”Maggie!” Though her laughter was scandalized, Serena gave her friend a careful study. ”You wouldn't, well, agree to more than a kiss?”
”I don't know.” Her color was high as she stepped down another rung.
”The only thing I'm sure of is, if he doesn't declare himself soon, I'll take matters into my own hands.”
Fascinated, Serena tilted her head. ”How?”
”I-” Maggie stopped at the sound of approaching footsteps. Her heart fluttered once, making her certain it was Coll even before he swung into the room. On impulse, she let her foot slip off the rung and gasped in alarm as she tumbled the last few feet toward the polished floor.
Serena reached out, but Coll took the distance in a leap and caught Maggie around the waist He had only a fleeting sensation of how tiny she was before he was swamped with concern.
”There now, la.s.sie, have you hurt yourself?” ”How clumsy of me,” she managed over the lump in her throat as she stared up into his wide, rugged face. If Serena had asked her now if she would agree to more than a kiss, her answer would have been yes, a hundred times yes.
”Nonsense.” Overwhelmed by tenderness, he held her gently. ”A little slip of a girl like you shouldn't be climbing ladders.”
Suddenly afraid he might bruise her with his big, clumsy hands, he started to set her down. Drastic desires called for drastic measures, Maggie thought, and she let out a m.u.f.fled cry as her foot touched the ground. Instantly she was gathered in Coll's arms again. She nearly swooned in earnest when she felt the rapid beat of his heart against hers.
”You have hurt yourself? Shall I call Gwen?”
”Oh, no! If I could just sit for a moment...” She fluttered her lashes and was rewarded when Coll swept her up and carried her to a chair. It took him only six steps, but he had never felt more of a man.
”You're a bit pale, Maggie. A little water should help.” He was up and striding out before she could think of an excuse to keep him.
”How badly does it hurt?” Serena had already knelt by her feet. ”Oh, Maggie, it would be so unfair if you couldn't dance tomorrow.”
”I'll dance. And I'll dance with Coll.”
”But if you've sprained your ankle-”
”There's not a thing wrong with my ankle. Don't be silly.” To prove it, she sprang up and did a quick, laughing dance step.
”Why, Margaret MacDonald, You lied to him.” ”No such thing.” She sat again, careful to arrange her skirts in their most flattering folds. ”He a.s.sumed I'd hurt myself, I never said so. Oh, Rena, how is my hair? It must be a mess.”
”You fell on purpose.”
”Aye.” Maggie's face glowed with triumph. ”And it worked.”
Disgusted, Serena sat back on her heels. ”That's nothing but a trick, and a demeaning one at that.”
”It's not a trick, or only a small one, and there's nothing demeaning about it.” She touched a hand to her cheek where Coll's beard had tickled her.
”It was simply a way to make him feel as though I needed tending. A man doesn't fall in love with a woman who's a packhorse, you know. If it makes him feel good to think of me as a bit helpless and fragile, what's the harm?”
Serena chewed over that one, remembering the time Brigham had raised his sword for her when he'd thought she had been attacked If she had acted a little more... fragile... With a shake of her head, she told herself that was for Maggie, not for her.
”None, I suppose.”
”When a man's shy, he needs a bit of a push. There, he's coming back.”
She gripped Serena's hands and squeezed. ”If you could leave us alone for just a little while.”
”I will, but... It almost seems as though he hasn't a chance.”
Her smile spread. ”I hope not.”
”Here now.” Coll knelt beside her and offered a cup. ”Drink a little.” ”Perhaps I'll go fetch Gwen,” Serena said as she rose. Neither Maggie nor Coll spared her a glance. ”And perhaps I won't,” she murmured, and left them alone.
Coll took Maggie's hand in his. It seemed so soft, so tiny. He felt like a bear hulking over a dove. ”Are you in much pain, Maggie?”
”No, it's nothing.” She looked at him from under her lashes, amazed to find herself as stricken with shyness as he. ”You don't need to fuss, Coll.”
Looking at her, he was reminded of one of the beautiful porcelain dolls he had seen in Italy. His need to touch ha was as great as his fear that he would bruise her. ”I was afraid I wouldn't be quick enough to catch you.”
”So was I.” Daringly, she laid her hand on his. ”Do you remember, years ago, I fell in the forest and tore my dress?”
”Aye.” He had to swallow. ”I laughed at you. You must have hated me.”
”No, I could never hate you.” Her fingers curled into his. ”I must have been a dreadful nuisance.” She drew together her courage and looked up.
”Am I still?”