“Aye. ’Tis happy news indeed.” William placed his hand on his son’s shoulder. “I will leave you. I expect you have much to talk about.”
The door shut behind William, and Alethia waited for the lecture she had coming.
“Alethia, you have no faith in me.”
“Malcolm, I—”
“Nay. Harken to me. You will hear what I have to say this day. ’Twas easier for you to leave with my heart like a thief in the night than to place your faith and our future into my keeping. And what of my daughter? You had no right to take her from me, nor to place her life and yours in danger.”
For the first time she sensed how badly she’d hurt him, and she cringed. She started to respond, only to have the intensity of his glare stop her.
“No’ once have you come to me with what troubles you. No’ once! Why did you no’ tell me from the first Giselle sent you here from the future? You never came to me with Liam’s secret or Elaine’s. And you kept things from me about the battle at Rait, placing your life and the life of our bairn at risk rather than to have faith in me. You made up your mind to leave me, rather than to tell me what you overheard.” He ran both hands over his face. “It must change. We canna go on as we have, lass. I willna have it.”
The sadness and hurt in his eyes broke her heart. From his place in her lap, Hunter’s gaze went anxiously from one adult to the other. She hugged him to her. She couldn’t deny the truth. “I…I didn’t tell you I was from the future because I didn’t want to be burned at the stake for a witch.”
“The MacKintosh have never done such a thing.”
“Well,” she muttered, “I didn’t want to be the first. I’m sorry, Malcolm. What you say is true. I’ve been frightened of everything since I arrived here. At first my only thought was to perform the task Giselle thrust upon me so she’d return me to my own time. It was never my intent to fall in love with you, but then I did. I think, maybe I haven’t relied on you out of fear she’d take me from your side.” She swallowed hard. “Since my parents died, I haven’t relied on anyone but myself, not even my grandmother. I’ve kept a part of me from you because—”
“I ken your reasons.” His voice sounded weary, exasperated. He tipped her face up to look at him. “It changes today.”
“Giselle—”
“Will no’ take you and our bairn from me. This I vow. I ken I have your heart, mo céile, now I will have your faith.”
Alethia nodded, unable to speak through her tears. The knot of fear that had taken up residence in her heart since the day she’d walked into Giselle’s tent melted away to be replaced with trust. Malcolm would keep her safe by his side. No matter what.
“Giselle remains in Inverness for the time being. We will confront her together, lass. ’Tis the only way we can remove the threat she poses to us once and for all. ’Twill be on my terms, and the time will be of my choosing.” He brushed a tender kiss across her lips. “Are we in accord on this?”
She nodded through her tears again, her heart swelling with love for the fifteenth-century nobleman who had stolen her heart.
“Now, I would see this proof from the future you spoke of.” Malcolm sat on the edge of the bed. Taking her hand in his, he brought it to his mouth to place tender kisses in the center of her palm.
“I want to eat and bathe first. Let’s share it with the whole family at the same time, Malcolm. I’ve tried to turn my laptop on every week to keep the battery in good shape, but even with the solar recharger, I’m not sure how long it will last.”
“I dinna understand a thing you just said.” He grinned. “Except the eating and bathing part. ’Twould be my pleasure to see to both.”
William, Lydia, Malcolm, Robley, Liam, Mairen and Hunter sat around the table in the laird’s solar as Alethia passed around her driver’s license and money from the twenty-first century. “DOB means date of birth.” She pointed to her license as William studied it. “I was born in the twentieth century.” She giggled. “I married a man more than five hundred years older than me.”
Robley held the cash she’d earned working at Renaissance fairs. “You say this is currency from your time, True?”
She nodded.
“And Giselle sent you to us. We must talk about this future, cousin. Mayhap I’ll ask Giselle to send me there one day. ’Twould be the adventure of a lifetime, aye?” He grinned. “Are all the lasses from your time as canny and braw as you?”