“I kind of forget about that,” Silas says in his deep voice. “You never complain.”
“There’s nothing to complain about. I have a couple of broken toes. I get to stay in a castle, and everyone comes and visits me. It could be a lot worse.”
“I think it is a lot worse, but you just don’t say anything,” Kate points out. “We should go and let you get some rest. I need you as my date for the Sea Queen dance.”
Because she doesn’t think I can get a date myself.
I huff with disappointment, but quietly so no one notices. “I’ll be there for you.”
“What if Sophie wants to ask someone as her date?” Ashton demands.
He stands beside me with a scowl on his face.
“Do you really think you’ll still be in town at the end of the month, brother dear?” Fenella asks him with an incredulous expression.
“I didn’t mean me,” he says rudely. “I mean… I’m sure lots of guys around here would want to go with her.”
“The line-upisout the door,” I manage to joke, confused with his intensity. And yes, saddened by how quick hisI didn’t mean mewas.
Not that I would ever expect Ashton to go to the dance with me. That’s just insanity. He could get any woman in Battle Harbour—any woman in the world—so why would he settle for me?
“There’s still a few weeks to go,” Gunnar cuts in, looking between a scowling Stella and a frowning Ashton. “Lots can happen before then.”
“I just want my foot to be a normal colour before then,” I say, pulling myself out of the chair as they begin to move toward the door.
Ashton catches me under my arm to help. He hands me my crutches when I’m on my feet. “Thanks for coming,” I tell everyone.
Kate, Lyra and Spencer give me a hug. Stella, who doesn’t do displays of affection, frowns at me. “I’ll come and see you tomorrow.”
“It’s fine if you can’t. I know you’re busy.”
And then they aregone.
All, except for Ashton. Fenella gives him a sharp look, and he mutters something to her before she disappears, and Gunnar claps him on the back, but no one else seems to think it’s strange that Ashton is the last to leave.
Or that we’re alone in my room.
“I wanted to make sure you don’t need anything… if you need help to get to bed,” he says awkwardly as we stand by the fire, no longer giving off the warmth the room needs. Gunnar stoked it when he arrived, but with that many people in here, we let the fire go down.
“I’m fine,” I tell him. “But if you could do the fire? Maybe another log. It gets cold in the night if I don’t stoke it.”
Usually my father does that when he stops in, but Dad poked his head in earlier and smiled when he saw the gathering.
“Sure.” He turns to the woodpile. “I think you have the best fireplace in the castle,” he points out as he adds another log, and pokes it.
The crackle of the fire is the only sound in the room. “Thank you, Ashton” I say quietly.
“It’s just a log—”
“Thank you for tonight. That was… unexpectedly sweet of you to bring everyone here for me.”
He looks down at me with those dark blue eyes, so inscrutable. “Yeah.”
“Yeah,” I echo, with a mocking smile. “You really have issues with people thanking you for doing nice things.”
“Because I don’t do nice things.”
“But you do.” I take a halting step, leaning heavily on my crutches. I’m not sure if I’m intentionally trying to move closer tohim, but the end of a crutch catches on the bottom of the chair, and I stumble.
