Ava threw her hands up. “Fine! But I’m nae happy about this.”
“Ye’re never happy about anythin’ I do,” Noah muttered, but there was almost a smile tugging at his mouth.
He extended his hand to help her into the carriage. Ava stared at it, recalling the touch of those hands on her waist, in her hair, pulling her close...
“Ava.” Noah’s voice dropped lower. “I willnae bite.”
“Ye might,” she shot back, but placed her hand in his anyway.
The contact sent sparks racing up her arm.
Noah’s fingers wrapped around hers, warm and calloused, and for a moment they both froze. His thumb brushed across her knuckles—once, twice—and Ava’s breath caught.
“Last night—” Noah started.
“Was a mistake,” Ava finished quickly. “Ye said so yerself.”
Something flashed in his eyes. “Aye. A mistake.”
But his hand tightened on hers before he let go, and Ava wondered if maybe they were both lying.
She hurried into the carriage, her heart pounding, and sat down next to Esther. Through the window, she watched Noah smoothly mount Shadow’s back and saw him signal to the driver.
“He likes ye,” Esther whispered, grinning.
“What? Nay, he doesnae.”
“He does! He bought ye a ribbon. And he keeps lookin’ at ye.”
“Esther—”
“And ye like him too. Yer face goes all pink when he talks to ye!”
Ava groaned and covered her burning cheeks with her hands. “Can we please talk about somethin’ else?”
“Like what?”
“Like...” Ava looked around desperately. “Like that tree! See it? Tree starts with T. Can ye think of other words that start with T?”
Esther giggled but played along. “T-tavern?”
“Aye! And?”
“T-toad?”
“Excellent!” Ava smiled, grateful for the distraction. “Now, can ye try sayin’ the whole sentence? ‘Tree starts with T.’”
Esther’s expression immediately froze. She shook her head, pressing her lips together tightly.
“It’s all right,” Ava said gently. “But I want ye to ken that when yedochoose to speak, I love hearin’ yer voice. Every single word, stutter and all.”
“Ye... ye do?” Esther’s voice was barely a whisper.
“Of course I do. Why wouldnae I?”
“M-me da said...” Esther’s voice cracked. “He said I sounded stupid. That I sh-should just keep quiet if I couldnae speak proper.”
Fury burned through Ava’s chest. “Well, yer da was wrong. There’s nothin’ stupid about ye, Esther. Nothin’ at all.”
