She pushed back the hair whipping across her face. “Scheming?”
“Aye, scheming,” Alex said, and waggled his eyebrows. “Now, you and I both know that ye love Ian and always have.”
“Ye don’t know my feelings.”
“I am on your side, lass,” Alex said. “So let’s not waste time lying to each other.”
She folded her arms and looked out to sea. “I’ll no spend my life hoping Ian will care for me.”
“I’m no saying ye should accept less than your due,” Alex said. “But I suspect Ian cares for ye more than he knows.”
“Seems to me,” she said between her teeth, “that not knowing that he cares is the same as not caring.”
“Sometimes a man needs to be pushed a wee bit,” Alex said. “Hitting him over the head with the skillet a couple of times was a good start.”
Sìleas felt her cheeks grow warm. “Ian deserved it.”
“I haven’t a doubt that he did,” Alex said. “But ye can’t blame him for trying to get ye under the blankets.”
“Hmmph.”
A seal popped his head up and looked at her with its black eyes for a long moment before disappearing again below the waves.
“Do ye remember how the four of us lads used to sail to Knock Castle to take ye out fishing with us?” Alex said. “It was always Ian who talked us into it. Not that the rest of us didn’t like ye, mind, but we were lads off having adventures. We wouldn’t have brought ye along if Ian hadn’t insisted.”
“He just felt sorry for me,” she said.
“Aye, Ian always did have a soft heart,” Alex said. “But he liked having ye around. He was always talking about the funny things ye said or how quick ye were to learn something.”
“I was a wee girl,” she said. “He doesn’t know me now.”
“So give him time to get to know ye again,” Alex said. “That’s all I’m saying. Don’t decide against him so quick.”
“Why are ye trying to convince me?”
“Because I know ye will make Ian happy,” Alex said, his expression serious for once. “He’s a good man, Sìleas. That’s why ye waited for him so long.”
“Hmmph.” She was more confused than ever.
Alex narrowed his eyes at the clouds on the horizon. “We’d best head back. A storm is coming.”
The waves grew wild on the way back, bouncing them like an egg in a kettle at full boil. Sìleas held tight to the sides of the boat, enjoying the rush of the water and the sting of the sea on her skin.
“ ’Tis grand, isn’t it?” Alex shouted, and they grinned at each other.
The rain was pelting the sea not far behind them as Alex rowed hard for the beach.
“Is that Ian?” Sìleas shouted over the wind, though she knew that was him pacing up and down the beach.
“Ahh, perfect,” Alex said. “Even from here, I can see he’s in a state.”
Ian had seen them now and was standing with his hands on his hips, glaring out to sea in their direction.
“Shall we stay out a bit longer?” Alex said. “The man deserves to suffer, wouldn’t ye say?”
“What are ye about, Alex?”
“ ’Tis all part of my plan to make Ian appreciate ye.”