AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Laine chuckles. “Come with me. If you’re staying, you need something better to wear. No offense, girlfriend, but it looks like Sean dressed you out of a lost and found bin.”
I look down at the gray sweatpants and Sean’s t-shirt and laugh. “Yeah, this actually is pretty awful. Something to wear would be great.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Piper
Iwake to the sound of car doors slamming shut below my window, and it takes a moment to remember where I am and why. Waking up in three different bedrooms in four days is disorienting.
Without my phone, there’s no way to know what time it is, but by the angle and color of the light shining through the window, it’s mid to late morning.
I’m not usually such a sleeper. Healing really takes it out of me.
Flipping back the covers, I visit the bathroom for a quick refresh, and then I’m padding down the hall.
I meet Doc Kelvin coming out of Sean’s room. He closes the door behind him and gestures for me to walk with him down the hall. “I gave him something for the pain, but he’ll need food in his belly, or the medication will make him sick. Can I leave that with you?”
“Aye, I’ll make sure he eats. Is there anything in particular he should have?”
We descend the stairs together, and Kelvin stops at the bottom. “It might be good to stay away from fried foods for the morning, but other than that, whatever you can get him to eat is fine.”
The two of us part when he heads to the front entrance, and I strike off to get food for Sean.
I do my best to backtrack the path I took with Laine to the kitchen yesterday, but Quinn Castle is big and has a maze of rooms and corridors. Between the main house and the two wings on opposite ends, it takes a bit of exploring and a couple of turnarounds, but I end up finding my way.
In the kitchen, I find a silver-haired woman wearing the traditional uniform of house staff. She’s shuffling around behind a wide, marble island, taking the stainless-steel lids off serving platters.
She must sense my presence because she looks up and smiles. “Good morning. You must be Piper. I’m Cora. You missed the sit-down for breakfast, I’m afraid, but make yourself a plate and I’ll heat it for you.”
“Thank you. I’m actually here to make a plate for Sean. The doctor asked that I get him to eat, so his medication doesn’t make him sick.”
Cora grabs two clean plates from a stack by the sink and holds one out to me. “Perfect, then I’ll make a plate with all Sean’s favorites, and you make one for yourself.”
That works for me.
Cora gestures to the serving platters, and I make my selections while she hums a cheerful tune and fills a plate for Sean. She skips over some dishes and scoops twice from others, being selective of what she chooses.
“How long have you been cooking for the Quinn family, Cora?”
“Och, going on thirty-five years now. Cormack hired me when he first got married.”
“So, you’ve watched the boys grow up.”
“Aye, I have at that. Been one of life’s greatest joys for me and my man, Connor. We couldn’t have kids of our own, so caring for these five has been good for our souls.”
I finish my breakfast selections and hand her my plate to warm with Sean’s. My brothers and I had a dozen different governesses and housekeepers over our lifetimes. None of them stayed long. I always figured they couldn’t take my brothers misbehaving, but now I’m wondering if it was more about working for my parents.
Perspectives change as we get older and wiser.
“Good morning, ladies.” Laine joins us, carrying a tea tray and a plate with a chocolate-covered croissant and a bowl of cut fruit.
“Och, lass, you must eat,” Cora says.
Laine shrugs. “The peppermint tea is doing its job. I’ll be able to keep things down in a few hours.”
“Are you pregnant?”
My question seems to catch them off-guard, but Laine waves away Cora’s concerned expression. “Barely. It’s too soon to make plans or talk about it.”
