And another. And one bouncing off his forehead.
Sophia looked up and the skies above the trees were dark. “I didn’t think it was going to rain,” she said. She jumped to her feet. “The goats hate rain. We need to grab them.”
They hurried to put the lead ropes back on the goats and they trudged home through the rain, the goats setting a faster pace than usual. Sophia wasn’t sure who hated the rain and mud more, Caspian or the goats. Not that she was a fan of it, either.
“I suppose this means no walk tonight,” Sophia said as they entered the courtyard and the goats immediately tried to run for their barn.
“No walk tonight,” Caspian agreed as they entered the barn. His gaze dropped to her lips, and even though Sophia had never been so cold and wet in her entire life, she suddenly felt like she was on fire. “But soon. I promise.”
Chapter ten
Caspian
Caspianwhistledamerrytune as he sauntered into the dining room for breakfast and found his usual seat, watching as his father pulled out his mother’s chair for her.
His mother smiled up at Lord Rendon with a “thank you, my love,” and Caspian shook his head at their sappy display. Their love was still apparent, even after nearly thirty years.
He wanted that. And he was pretty sure he wanted it with Sophia.
Liliana leaned over and tugged on his shirt. “Caspian, will you come play with me today?” she asked. “I’m having a tea party.”
He looked down at his little sister with a smile. “I suppose I could do that. I do have to go into town for more festival work today, but maybe before or after that, we could have a tea party.”
His mother smiled approvingly from her end of the table. His brothers snickered across from him, but he didn’t care. Kellan and Gideon could tease him all they wanted. It turned out, tea wasn’t actually that bad, and spending time with his sister would make his mother happy. So having a tea party, while it might not have been at the top of his list, suddenly seemed like a not so terrible thing.
Maybe he could even convince Liliana to make it a tea party with the goats and get Sophia involved. The thought of Ivy presiding over a tea party made him grin, as did the thought of enjoying the afternoon with Sophia.
Yes, a tea party seemed like a splendid idea.
“What are you working on for the festival today?” Lady Rendon asked, turning to him. “You don’t have much time left.”
No, he didn’t, given that the festival was the following day.
“Final attempts to coordinate music and the bonfire,” he said. “I got the vendors sorted out over the past week, but I’m still trying to figure out who plays what instruments, and if I can get enough of them to have dancing.”
“I love dancing,” his mother exclaimed, looking over at Lord Rendon with a big smile.
“Promise you’ll save a dance for me?” Lord Rendon asked.
“I’ll save you as many as you want.”
“You might regret that.” Lord Rendon winked at his wife, and Caspian’s brothers made pretend gagging noises.
It may have been a little over the top, but Caspian thought it was wonderful having parents who still loved each other so much.
“I think dancing is a great idea,” his mother said, turning back to him. “Perhaps all of you will find someone to dance with at the festival.” She eyed all three of her sons, and Caspian grinned as his brothers turned pale.
“Maybe,” Caspian said. Could his mother tell that he had someone in mind?
Clearly, his brothers didn’t.
“Please let me know if you need any help with anything,” Lady Rendon said.
Caspian shook his head. “No, thank you. I don’t want you to worry about it on the last day. Maybe you should join us for the tea party instead.”
Kellan snickered across the table.
“Would you like to join us, too?” Caspian asked, turning to him.
