Kit smiled. “My head would swell so big we’d have to cut holes in the doors if I was treated like this every day.”
“Exactly, so you might as well enjoy it while it lasts.” Carys returned the smile, hiding her concern for the older woman. “Tell me where we’re headed, and it would be my honor to escort you, Your Highness.”
“Into the living room, if you don’t mind,” Kit said, mustering a voice that was surely meant to sound royal.
Carys made a production out of helping her into the next room and into a worn leather recliner. A TV tray with remote and a book sat next to the chair. “Can I get you anything before I take my leave, Highness?”
“This’ll do for now, but thank you.” Kit winked and then picked up the remote. “I’m hooked on a crime series.”
“I’ll leave you to your binge-watching.” Carys gave a little curtsy before leaving the room and rejoining a concerned-looking Blaize.
His face was ghost white as he stood with his backside against the bullnose counter. He white-knuckled the edge.
Carys studied him for a moment before speaking. “I got your grandmother settled.”
Sounds from the TV drifted in from the next room.
“I appreciate it,” he said in barely more than a whisper. The tension in his tone said he was stressed to the gills and ready to snap. “She didn’t say anything about being sick.”
“It’s possible she just stood up too fast, don’t you think?”
A muscle ticked in his jaw. His gaze dropped to the ground. Tension radiated off him in palpable waves.
“I don’t know, and I highly doubt she’ll tell me now that she knows about Lynn.” He barely ground out the words.
“Why would you think that?” Carys asked, keeping her tone as calm and neutral as possible.
“She would believe she is only adding to my stress,” he said.
“Those are very different situations,” she said.
Shaking his head, he said, “She won’t see it that way.” He compressed his lips, forming a severe line. “My gut tells me that she is hiding a serious medical condition.”
Could be fear or a form of PTSD after losing his wife to illness. As much as she wanted to offer some type of comforting words, she didn’t want to give false hope. Kit might’ve been sick. Or her age might’ve been catching up to her. Or she might’ve just been tired. All three were plausible reasons for her moments of weakness.
The storm had created a lot of excitement.
“Is Kit your grandmother on your father’s side?” she asked.
“Yes, but I don’t see how that…”
He stopped midsentence as though a few dots were connecting that her loss coupled with the stress of all the changes coming could have thrown her off balance.
“She might not be sleeping well,” Carys said. “I know when I’m tired, I wobble. Actually, it’s very much like me to walk into walls in the morning before I get my first cup of coffee down.”
Losing his grandmother after losing a wife and a father would be too much for anyone. Blaize might not have been close to his father or care one way or another whether the man lived or died, but unresolved relationships were almost worse. She couldn’t imagine losing the person you were meant to spend the rest of your life with, especially while still so young.
Carys closed the distance between them in a couple of quick strides. Witnessing the pain in his eyes up close was going to be a mistake. It caused her to reach for his hand. He tugged her toward him, keeping his gaze locked onto hers.
Were they two broken souls who recognized each other from a place somewhere deep?
“I’m sorry for everything you’ve been through, Blaize.”
He gave a slight nod.
“And I would very much like to ask for a kiss right now.”
“What’s stopping you?” he asked.
