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“Nevertheless, we need to get some men down here to dig her body out,” James decided.

“I’ll see to it,” Malcolm volunteered. “Ye attend to yer wife.”

There was a hard lump of emotion lodged in James’s throat as he approached their bed. It tore at his soul to see Davina’s face so pale, her features so wan and crestfallen. Her aunt’s betrayal cut deep, and when she suffered, so did he.

He hadn’t left Davina’s side since he carried her from the passageway. He had tried not to jostle her leg, which was thankfully not broken, but badly sprained. Colin had run to fetch the healer from the village, but Davina had insisted she needed rest and quiet far more than potions.

James soaked a clean cloth in cool water, then pressed it to her brow. With gentle hands, he examined her head. Davina hissed with pain when he found the swelling bruise at the base of her skull.

“This should heal in a few days,” he said gently. “Shall I ask Colleen to brew ye something fer the pain?”

“Nay. My head feels fuzzy enough.”

James sat on the edge of the bed and took Davina’s hand. The possibility of losing her hit him hard. “I’ve never been so scared in my life. How did ye come to be down in that passageway?”

“I was in the storeroom and remembered seeing my father go through the hidden door when I was a child. I found the lever to open it and started to explore. Aunt Isobel must have been coming into the keep through the tunnel. She struck me on the head and left me. I dinnae know why she returned.” Davina let out a long, shuddering breath. “I still dinnae understand what she wanted.”

“Gold,” James said quietly.

Davina took the nugget he held out to her and ran her thumb over it. “Where did ye find it?”

“In the riverbed on our southern border.”

Davina shook her head. “I find this all very difficult to believe. My parents led a simple life. If there was gold running through the streams, they would have mined it. We could have had a life of ease and wealth.”

James nodded. “I think Isobel exaggerated in her mind the amount of gold she believed was here. Something that extraordinary would not be kept secret fer long. Every man, woman, and child within a hundred miles would be mining the riverbed searching fer it.”

Davina held the nugget up to the light. “Yet ye easily found this prize.”

James smiled. “’Twas fate. It owed us a turn of good luck after all that we’ve endured.”

Davina squeezed his hand, tears glistening in her eyes. “All this time wasted. If Aunt Isobel had not interfered, we’d be married five years already.”

“Aye, and most likely bored and restless with each other,” he teased.

“James McKenna!” She poked his arm, then managed a grin. “Ye are an incorrigible man.”

He looked deep into her eyes. “I love ye, Davina. With all my heart and soul. ’Tis time to finally put the past to rest and start the future we both desire.”

Her eyes softened. She lifted her hand and cradled his face. “Incorrigible, yet wise beyond yer years. I love ye, James.”

Their lips met in a passionate kiss. Though edged with desire, their kiss conveyed the deep feelings they had for each other. James knew their love was something that couldn’t ever be found with another.

They belonged together—in this life and the next. They had from the beginning. It might have taken them longer than most to reach for a life of happiness, but now that it was firmly within their grasp, James knew he would never let it go.

Epilogue

One year later

Davina opened her eyes and gave a lazy yawn, then snuggled closer to the warmth. Her palm lay flat over James’s heart, the steady beating a comforting lull, his familiar scent teasing her nostrils. Cocooned with her husband, Davina could momentarily forget the demands and responsibilities of the outside world and simply enjoy the bliss of a peaceful slumber.

But not for long.

A cock crowed, loud and shrill, and the bleating of sheep filled the air. Reluctantly, she pulled herself away from the delicious warmth and rose from the bed, heading straight for the window. A spring chill hung in the air, but the clear morning promised sunshine for the day.

She smiled. ’Twas a good sign. Today the shearing would start and old Mangus had told her it would be easier for all, including the sheep, if the weather was fair.

She heard the mournful call of a bullfinch and glanced down at the cluster of cottages that surrounded the keep. All looked in fine condition, with many boasting newly thatched roofs and neat rows of freshly planted home gardens. The variety of seeds Lady Aileen had gifted to her had been put to good use and she was glad there had been enough to give each family a share.