“Correct.”

Quinn mulled this new information over a moment. Then his eyes clouded. “If that’s the case, if the McKane have indeed found you again, Grimm, what’s to stop them from following you to Caithness?” Quinn asked carefully. “Again.”

Grimm raised his head with a stricken look.

Jillian didn’t see Grimm the rest of the day. Quinn informed her that he’d gone riding and would likely not return until nightfall. Night came and the castle retired. Peering out the casement window, she spied Occam wandering the bailey. Grimm had returned.

Draping a plush woolen over her chemise, Jillian slipped from her chambers. The castle was quiet, its occupants sleeping.

“Jillian.”

Jillian stopped in mid-step. She turned, suppressing her impatience. She needed to see Grimm, to touch him again, to investigate their newfound intimacy and to revel in her womanhood.

Kaley Twillow was hurrying down the corridor toward her, tugging a wrapper around her shoulders in the chilly air. The older woman’s chestnut curls were unpinned and rumpled, and her face was flushed with sleep.

“I heard your door open,” Kaley said. “Did you want something from the kitchen? You should have called for me. I’ll be happy to get it for you. What did you want? Shall I prepare you a mug of warm milk? Some bread and honey?”

Jillian demurred and patted Kaley’s shoulder reassuringly. “Don’t worry, Kaley. You go back to bed. I’ll get it.”

“It’s no problem. I was considering a snack myself.” Worried eyes flickered over Jillian’s impromptu robe of soft woolen.

“Kaley,” Jillian tried again, “you needn’t worry about me. I’ll be fine. Really, I’m just a bit restless and—”

“You’re going to see Grimm.”

Jillian flushed. “I must. I need to speak with him. I can’t sleep. There are things I must say—”

“That can’t wait until the morning light?” Kaley eyed the sheer chemise peeking from beneath the woolen. “You’re not even properly dressed,” she said reprovingly. “If you find him clad in that, you’ll get more than you bargained for.”

“You don’t understand,” Jillian said, sighing.

“Oh, but my dear lass, I do. I saw the remains of the Greathall this morning.”

Jillian swallowed and said nothing.

“Shall we cut to the quick of it?” Kaley said tersely. “I’m not so old that I can’t recall what it’s like. I loved a man like him once. I understand what you’re feeling, perhaps even more so than you do, so let me put it into plain words. Quinn is sexual. Ramsay Logan is sexual, and the power they exude promises a rollicking good time.” Kaley took Jillian’s hands in hers and regarded her soberly. “But Grimm Roderick, ah, he’s an entirely different animal, he’s not merely sexual. He drips sensual power, and Jillian, sensual power can reshape a woman.”

“You do know what I mean!”

“I’m flesh and blood too, lass.” Kaley laid a gentle hand against her cheek. “Jillian, I’ve watched you mature with pride, love, and lately a touch of fear. I’m proud because you have a good, fearless heart and a strong will. I’m fearful because your will can make you headstrong beyond compare. Heed my words before you commit yourself to a course that is irrevocable: Sexual men can be forgotten, but a sensual man lingers in a woman’s heart forever.”

“Oh, Kaley, it’s too late,” Jillian confessed. “He’s in there already.”

Kaley drew her into her arms. “I was afraid of that. Jillian, what if he leaves you? How will you handle that? How will you go on? A man like Quinn would never leave. A man like Grimm, well, the men who are larger than life are also the most dangerous to a woman. Grimm is unpredictable.”

“Do you regret yours?”

“My what?”

“Your man like Grimm.”

Kaley’s features softened rapturously, and her expression was answer enough.

“And there you have it,” Jillian pointed out gently. “Kaley, if I knew that I could only have a few nights in that man’s arms or nothing, I would take those magic nights and use them to keep me warm for the rest of my life.”

Kaley swallowed audibly, her eyes filled with empathy. She smiled faintly. “I understand, lass,” she said finally.

“Good night, my dear Kaley. Go back to bed, and permit me the same sweet dreams you once dreamt yourself.”

“I love you, lass,” Kaley said gruffly.