Margery sat beside Derek, taking his hand in hers.

It had been three days since their arrival at the manor house, and he was finally declared well enough to leave his bed just that morning.

Phillip wasted no time in summoning him to his private room, where he did all of his business.

Jake was waiting for them, standing by the window with his nearly-newborn son in his arms.

“You’ll spoil the boy before he’s even a year old,” Phillip warned him, the more experienced of the two.

“My boy won’t be spoiled,” Jake argued, eyes never leaving the sleeping baby’s sweet face. The child was asleep, unaware of what was being said about him. “I’ll be just as firm with him as our father was with us. There won’t be a spoiled head under this roof, as long as I have anything to say about it.”

Phillip then turned his attention to Derek. “I’m glad to see you doing so well. My wife tells me you had a rather close call, by her estimation.”

Derek cleared his throat, shifting his eyes in Margery’s direction as though to signal for silence in her presence.

She merely shook her head. “Sarah already told me. I’m not a wilting flower. I can accept that the blade came close to wounding you much more severely.”

“I didn’t know you knew,” he murmured.

Phillip chuckled. “Get used to it. I’ve learned that women understand and can handle much more than we give them credit for. My wife still surprises me from time to time.”

Margery decided she liked him quite a lot, Jake, too. While they had overwhelmed her when she’d first arrived, she was already growing accustomed to their strong presence. In that respect, they weren’t unlike Derek.

And they were almost painfully sweet and gentle with their wives, which went a long way toward warming Sarah’s heart. A man who could cradle his baby so tenderly was undoubtedly a good soul.

“What are your plans now?” Phillip asked, getting to the business of their meeting.

Derek shifted in his chair.

This was something he hadn’t yet shared with her, though she knew he’d been meeting with Broc since their return. The two of them had come up with something together, she felt.

“I’ve discussed this at length with Broc,” he announced. “At first, I was set on selling the business, if not reestablishing it in Kirkcaldy.”

“Now?”

“Now, my priorities have changed.” He squeezed Margery’s hand. “I wish to live a more stable life. Broc, on the other hand, wishes to return to shipping. It’s all he knows, and he enjoys it.”

“You’ll sell the ships to him, then?” Jake suggested.

Derek held up a hand. “We had considered that, as well, but it would take quite a long time for him to pay me their worth, though I would never hold the debt over his head, mind you. He’s too proud a man to be comfortable with an arrangement such as that. And, so, I did what I had planned on doing in the future. I named him my partner.”

Margery smiled in relief. It made perfect sense, and she’d never thought of it. Apparently, neither had either of them until recently.

“You’ll still be part-owner of the business, then?” she asked.

“Aye, in name, mostly. With my name still on the business, my merchants will know who they’re dealing with and will have faith in shipping with us. Broc will be involved in the day-to-day work, while I will have a say in major decisions. Now that there will be a… void in Kirkcaldy,” he added, clearing his throat, “I’m certain we can establish a new warehouse there.”

“No wonder he looked so pleased when we crossed paths with him this morning,” Phillip observed.

He then turned his attention to Margery, who swallowed hard when the weight of his gaze fell on her.

“And you?”

“And me?” she squeaked.

He chuckled, softening. “I’ve heard you had plans to request protection and a home of your own in the village.”

She wished someone had warned her they were planning to announce her intentions. She felt at a loss, having been unaware of his knowledge. “Yes,” she replied, seeing no other option but honesty. “I had considered requesting that on arrival. Derek’s condition took my attention until now.”

“Naturally, naturally,” he agreed. “Do you feel the same as you did before?”

“I would like to remain on Duncan land,” she admitted, her voice soft. Why did she suddenly feel so shy? “But I would like to live someplace I could call my own. I realize it wouldn’t truly be my own,” she added, blushing.

“I understand,” he replied, smiling kindly.

“I’ve always lived on a farm, and I believe I would do best there.”

Phillip pursed his lips, then rewarded her with a slow nod. “I think we can arrange that. I see no reason why you shouldn’t become part of the Duncan clan, if you wish to do so. Especially since…” He trailed off, waving a hand between the two of them.

She blushed harder than ever.

“Yes. Especially since that,” Derek agreed.

“There is one thing which still concerns me,” she added once she found her voice again. “My sister. She’s waiting for me, back in Thrushwood, and I cannot leave her there all alone.”

They knew all about Beatrice, having heard the entire story behind Margery’s journey not long after she’d arrived.

The girls had fairly peppered her with questions while the men had stood off to the side, keeping silent but listening to every word.

Phillip folded his arms on the surface of his mahogany desk, looking every inch the concerned laird. The fact that he cared at all made him that much easier to like. He could’ve easily told her to solve her problems on her own.

“I’m sure that a man who owns three ships could arrange something,” he suggested with a twinkle in his eye.

Derek groaned, his head in one hand. “I can’t believe I never thought of it.”

Phillip shrugged. “You’ve had a lot on your mind, haven’t you?”