“Aye, that’s it. More now. You’ll feel better for it,” Keeley crooned as she dribbled more water into his mouth.

Alaric obediently swallowed, and when Keeley was satisfied he’d taken enough, she motioned for Ewan to lower Alaric back down.

She tore off a piece of her tattered skirts and dipped it into the remaining water. Then she wiped it over Alaric’s brow, easing the taut lines that gathered at his forehead.

“Rest easy now, warrior,” she whispered.

“Angel,” he murmured. “You came back. Was worried the she-devil had done something evil to you.”

Keeley sighed. “So ’tis an angel I am again.”

“Stay next to me.”

Keeley glanced over her shoulder to see Caelen frowning while amusement glimmered in Ewan’s eyes. She narrowed her eyes at both of them. They wanted their brother to regain his health. Part of that was keeping him calm and noncombative. If that meant sleeping next to him, then she’d do so.

Ewan stepped forward. “I’ll get blankets so that you’re both comfortable. I appreciate you staying close to him when he’s so ill.”

In that moment, Keeley decided the laird couldn’t be all bad. Caelen she would reserve judgment on, but the laird knew she was discomfited by what she considered her duty, and he was putting her at ease and giving her an excuse for remaining by Alaric’s side.

Still, she glanced quickly around to gauge whether the laird’s men had heard or had any understanding of where she was going to sleep.

None of them seemed bothered, and in fact, they began positioning themselves in a tight circumference around Alaric so that he was protected on all sides.

Two of the men brought blankets and rolled one of them into a cushion.

“For your head,” one of the warriors explained. “So the ground won’t be so hard to sleep on.”

Touched by his thoughtfulness, she smiled and took the blankets. “By what name are you called?”

He returned her smile. “Cormac, mistress.”

“Thank you, Cormac. ’Tis the truth I’ve spent the last nights on the floor and would welcome a barrier to the ground.”

She arranged the blankets and then quickly positioned herself next to Alaric, careful to keep a respectable distance between them. With her head cushioned on the rolled up blanket and the furs between her and the ground, she found that she was quite comfortable.

Despite her nap during the day’s ride, she yawned as soon as she settled the blankets over her and Alaric. ’Twas important to keep him warm. She could feel him shiver.

For a long while she lay in the darkness, watching and listening to Alaric. The fires died down but were tended through the night by the posted guards. Eventually she could keep her eyes open no longer.