Featured Gaelic and Pronunciations:

- Idir (ee-cheer) - at all

- Bòidheachd (boy-yohk) - beautiful

23 April, 1744

Louise's House, Paris, France

I was summoned to Louise's by a messenger in the late morning and informed that Louise needed to see me urgently. A little concerned, I quickly dressed and made my way downstairs. "Magnus!" I called, and the footman appeared in the foyer. "Can ye tell my husband that I am at Madame de Rohan's home if I am no' back by the time he returns?"

" Oui, Madame, " said Magnus. "Shall I prepare the carriage?"

"No, she's three hooses down, I'll walk. I could use the fresh air," I told him, and then I was out the door. Jamie had gone to pay a visit to Duverney and his chess games at Versailles, as the man had recently returned from Marseilles. He had been out of town, so we had not planned to send out the invites to our dinner until he returned. Evidently, Alasdair Fowlis was also indisposed, but was rumoured to return by early May. Jamie and I discussed that that would likely be the best time to host our planned dinner.

When I arrived at Louise's, I was led to the parlour, where Mary Hawkins could be found admiring a wooden clock. I had seen a clock similar to it before - I believe it was called a cuckoo clock? "Oh! H-hello, Mrs. Fraser," said Mary when she noticed me, curtsying to me. "Is Miss MacCraig with you?"

"Brian isnae feelin' well and he always does better when his brother is around him so I left her and the lads at home. Plus, Louise told me te come urgently. Do ye ken where she is?" I asked, but Mary shook her head.

"I h-haven't seen her all morning," said Mary. "I've b-been admiring this thing. Isn't it amazing?"

"Is it a clock?" I asked. I could see the minute hand at two minutes until twelve, and Mary seemed to be anticipating something as the second hand ticked away.

"Oh, j-just wait, Mrs. Fraser! It is f-fascinating!" she said excitedly. I couldn't help but chuckle to myself at her fascination with the clock. She was so naive, innocent and childlike… Most girls in this century were, when they were married off to form alliances for the family. Royalty, nobility, sometimes even a peasant, it didn't matter. If the parents of a daughter could benefit from her marriage, they would take advantage of it. I was startled when the cuckoo clock began to ding and whistle at us, and Mary giggled girlishly with excitement while Colette, Louise's little monkey, screeched with surprise.

"Do you like my new toy?" Louise's voice interrupted, causing Mary to gasp.

"It's a lovely clock, Louise," I said.

"Oh, yes, i-it is m-m-marvellous," said Mary through her stutters.

"Are ye all right?" I whispered to Louise as she approached me. "Ye said it was urgent." She nodded subtly, then turned to look at Mary.

"Mary, would you be a dear and feed Colette? There is fruit in the kitchen. And do not put your fingers in the cage," she said to Mary.

"Oh! Uh-um… Yes, Madame Louise," said Mary, and she curtsied to us both before leaving the room, Colette chattering away in her cage.

"That monkey… She bites everyone but me," said Louise.

"She admires ye," I said, glancing at Colette in the cage, and then I looked back at her. "Are ye all right, Louise? Yer message worried me."

"Ah, yes, that…" Louise began, turning around to float over to the settee and sit down. "The reason I have summoned you here, mon amie… The situation is rather… delicate." She paused for a moment as I sat down in a chair across from the settee. "I am with child." My eyes widened just a little before I corrected my expression.

"I… suppose congratulations are in order, then," I said.

"I am afraid not," she said. "My husband and I have not been intimate in months. The baby is not his," she told me with shame in her voice. "You know about these things… Will you help me?"

"Aboot havin' a bairn? Well, yes, I do, and I do ken, too, that men arenae as clever as ye think when it comes te women's affairs-"

"I do not mean that," she told me. "I want to… m'en débarraser. " To get rid of it.

"I… I see," I said, swallowing what felt like a very large pill. "Erm… Are… Are ye sure, Louise? Riddin' yerself of a bairn can be verra dangerous."

"I am sure. It was not an easy decision to make, but I have made it. How shall we go about it?"

"Well… I suppose I can make a concoction of barberry leaves and black hellebore. I'll have it made into a tonic."

"Black hellebore? The very name sounds evil," said Louise, her hand on her chest.

"That's because it's practically poison," I told her, and she seemed to pale a little. "Our bodies are verra durable. Often, te kill the wee thing, ye risk the possibility of… killing the mother, too."

"But what other choice do I have?" Louise asked me, a bit of desperation leaking through her tone, and I sighed.

"Remember what I said aboot men bein' clueless aboot women's bodies?" I asked. "What'll happen if yer husband finds out aboot yer pregnancy?"

"If he learns it is not his, he will have the marriage annulled! It is one thing to enjoy an affair de coeur , but a pregnancy out of wedlock… Jules could have me arrested for adultery, or even sent to a convent if he learns of le petit bébé! "

"Then he willnae find out," I told her. "How far along would ye say ye are? How many courses have ye missed?"

"Only the one, but I watch it very carefully," Louise told me.

"Then there ye have it. Bairns could come early, it happens all of the time. My own lads came two months early. Ye could persuade yer husband that the bairn is his," I informed her, and she seemed scandalised.

"You mean, sleep with my husband?" she asked me.

"I can imagine sleepin' with one's husband can be verra difficult," I said with polite sarcasm, but it went over Louise's head.

"But my lover would be furious! " she exclaimed.

"He's no' the one who's pregnant, is he?" I asked her. "Look, Louise… I ken the situation yer in. Yer early enough in this pregnancy that a low dose of black hellebore may do ye jus' fine, but this isnae aboot what Jules wants, or what Ch… yer lover… wants… It is aboot what you want, and what sacrifices that you are willing te make. It is verra possible that ye may be fine, or ye may lose yer life or become verra ill fer some time. Or, ye sacrifice yer lover fer the sake of raisin' a bairn that ye clearly dinnae want te rid yerself of. The choice is yers. No' Jules's, no' yer lover's, yours. I will only help ye with this if it's what you want. Do ye understand me?" Meekly, Louise nodded.

"Yes… But how will I raise a child with a man who is not the father?" she asked me.

"Hundreds of women do it everra day, ye'd do just fine. Men can be quite oblivious, and he may jus' be thrilled te have a child," I told her. "But in the end, what matters most is that the child is brought up with love." Louise looked down at her lap, then brought one hand up to rest on her abdomen. Though she wore a large ornate dress, I knew that her pregnancy was still unnoticeable, but a mother could feel the bairn growing beneath her palm whether the bump was visible or not.

"I shall have to think about it," Louise told me.

"When ye make yer decision, I'll be here, no matter which ye make," I told her kindly, grasping both of her hands in mine. She appeared worried, but she still smiled. It was evident that she was glad to have a friend in her time of need. I couldn't help but wonder how many friends Louise had - genuine friends - and then realised that she likely didn't have any, except for myself and Colette and…

Charles. Charles would be invited to the dinner, and we had plenty of room to invite the de Rohans. Oh, God, was I seriously thinking about this now ? It could help to save thousands… It could be exactly what we needed to derail Charles. Maybe. I'd have to speak to Jamie about it, but blessed Bride, did I feel awful for the thought.

Jared's House, Paris, France

I had returned to hear that Jamie had not come home, so I spent the remainder of the day with the lads. Archie was awake and quite playful, while Brian seemed very docile and uninterested in everything around him. He didn't giggle and laugh like other babies his age did, nor did he explore the world he lived in - instead, he mostly slept, and simply tolerated his surroundings.

That night, I was already settled into bed when I heard the door open, and shortly after, Jamie appeared in my field of vision with a smile on his face. "Good evenin', my beautiful wife," he told me, bending over me to kiss me. "And how was the rest of yer day since we last met?"

"No' too bad. I learned somethin' verra interestin' today," I said, stretching my arms as he climbed off of me to remove his boots and breeks. "I take it that you had a good day?"

"As a matter of fact, I did," he said, undoing his breeks and pulling them down around his ankles.

"Aye? Are ye goin' te tell me or are ye goin' te make me wait?" I asked him, rolling back onto my back while he climbed on top of me.

"Oh, ye willnae have te wait long tonight, mo nighean ruadh, " Jamie told me, bending down to kiss me again. He briefly broke the kiss to sit up and pull his shirt off over his head, but then a dark mark on his upper thigh suddenly caught my attention. It was round, dark and appeared to be fresh.

"What the hell is that?" I demanded, letting go of him and running my fingers over the bruise. I could feel slight indentations that were small… and felt like teeth marks. "Is this a bite mark?"

"Aye, well, er… She did get a wee bit carried away," Jamie told me, dropping his shirt again to cover it up.

" She? " I demanded. "Ye dinnae mean that brunette lass with the large breasts that Fergus always talks aboot? The one who bites everraone in the establishment?"

"No, it was a different lass entirely," Jamie said, sparking the furious flame inside of me.

"What, and that makes it better?" I demanded. "Ye'd better have a damn good explanation, James Fraser, as te why yer lettin' other women bite yer legs!"

"It's a verra simple explanation, actually," Jamie began. "I dinnae suppose ye would ken the meanin' of the term 'soixante-neuf' ?" At this, my jaw dropped open and I shoved him off of me aggressively, getting up off of the bed and grabbing my tartan to wrap around myself.

"I ken exactly what 'sixty-nine' means!" I snapped at him.

"The lass was rather insistent aboot it, although she may have been fine with just the six - the nine could go hang," Jamie said, sitting back up.

"She was so insistent that ye just had te accommodate her, didnae ye?" I snapped at him.

"I didnae accommodate her, Catrìona. Ye have te believe me, mo gràidh, nothin' happened!"

"So ye got that bite defendin' yer virtue, aye?"

"Well, I didnae say I wasnae tempted," he said, standing up. I was so furious with him that I could do nothing but speak calmly, venom laced in my voice and fire in my eyes.

"Ye arenae helpin' yer case. Idir! " I hissed at him.

"Yes, Catrìona, I was filled with lust, but tha's a good thing!"

"A good thing?"

"Yes! Christ, I dinnae think I'm explainin' this properly…"

"Then figure it out, damn it!" I snapped at him rather loudly, startling him, and then I spoke more calmly, but with poison in my tone. "So far, all ye've 'explained' te me is that while ye've hardly touched me in months, tonight ye were driven mad passion by some… some…" I hated using the word 'whore' to describe a sex worker, so I settled for something different. "…fer some bitch who ye've probably seen more than yer own damn wife!"

"Yes! I-I mean no! No, Catrìona, tha's no' what I meant," Jamie exclaimed, trying to recollect his thoughts. "But bein' driven mad with lust, tha's the good thing!"

"Is it now?" I spat at him. "I cannae remember the last time ye were 'driven mad with lust' by me, tha's fer damn sure, and it's no' fer lack of tryin' on my part!"

"I started te feel like a man again!" Jamie snapped back at me. Was he getting angry with me? "I've tried fer so long te find a way back to ye, te no' see that bastard, Randall's face everra time I take ye in my arms!"

"As if tha's an excuse fer seeking the attention-"

"Catrìona, let me explain-"

"-of another woman! "

"I ken it sounds bad! I ken it does! But if ye'd just listen to me-"

"No! I'm done listenin' te this excuse!" I snapped at him, my voice cracking just a little.

" You told me that Randall was alive! And now I can be the one te end his life! Ye ken, it lifted somethin' from my heart! I began te feel I could stir up those feelin's again inside myself, so I could feel that way again with my wife!"

"So he had te stir yerself up with a loose woman before ye could bear te bed me?" I demanded from him.

"No, tha's no' what I was — Look, Catrìona, ye ken I've been strugglin' fer a long time…"

"Struggling? Struggling? Do ye ken what I've been strugglin' with?" I demanded from him, cutting him off. "I've been tryin' te be patient and understandin' - I have been patient and understandin' - only te be turned away and be accused of bein' the one turnin' you out! All the while, I've been raisin' our sons all on my own, dealin' with Brian's illness all on my own-"

"I am here!"

" Where? Yer here, ye say? Where the hell have ye been then because I sure as hell havenae seen ye around!" He paused, but it was evident that he was angry, and that only made me angrier. "Ye've no' been here! Ye've been at Versailles with Duverney playin' yer stupid chess games, ye've been at Maison Elise with bloody Charles Stuart and apparently this big-breasted brunette bitch- " He opened his mouth to speak, but I cut him off. "I dinnae care if it was her or some other bitch! Ye've been everrawhere but here , with yer wife and yer sons! Do ye no' ken how traumatisin' it was te me te birth our sons by myself, not kennin' if ye were alive or dead? Do ye not ken how frightenin' it was wonderin' if ye'd find the will te live after Wentworth, wonderin' if I'd be left on my own, in a time I didnae ken, raisin' two lads all on my own? Or do ye jus' no' care? Because all ye care about is yerself, your needs and desires, your wishes. Ye've never spoken te me aboot it, no' once. Never asked fer my help, and dinnae dare say that I've no' been here fer you, because I have, everra step of the way, waitin' fer ye te bloody open up te me, and ye won't! "

"I am with ye and I always have been! But ye dinnae ken what it's been like fer me since Wentworth!" Jamie spat back at me.

"Dinnae ken what it's like? I've been raped by Randall, too, in case ye forgot, and not te mention how I was raped by a group of lads when I was bloody fifteen years old! Dinnae dare tell me I dinnae ken what it's like te have that innocence stripped from ye!"

"Ye've said it yerself, I'm a proud man, and te have somethin' like this happen-"

"And I'm a proud woman, damn it! I'm a goddamn bloody Fowlis of Barra, my family has been kent fer their pride fer centuries!"

"But ye dinnae understand-"

"Then make me understand if ye dinnae think I do, ye goddamn selfish bastard!" I spat at him, fighting off tears in my eyes, but my own gaze bored into his.

"There was this place inside of me, a place that I think everraone has, even you! A place they keep te themselves, a fortress, even… Where the most private part of ye lives," he began, much more calmly than before. "Maybe it's yer soul, the bit that makes ye yerself and no' anyone else. And after Wentworth, it was like… my fortress was blown te hell. The thing that once lived there was suddenly exposed, out in the open, without shelter… And tha's where I've been ever since, Catrìona. Naked… alone… tryin' te hide under a blade of grass."

"And ye think I've never been there? Ye think tha's never happened te me? Tha's why ye think I dinnae understand?"

"Catrìona-"

"I ken what happened te ye was awful and traumatising. I ken that well because I've been there meself, and ye keep forgettin' that I'm no' some dainty, sheltered lass who grew up with everrathin' given te her on a silver platter! I'm no' innocent, I'm no' naive. I've seen the world fer what it is, I've had my fortress blown te hell dozens of times, and everra time I start te build it up again, somethin' comes along te undo all of my progress. And tonight, the person who blew my hard work te bits was you, " I told him firmly, but calmly. "Ye need te stop thinkin' only of yerself, Jamie. Yer no' alone, but no matter how many times I tell ye tha', ye act like I've never said it, that I'm no' here fer ye, that yer strugglin' all on yer own with no one te help ye, as if tha's exactly where ye want te be. Last November, before ye left fer Broch Mordha, ye promised me ye'd return, but ye never did. My husband isnae here, and I'm done bein' treated like I'm not here, either." I paused for a moment to give Jamie a chance to respond, but he was silent. He was evidently processing my words and couldn't say a thing. "Enjoy the bed te yerself because it's all yers. I'll be findin' someplace else te sleep."

I gave him one final glance, and then I turned on my heel and strode out of the room. I wandered the house until I found myself in a sunroom on the lower floor in the back, far away from any prying eyes or ears, and buried my face in my tartan and began to cry.

JAMIE POV

She was right; he was being selfish. He was pushing her away. Tonight, she had made him realise that she really was there all along, knowing exactly what it was that he was going through, and that hurt him even more. To know that she knew what it felt like to have that fortress blown apart… and to know that he was the cause of one of the times her fortress collapsed… It broke his heart that she had to suffer the pain of feeling exposed and naked, unable to run from the pain of the world, and it shattered those broken pieces to know that he was one of those things that made her feel that way.

He didn't bother going to bed. Instead, he sat on the edge of the bed after she had left him and buried his face in his hands, wanting to cry but feeling like he didn't deserve to. He'd hurt her badly; why hadn't he just let her help him? He was so proud, and he felt that she shouldn't have to be the one to fix him up and put him back together, but was that not the job of a wife? Was that not the job of a husband? All this time, she'd been falling apart, but she was so strong that she had been catching the pieces of herself as they fell and putting them back on as best as she could, but soon, her foundation would fail, if it hadn't already. When her foundation fell, would she be strong enough to rebuild?

Yes, of course she would be. She was Catrìona Fowlis Fraser, the strongest, boldest, bravest woman that he ever had the privilege to know, and he, James Alexander Malcom Mackenzie Fraser, was the man who was fortunate enough to be her husband. She chose him, she loved him… and he betrayed her. Abandoned her. Allowed her to fall apart and leave her to pick up the pieces on her own. God, how could he be so blind? Poor Catrìona… He had to find her. He had to apologise to her, tell her he loved her, take her in his arms and show her exactly how much he loved her. He'd taken her for granted, left her to love and raise his sons - the children that he impregnated her with - on her own, and he wasn't going to do that anymore.

Not even bothering to put his breeks back on, he ran out of the room, checking first the empty guest rooms, disturbing Cailean to ask if Catrìona had gone into his room (which she hadn't) and then searching each of the rooms - dozens of them, far too many rooms. Did a house really need this many rooms? He worked his way from floor to floor, eventually ending up on the bottom floor and checking the dining room, parlour, even the closets, until he finally stumbled upon her sleeping form in the sunroom. She seemed to be fast asleep, but she looked so beautiful bathed in moonlight and the shadows of raindrops like tears down her cheeks. Her tartan was wrapped loosely around her and her legs were tucked up beneath her, her beautiful red curls, neutralised a little by the blue of the moonlight to appear more brown, framed her face like an angel. Christ, she was so beautiful… His beautiful warrior, his laochaire bòidheachd…

He approached her quietly, holding his breath, and bent down over her, brushing a curl out of her face. She stirred slightly, and he bent to press his lips against the beautiful, pure, soft skin of her forehead. He felt her stir again, and when he looked down into her face, he found her beautiful storm grey eyes open and watching him. "Catrìona… mo chridhe… Tha mi gaol ort… I love ye verra much," he whispered to her. She didn't respond, but was listening intently. "You were right… I was selfish. Ye ken exactly what I'm goin' through, and I denied that because I thought ye shouldnae have had te ken… It wasnae fair of me te deny what ye've seen and experienced. I'm sorry… So verra sorry." She reached up a hand to rest on his cheek, her thumb running over the prickly stubble of his cheek. "Can ye forgive me?" Without saying a word, she sat up, then took his face in her hands and pressed her lips firmly to his.

"Forgiven," she whispered to him, and then she kissed him again, pulling him down to lie on top of her. He crawled on top of her and straddled her hips, pushing the tartan off of her shoulders and cradling her head in his hands. "Come find me, Jamie," she whispered to him again. She was welcoming him home, and he was glad to be there. He kissed her again, passionately, then reached beneath him to pull her shift up and over her head, tossing it aside. He cupped one of her breasts in his hand - firm, round, beautiful, a life source for his sons - and bent to kiss her neck. She pushed him up just a little and tugged at his shirt, hinting that she wanted it off of him. "I need ye naked," she said, teasing him a little with a phrase he'd said to her a dozen times. He smiled, then pulled the shirt off over his head, sitting up so she could run her hands over his chest. She groaned at the sight of him, stiff and firm, ready to be sheathed within her, and wrapped her hand firmly around him. When she began to move her hand, Jamie let out a moan, his hands gripping her shoulders as she moved her hand, and then he stopped her when he couldn't take it anymore. Raising an eyebrow, she seemed confused, but then he lowered himself down on top of her, lined himself up with her entrance and pushed in. She let out a cry as he entered her, then fiercely gripped his shoulders as he began to move within her. "Jamie… Jamie…"

"I love ye, mo ghràidh ," he told her. "God, I love ye so much."

"Jamie… my love," she moaned, holding him tightly to her as he moved. They groaned, grunted and moaned together, hands roaming, squeezing, holding and loving. Jamie could feel himself nearing the edge, the pressure and the heat building up within him.

"I'm nearly there," he muttered to his wife. "Come with me…"

"I will," she told him, pushing him closer to the edge. With hands locked tightly above their heads, they went over the edge together, crying out, then slowly relaxed from the high together. Catrìona wrapped her arms tightly around him, her hand buried in his hair and stroking his curls. She kissed his face gently. "I love ye, Jamie… So much."

"I love ye, too," he told her, gently pressing his lips to hers. He rolled off of her, then pulled her to his chest and held her. "Remember I told ye how I felt lost? Exposed, naked… Tryin' te hide under a blade of grass? I think tha'… perhaps ye've built me a lean-to." She smiled at him. "And a roof… te keep out the rain."

"I feel that, too," she told him, resting her hand over his heart. He placed his hand over hers, holding it.

"I'm verra sorry I shut ye out… I promise I'll never do it again," he whispered to her. "And I'm sorry aboot the bite… I should have come te ye."

"It's all right," she told him. He brought her hand to his lips to kiss it, then suddenly trained his ears to a slight sound he thought he heard echoing off the walls throughout the house.

"What is tha'?" he asked. "Is it… the bairns?"

"Could be one of the lads cryin'. They might need te be fed," said Catrìona. She sat up, then bent down to kiss him. "Meet me in our room. I'll go and check on them, care fer 'em if I have te, then I'll meet ye back in there." He nodded, then she bent to kiss him again, standing to pull her tartan around her shoulders and leaving the sunroom to tend to their sons. She was such a wonderful mother, and a perfect wife. Thinking of her made Jamie's heart swell. Everything was going to be all right now. They were together again in full, and nothing could ever tear them apart again.

CATRÌONA POV

Beth had been awoken by the lads and was holding Archie, who was screaming his wee head off, and I gladly accepted him to feed him. Once Archie was fed, Beth handed Brian to me for feeding and burped Archie, then placed him back in his cot and rocked him until he was fast asleep. Brian, on the other hand, fell asleep at my breast before he was finished, so I placed him back in his cot and kissed my wee lads' red curls. I thanked Beth for her care, then wrapped my tartan even more firmly around me and made my way towards mine and Jamie's bedchamber. As I walked down the hall with a candle in hand, I heard a quiet rat-a-tat-a-tat on the window behind me. I stopped, then turned to find a cloaked figure at the window tapping on the window. "What the hell…" He wasn't trying to break in, he was trying to get my attention, so I put down the candle and went to the window to unlock it and allow the cloaked figure inside. He collapsed onto the floor, moaning with misery while I closed the window and knelt down beside him, pulling the hood off of his head to reveal… "Charles? Er… Yer Highness?"

"Madame Fraser, I am so glad it is you!" he said to me, sitting up and grasping my hand. "I was unsure if I had the right house!"

"Pardon my tone, but what the hell were ye doin' on my roof?" I asked him, cocking an eyebrow.

"I am told you have quite a tongue, but given the circumstances, it is quite all right," said Charles. "I do not usually arrive so, without ceremony or at such an unsocial hour, but I had found myself in a rather embarrassing position at the home of a friend and was forced to flee. Unable to use the front door, I departed out of the window and onto a roof."

"Must be quite an experience fer a prince," I said.

"Indeed," Charles replied. "I had a rare time, dodging chimneys, slipping on wet slates, until it occurred to me that the house of your dear husband, James, was down the row."

"I see," I said. "Are ye hurt? I see yer nursin' yer hand a bit here."

"Indeed, I have suffered a ghastly and painful injury," said Charles, producing his hand from his cloak and showing me the cut on his hand. "You shall have a look at it, and I will need a whisky, too." I raised my eyebrows just a little; demanding, wasn't he? I was about to open my mouth to respond when the door to the nursery opened and Beth, clad in her cap, shift and shawl, entered the hallway.

"Is everrathing all right, Mistress? I heard a noise," she said, and then stopped when she saw Charles on the floor and me kneeling beside him.

"Yes, if ye could fetch my husband and bring him to the study, tha's where we'll be going," I said, standing and assisting Charles to stand as well. "Forgive me, Yer Highness. This is Miss Beth MacCraig, she is our… nanny."

"Charmed indeed," said Charles to Beth.

"Beth, this is His Royal Highness, Prince Charles Stuart," I said to Beth, who's eyes widened.

"Oh! A-A pleasure te meet ye, Yer Highness!" Beth exclaimed. Suddenly, I remembered how I was dressed, and I cleared my throat.

"Er, actually, Beth, why don't ye take the prince te the study and I'll fetch Jamie meself," I said. "She'll get ye that whisky. I need te… fetch my medicine bag."

"Indeed," said the prince, taking note of my appearance. I let Beth lead Charles to the study while I went to the bedchamber, glad that I did not send Beth to fetch Jamie, as he was lying on the bed fully nude and exposed.

"What took ye so long?" he asked me when I closed the door behind me.

"Get dressed, we have rather unexpected company," I told him. "The bloody prince appeared on our roof and is askin' fer ye."

"The prince? Ye mean, Charles?" Jamie asked me.

"No, I mean the Dauphin. Yes, I mean Charles! He's in the study waitin' on us both and we're both naked te the core," I exclaimed, throwing off my tartan and digging around in the drawers of the dresser searching for a clean shift - I'd left the other one in the sunroom. I found one and pulled it on while Jamie pulled on his shirt and the breeks he'd abandoned earlier, then I pulled on one of those silly fancy French robes before grasping my medicine bag.

"What the hell is he even doin' here at this hour?" Jamie asked me.

"I dinnae ken, but I'm sure he'll tell ye," I told Jamie as we left our bedchamber and entered the study.

"James!" Charles exclaimed from a seat in front of the fire. "I am so glad to see your face, my friend!"

"Yer Highness! I didnae expect ye," said Jamie, taking the prince's offered hand and kissing it.

"Indeed, I did not mean to come at such an hour, but as I explained to your wife, I ran into trouble at a friend's and had to come straight away," Charles explained.

"He was on the roof in the bloody rain, got himself injured," I said, sitting down on a stool beside the chair and taking Charles's hand to examine it. "What did ye cut it on? It's small and shouldna require sutures, but I will have te disinfect it so it doesnae get infected."

"No cut, Madame - a bite!" exclaimed the prince.

"A bite?" asked Jamie.

"Aye, an epidemic around here, it seems," I said as I cleaned out the wound with a bit of alcohol. The prince stifled a groan of pain as I cleaned it out. "What was it that bit ye?"

"Her pet!" Charles exclaimed, looking at Jamie.

"Her?" Jamie asked him.

"Yes! It bites everyone but her! Ill-tempered, flea-ridden beast," Charles said.

"A monkey?" I asked, pausing from my work.

"Yes. A foul thing, it is," Charles told Jamie. "Your brother, is he here?"

"Asleep, but yes," said Jamie. "This friend… Was she yer lover?"

"She swore she loved me countless times," said Charles with bitterness. "Then tonight, she spurns me without warning. We were quarrelling when her husband arrived home early."

"I can imagine that would have put her in quite an awkward situation," I said sarcastically, but Charles ignored me.

"God is forever testing me," he said as I wrapped his hand. "Placing obstacles in my path, and I have overcome every one of them! I shall overcome this, too. I will not be deterred. Mark me, James, I will win her back!"

"I'm sure ye will, Yer Highness," Jamie said to him. I finished wrapping the hand and tied the bandage firmly around Charles's wrist.

"There, all done," I said. "Try not te get but by any more monkeys, will ye?"

"Can we offer ye hospitality?" Jamie asked Charles. "We have a spare room we would be glad te offer ye."

"No, no, I must return to my quarters," said Charles. "I thank you kindly for welcoming me into your home."

"My house will always be at yer service, Yer Highness," Jamie told him politely.

"But it's rainin', and ye've just had a nasty injury," I said to the prince. "Personally, I would feel much better if ye stayed so I can check it in the mornin', make sure it hasnae become infected-"

"Do you question your prince?" Charles asked me, clearly irritated by my comment.

"What?" I asked, taken aback.

"My wife means well, Yer Highness. She is a healer and is only concerned aboot yer well-being," Jamie stepped in. "I shall have our carriage prepared fer ye. Catrìona." He gave me a look as if to say 'come with me', and with a slight huff, I followed him into the hall.

"If that becomes infected-" I began, but Jamie cut me off.

"Then he'll have someone te look at it," Jamie told me. "Ye cannae go against the prince's wishes like tha', Catrìona. I ken ye mean well, and ye've done well by the prince, but it's out of yer hands now." I let out a frustrated huff.

"Bloody misogynistic prick," I said bitterly, and Jamie chuckled and pressed his lips to my forehead. "Meet me in the parlour downstairs, I'll be in shortly. Let me rid our home of the prince first, all right?" I nodded, then did as I was told while Jamie went to speak to one of the servants about readying the carriage.

Jamie entered the parlour sometime later with two crystal glasses full of whisky, handing me one and sitting beside me on the settee by the fire. "So he was with Louise," he asked me, and I nodded.

"We kent they were together. He told Cailean tha' months ago," I told him. "It makes sense. They're both dreamers, they both live in a fantasy world… They're perfect for each other." I sipped my whisky, then recalled something I wanted to tell Jamie earlier on this seemingly never ending night. "I wanted te tell ye earlier… Louise is pregnant."

"Good fer her, and de Rohan," said Jamie in response.

"But see, tha's the thing. It's no' de Rohan's child, it's Charles's," I told him, and his eyes seemed to widen. "She wants te keep it, pass it off as de Rohan's bairn. I feel terrible thinking this… but I think we should invite them te dinner."

"It's no a bad idea, as terrible as it sounds," Jamie replied, setting his whisky down on a table beside the settee. "We use their affair te our advantage."

"Use her pregnancy te derail Charles. It certainly will, he seems te love her, and she him," I said.

"Use his broken heart te break his bank," Jamie replied.

"Does this make us bad people?" I asked him.

"Nah," Jamie replied, pulling me into his arms and holding me against his chest. "The way I see it, we're doin' a bad thing fer a good reason."

"Is tha' no' what bad people say?" I asked him, looking up at him.

"Savin' thousands, or savin' one idiot's heart," he replied, brushing a piece of hair out of my face. "It doesnae compare. God will understand on judgement day." He pressed his lips to my forehead. "Nevermind Charles. I dinnae want te discuss him anymore, only you. Ye ken we've been married a year now."

"A year last Friday," I replied.

"I believe we were in the middle of somethin'," he muttered quietly to me, burying his lips in my hair.

"What, here?" I asked him, looking around the room.

"Why no'? Before, we were in the sunroom," he told me, lifting me off of him and lying me down onto the settee. "I've go' a lot of lost time te make up for, and I dinnae want te waste another minute." I couldn't help but giggle at this, and he took my hand in his and kissed my fingers. "Will ye have me here?"

"I'll have ye wherever ye want me," I told him. He smiled at me, then kissed my hand once more before moving down to kiss my thighs. My Jamie was home, and he wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon.