So when the carriage stopped outside the fair, her heart clenched with something she couldn’t quite name.
Summer couldn’t be prettier. The day was clear and warm. And yet, as much as she wanted to be happy, memories of her childhood kept stealing her joy.
If her father were here…
She had been dreading that thought.
If her father were here, he would have stood tall beside her, his sharp eyes scanning every corner as if danger lived in music and laughter. He would have told her which stalls were proper and which were not. Which men to avoid. Which smiles were too bold.
It was strange. She had spent so long resenting that control, but now she missed him.
The man beside her shifted.
The sudden movement startled her out of her thoughts. Blinking quickly, she twisted slightly to find William facing her fully.
He looked impossibly refined, deliciously handsome. Well-styled hair, tailored coat, fitted gloves.
How could a man look so good?
They were seated inside the carriage, his frame blocking the sunlight from pouring through the window and assaulting her eyes.
“Is somethin’ wrong, me Lady?” he asked in an almost soft tone.
The words brought her back to her senses. Nothing was wrong. It was just that she had yet to let go of the past.
Sorcha inhaled and nodded. “I am fine,” she told him, nodding once again. “I am just excited to go to the fair.”
He studied her for a moment. She hated it when he did that because somehow, he could always read through her lies.
“Ye daenae sound certain,” he noted, eventually.
She hesitated. He had seen the cracks as expected.
The truth hung heavy on the tip of her tongue. She could have swallowed it. She could have smiled and laughed and pretended. Instead, her voice softened, wanting to let part of the truth out.
“It’s just…” She paused, her fingers curling into the hem of her sleeve. “Visiting places like this reminds me of me faither.”
William went very still. He did not interrupt her. Did not rush to speak. He only looked at her. And it was his look that unsettled her the most.
There was no impatience in his gaze, not even discomfort, only genuine interest. As though her words mattered more than she knew. As though her feelings were worth listening to.
It frightened her.
Most men looked at her as a problem to solve or a prize to claim. They saw mischief. Defiance. Something to tame into a wife.
No one had ever looked at her like this. Like she was a person with a whole complicated world inside her. Like he wanted to see all of it.
She exhaled sharply and shook her head, forcing a small smile. “But daenae worry, me Laird. Let’s just have some fun. I daenae want to ruin the day.”
William’s lips parted, as if he wanted to say something more. Perhaps to ask. But then his eyes darkened with curiosity, his attention sharpening.
For a moment, she thought he might push. Might ask the questions no one ever had. But William, being William, simply took a breath.
He looked away briefly, and when he looked back, the intensity had softened into restraint. “That’s fine,” he relented.
He stepped down first, his boots hitting the ground softly.
Even before she moved, Sorcha could hear and feel the liveliness of the place. It only made her excitement grow.
