Page 165 of The Ranger
She was hit with a sudden bout of giddiness. “Yes!” She threw her arms around him and kiss him square on the lips!
“Maida!” Pa cried.
“Oh my,” she heard Mama say. “Dearest, your dinner is getting cold.”
“Oh, let them kiss,” Duncan groused. “Then I can have her plate.”
Maida broke the kiss. “Don’t you dare eat my dinner, Duncan!”
Markhel laughed, climbed to his feet, and pulled her into his arms. “I am hungry too.”
Pa heaved a sigh. “Then come into the house and eat. No sense staying in the barn all night. But you’ll sleep on the sofa, do you hear me?”
Markhel arched an eyebrow at Maida, then nodded at Pa. “As you wish, sir.”
“I wish a lot of things, but it’s too late for them now.” Pa waved everyone outside, and they started for the house.
Markhel took Maida by the hand. “Will they be upset when I teach you the sword?”
“I don’t know. But I think I’m going to like it.”
He smiled at her. “As will I, little one. As will I.”
33
The next couple of days passed without incident. Markhel slept on the sofa, ate his meals with the family and helped Maida decorate the barn and do chores around the ranch. They were inseparable, and whenever she wasn’t near him, she sensed a dark emptiness lurking nearby. It left an icy feeling in her stomach that she didn’t like. When she asked Markhel about it, he said he could feel it too. But what could they do about it? Her heart had yet to Call, and she didn’t have a clue of when it might happen.
“What do I do?” she asked Makama the morning of the dance. They were putting the finishing touches on the barn. Tables were being set up for the food, and she discovered the actual dancing would take place in the barnyard. The barn itself wasn’t big enough to accommodate the dancers and other townsfolk.
“You just wait for it to come. I must say, you’re much more accepting of all this than when I went through it. Vale and I took longer.”
Maida smiled. She wasn’t sure if she should be proud of that or not. “Will it hurt?”
“Oh, yeah,” Makama said with a grimace. “But once your hearts join, there’s nothing in the world like it.”
She had no doubt. Because Markhel wasn’t of this world. “Where is your friend, Mr. Mosgofian?”
“He had to return to the palace. As you two don’t seem to be in any danger and are handling things okay, Kwaku said it was all right. One of Lany’s kids has some sort of performance, and he didn’t want to miss it.”
“Mr. Mosgofian has children?”
“Yes,” she said, matter of fact. “Not only that, his family lives in the palace with the Muirarans. So do Vale and me.”
Her jaw dropped. “Is it nice there?”
“Oh yeah,” Makama drawled. “You should see the swimming pools.”
“Swimming pools?”
Makama grinned. “I’ll show you when you get there. Trust me, you’ll love them.” She watched Markhel help Duncan place a table with the others. “Do you know what you’re going to wear?”
“Markhel and I are going to town later. There’s a dress I’d like.” She blushed. “A wedding dress. Markhel said he’d buy it for me.”
“You’re not wearing that to the dance, are you?”
“No, but if I can get another for the dance, I will. I don’t have a real fancy dress, and I want to look special for him tonight.”
“Then you’d better get going. In case you need time to take in your new dress.” Makama took a sudden breath, and squeezed her eyes shut.