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So he had offended her. He should probably let her be, then. He’d gotten what he’d wanted—distance from the girl he could too easily find himself breaking rules for.

And yet, if today had taught him anything, swinging to the other side of the pendulum and not speaking with her at all was hardly the answer.

Anyway, it wasn’t in his nature to retreat from a challenge, and that impartial look she’d given him was challenge enough.

“Any luck?” he asked, catching up to her.

“With Trifle?” she clarified.

“Aye.”

“No, unfortunately.” She kept up her search without looking at him.

“Are you worryin’ about locatin’ her?” he tried next.

“No. I’m sure with everyone helping, we’ll find her.” She paused. “Although, I don’t imagine you’ll be helping much.”

He stared after her. “Why would you say that, like?”

She turned back to face him. “Knowing her dislike of you, she’d probably run in the opposite direction if she found you looking for her.”

He’d wondered if she was being rude before, but after seeing a shadow of a smile cross her lips, relief flooded him.

He hadn’t muddled things up too badly, then.

“I’ll have you know,” he began, “I’ll be able to help more than anyone.”

“How do you figure that?”

“Because Trifle is more likely to attack me than run from me. I’ll be sure to be the first to catch her.”

Maisie made a “hmm” noise that sounded slightly like a laugh, then she carried on with her search.

She wasn’t making this easy, was she? But he could hardly blame her. Still, his determination only grew. “Maybe we should work together to find her,” he suggested. “Cover the grounds more efficiently.”

Splitting up would be far more helpful, but then, he wasn’t known for his logic.

She took a minute to respond, her body turned away from him. “Sure,” she finally said. “Anything to help find Trifle.”

He nodded. Right. Trifle. That’s why they were there. “Anythin’ for Trifle,” he repeated. “And for Renee. She treats the dog like a child, so she does.”

He hadn’t meant it as a slight, merely an observation. But he caught Maisie’s brows raising almost instantly before she turned away again.

“Sometimes, that’s all a person has,” she said softly. “Anyway, it’s not the worst thing for someone to treat another living thing with love and kindness. If we all did that, the world would be much happier as a whole.”

Finn stared. He didn’t feel like he’d been chastised, what with how softly she’d said the words. But he’d certainly been humbled.

Even more so due to the way she’d spoken it, as if she felt her words on a personal level.

“You’re right,” he said.

He wanted to ask what she knew about it, but she cleared her throat and looked away.

“How much of the castle did you search before you found me?” she asked.

He wasn’t about to answer truthfully. “Oh, I didn’t look at an inch of it ’fore I came lookin’ for you.”

“Not much of it, I’m afraid,” he answered.