“I’m glad ye found yer gifts, too.”
“That wasna what I meant, Saoirse.” Magnus waited for her reaction. He wondered if he’d gone too far. The pink blooming beneath her freckles made him wonder what she’d look like flushed with pleasure.
“I enjoyed ma morning too, Magnus. I’m still sorry for eavesdropping, but I’m glad we’re spending the time together.”
“And when yer da finds out? I dinna ken why he hasnae said aught yet. Mayhap he doesnae ken since we havenae been anywhere as public as the market.”
“Finds out what? That I spoke to someone I’ve kenned ma entire life.” Saoirse arched a brow. “If he finds fault in that, then someone’s been telling him tales. We’ve done naught wrong.”
“Saoirse.”
“Magnus, we have done naught wrong.”
“Ye are nay longer a lass I was told to mind.”
Saoirse’s lips curled in as she tried not to grin. She looked away as she tried to compose herself. When she focused back on Magnus, she gave up trying to fight her smile. She hoped he wouldn’t ask why she tried to hide her amusement.
“What’re ye thinking aboot, Saoirse?”
“Do I really have to tell ye?”
“Of course nae. I wouldnae insist on ye sharing yer private thoughts.”
Saoirse nodded, appreciating what he said. “I wouldnae refuse if they sent ye to mind me.”
Magnus blinked several times as he stared at Saoirse. He didn’t know what to say to the brazen comment, and he realized his failure to respond embarrassed her. He watched her retreat. He suspected it was the most flirtatious thing she’d ever said.
“Is that what ye want, Saoirse? I ken what I want.”
“What is that?”
“To get to ken ye as a woman and see if we suit. I want ye to get to ken me as the mon I am now, nae the lad ye probably remember.”
“Ye’ve been a mon a long time, Magnus. I remember ye as such. But I have a different—appreciation—for ye now.” Saoirse knew they were treading dangerous ground, speaking so openly about their attraction and where anyone might hear.
“I dinna think yer da will take to the idea.”
“Probably nae. But I dinna think it would be aboot ye. I dinna think he’d take well to anyone showing an interest in me or ma sisters. But he kens it’s bound to happen.”
“I dinna think he’ll approve of me. I’m closer to his age than yers.”
“Ye make yerself sound auld. Ye are exactly between us. Three-and-ten years each way.”
“Aye, but at a certain point, the years between yer father and me feel like they shrank. He willna approve, Saoirse. Ye saw how he reacted to seeing us in the heather field.”
“Because everyone thought ye were still betrothed. He likely thought that made it inappropriate.”
“What do ye want, Saoirse?”
“To find out if we suit. I think we both ken that’s what we’ve been doing for the past two sennights.” Saoirse didn’t have to think twice about her answer. She’d been thinking about it incessantly since Magnus arrived. “I dinna believe in hiding things from ma parents, but mayhap we could be discreet for a while. Mayhap we’ll discover we arenae a good match. If we arenae, then there’s nay point in making a fuss for naught.”
“Vera well. But if yer da, yer grandda, or any of yer uncles ask, I willna lie. I will state ma intentions.”
“What are those intentions, Magnus?”
“To marry ye.”
“Ye sound vera certain.”
