“I already saw the invitation,” Finlay growled.
He didn’t need to be protected or coddled. It was an insult to his already bruised ego.
“Ah, I wasnae sure if ye had received one,” Caden replied. He glanced down at Daisy. “Can I have a moment alone with yer faither?”
Daisy looked between them, clearly upset about being left out, but she nodded and walked away to give them space.
Finlay jerked his head in the other direction, knowing all too well how good his daughter’s ears were, before he and Caden started down the path side by side.
“So Ava is attendin’ the wedding, is she nae?” He kicked a rock that lay in front of him.
“Aye. I’m supposed to join her as well, but I wanted to speak to ye first.”
Finlay ground his teeth so hard that his jaw ached. “That man tried to kidnap her, for God’s sake. What the hell is she thinkin’?”
“I doubt she had much choice in the matter,” Caden replied, heaving a sigh. “Ava’s worried. She said that the note she received from her maither hinted that there was more going on, but it didnae go into detail.”
Finlay said nothing. What could he say? Thalia wasn’t his anymore, and he had no right to be as upset as he was.
Caden watched him carefully, crossing his arms over his chest.
“But maybe it willnae be so bad,” he hedged. “Think of the trouble Laird MacGibbon went through just to make her his wife. Maybe he’ll turn out to be the one she deserves, since he’s willin’ to fight so hard for her.”
Finlay glared at him. “What are ye sayin’?”
“I’m sayin’ that it’s pretty incredible, the fact that he’s willin’ to start a war or steal her away. Isnae that better than someone who confuses her just because he’s too afraid to tell her what he feels?” Caden said smoothly. “At least she’ll never have to guess with him.”
Finlay stopped walking, grabbing his brother roughly by the shoulders and turning him so they faced each other. “Ye’re nae clever! I see exactly what ye are doin’, Braither!”
“And what am I doin’?” Caden asked with false innocence. “I’m only statin’ what Thalia deserves.”
“Ye and I both ken that she deserves more than Laird MacGibbon!” Finlay bellowed.
“Ye mean, she deserves ye?”
The question defused his anger, snuffing it out like a candle. He huffed, running a hand through his hair in frustration. “Ye should ken better than anyone why I want a better choice for her.”
Caden smirked, laying his hand on his brother’s shoulder. “Thenbethe better choice, Braither. Before it’s too late.”
“I…” Finlay hesitated. “I daenae ken if I can be.”
“Ye can.” Caden’s voice rang with certainty. “Ye just have to be brave enough.”
With that, he turned and walked back up the path towards the castle.
“I’ll be inside. Let me ken what ye decide!” he called back over his shoulder.
Finlay shook his head as he watched him leave, and noticed Daisy carefully examining a patch of flowers not far from where he stood now. He chuckled, unable to help but walk over to her. He had been too caught up in his conversation with Caden to notice that she had snuck closer to eavesdrop. At this point, he should just expect her to always be lurking somewhere close by.
“Daisy.” He lowered his voice to sound more upset than he actually was. “How much did ye hear?”
Her eyes flicked up to him and then back down. She seemed to be debating how to answer.
“Well,” she started. “Ye were yellin’ a lot. It wasnae hard to hear all of it.”
“Ha!” Finlay barked, then gave her a smile to show that he was not really upset. “What am I going to do with ye?”
She gave a small smile and plucked a flower from the ground. It wasn’t very tall, with brilliant white petals surrounding a bright yellow center. She held it up as if she were examining it.
