After they left, Hannah glanced at him. “Do they have some sort of hole in the wall they’re watching us through? How do they ken?”
“Never thought to ask,” Aiden admitted with an amused smirk. “They are very skilled at what they do. Much like a certain someone here.”
Hannah’s face flushed, and she opened her mouth to respond, only to snap it shut again when the footmen returned with plates piled high with juicy meat, roasted potatoes, and greens she recognized. She had never seen so much food on one plate at once.
She glanced up at Aiden with wide eyes.
He furrowed his brow. “Aye? Is something wrong?”
She opened and closed her mouth, then cleared her throat, shaking her head. She was not keen to admit she was far more used to a single course of stew for dinner.
Privately, she’d assumed the—what had he called it?—cock-a-leekie soup had been their dinner. “I just… daenae ken that I’ve seen some of this meat before.”
“Oh.” Aiden’s eyebrows rose in surprise. He then leaned over, examining his plate. “That’ll be venison… that’ll be sausage… and I’d say that one is capon.”
Hannah appreciated his simple response. The fact that he didn’t mock her for not being familiar with meat she would never have been able to afford. She and Violet lived a comfortable life—that meant food wasn’t scarce, not that food was rich and so plentiful they could eat a week’s worth of meat in a single meal.
She took a sample of each, then moved on to the potatoes and salad. She again felt Aiden’s eyes on her and looked up at him. He raised his eyebrows questioningly.
She chuckled at him. “Do ye think there’s a chance I’ll be insulting the meal provided by me host? Ye must think I have the manners of a brigand.”
Aiden shook his head with a smile. “I only wanted to ken if ye were enjoying something new. I’m nae looking to trap ye in yer own words.”
Hannah hesitated for a moment, before deciding to take him at his word. “I daenae care for the capon. The rest is very much to me liking.”
“See, lass? Ye havenae had a problem speaking yer mind to me hence, so why stop now?”
“Ye’re right.” She smiled despite herself, shaking her head. “I daenae ken what I was thinking.”
Aiden chuckled at that and dug into his food enthusiastically.
“So,” he murmured between bites, “ye continued the family business out of pride?”
“Nay,” Hannah admitted after a moment’s thought. “Nae entirely.”
“Oh?” Aiden looked at her expectantly.
She considered how much she wanted to tell him, then wondered why she felt the need to be careful with her words after the time they’d already spent together tonight. “I had Violet to think of.”
“Ye do so much for her sake. Why?”
Hannah looked up from her plate in surprise. “Why? What do ye mean, why? She’s me sister.”
His blank stare caught her off guard.
“She’s me dearest friend. The only one I’m sure I will have as long as I live.” She shook her head. “If I continue as I am, she’ll have a chance to choose the life she wants. To marry, should she wish. To always be assured a home. Without the distillery continuing to run and continuing to be mine, those things willnae be possible for her.”
The confusion on his face brought a furrow to her brow.
“I… assume that’s nae always the case?”
15
“I… assume that’s nae always the case?”
Aiden’s frown deepened. Against his will, his mind snapped back to thirteen years ago. The smell of his own flesh burning. The way his brother’s nasty grin had widened with each touch of the iron. The glee on his face when he had finally screamed in pain.
After a breath, he realized Hannah was watching his face with wide eyes. “Aye. I assure ye, it isnae.” He didn’t like to see the look on her face, the way it fell. “It sounds nice, yer love for yer sister.”
