The corridor stretches long and endless.
My eyes drop lower, taking in the way his trousers fit. The shift of muscle in his thighs as he walks.
Christ, I need to stop, but I can’t.
I watch the way his shoulders move. The way his hands flex at his sides like he wants to reach for something.
Orsomeone.
Stop it, Erin. Stop.
My fingers twitch at my sides. I count the beats.
One, two, three, four… just to keep my hands from shaking.
“These portraits go back a few hundred years,” Cavin mutters. His voice is flat, like he’s reading rehearsed lines.
“I bet you’ve run out of wall space.”
“Not yet.”
A pause, heavy with silence.
He straightens his back every few paces, like he’s under inspection. But he’s not watching me; he’s watching the space between us. And when he does glance over, I don’t meet his eyes.
I stare at the floorboards.
Anything but his eyes.
Anything but those broad shoulders that dwarf my entire frame.
Anything but the way ink trails across his neck, or the way his hands look dangerous, masculine, and capable of both violence and tenderness.
“This way,” Cavin says, dropping down a narrow staircase that opens to a side door. “Let’s go outside before they ring the bell for dinner, yeah?”
I nod. Can’t trust my voice. Yes, please, I wantout.
I feel like a fish on tile, gasping, thrashing, humiliated.
But when he opens the door and steps aside, gentlemanlike, letting me through first, it feels good. I take a deep breath.
I tell myself it’s just how he was raised, that it has nothing to do with me.
McCarthy boys—men—have always known manners, even when they’re cruel.
I mutter under my breath.
Whatever. You’re not a child anymore, Erin. You’re an adult. You’re not here to make friends.
I know the rules.
Be cordial. Be polite. Don’t fidget or ask too many questions. Better yet, try not to ask anything.
Do it for Bridget.
Outside, the light softens. The sun is setting behind the cliffs, casting gold over the edge of the water.
The wind carries the scent of salt and lilac. It’s—god, it’sbeautiful. We walk a paved path lined with flowers.
