There’s a softness there, tucked behind the usual restraint. I see it. Ifeelit. Then he turns back to Isla, grounding her with a quiet word as she squeals and dips her fingers into the loch.
The breeze drifts over me as I make my way toward them. Isla beams up at me, cheeks flushed.
“Touch it,” she urges, pointing eagerly at the water.
I crouch down to dip my fingers in, and the cold bites, sending a jolt that makes me laugh in surprise. “Wow, you weren’t kidding!” I shake the water from my hand as Isla bursts into giggles.
Aidan chuckles low under his breath, and the sound hits me somewhere embarrassingly deep. I want to hear it again, just to feel it ripple through me like that.
“It’s a loch,” he says dryly, one corner of his mouth lifting. “It’s always cold.”
“Can we find rocks to skip?” Isla asks.
Aidan nods. “If you can find some flat ones.”
Without missing a beat, she bolts toward a pile of stones near the shore, sorting through them. The sheer determination in her tiny frame makes me laugh.
“She’s got the right idea,” I say, rising to my feet and brushing off my jeans.
Aidan watches her movements for a moment before turning his focus back to me. “She likes you, you know.”
“I like her, too,” I manage, a little breathless from how close he’s standing. “Her dad’s not half bad, either.”
That earns me a crooked grin. “Is that so?”
I shrug, feigning nonchalance even as my heart does somersaults. “Aye. Don’t let it go to your head.”
“Too late,” he murmurs.
A flush creeps up my neck, but before I can respond, Isla comes bounding back, her hands overflowing with stones.
Aidan crouches down to her level, examining the rocks with exaggerated seriousness. “Well done, lass. These look perfect for skipping.”
I catch myself staring as he patiently demonstrates, suddenly feeling like I’m on the outside, watching something that’s so personal between them. The bond they share is undeniable, and it makes me wonder if I could ever find my place within it. Just then, Aidan’s gaze darts in my direction. I quickly look away, redirecting my attention to Isla’s animated chatter instead.
Even as I try to shift my focus, I feel his pull. It’s not the kind of thing you can ignore, and in that moment, I realize just how much I want to be a part of it.
“Lucy, come try!” Isla’s voice rings out, as if she can read my thoughts.
I glance over at her as Aidan looks up, too, a faint smirk dancing on his lips as he watches me.
I hesitate for a moment, then shrug. “Why not?”
I move toward the water’s edge, squatting down to pick up a smooth, flat stone. I’ve done this a million times as a kid, but definitely not recently. I take a breath, steadying myhand.
I flick my wrist, and the stone glides effortlessly across the water, skipping three, four times before sinking.
Isla’s jaw drops. “Whoa.”
Aidan’s expression shifts to one of amusement. “Not bad at all.”
“I grew up with two older brothers who insisted they were rock skipping champions,” I tell them. “Naturally, I couldn’t let them win without a fight. We’d spend hours slinging stones into the creek behind our house, each of us claiming victory even when none of us could agree who actually won.”
I choose another rock from the pile and send it flying. It skips another four times—maybe even five if I count generously—before vanishing beneath the surface with a satisfying plunk.
Isla gasps. “You’re so good.”
“Looks like someone’s giving me a run for my money,” Aidan says, casting a glance my way.
