Page 47 of Auctioned to the Cruel Highlander
She did not know whether he felt the same thing until she saw him look away. Was he as affected by that light touch? Was he avoiding her eyesbecauseof it?
She didn’t have the time to answer these questions when Ciaran looked toward the sky and swallowed, too abruptly to sound natural. “The light is dimming.”
Ava followed his gaze. The light had dimmed a little, yes, though not so much that their walk needed to end.
“I daenae see how?—”
“We should go back.”
There it is.
Ava felt his withdrawal at once, quick and clean.
“All right,” she relented.
He steered them toward the castle.
They walked back side by side the way they had come, yet nothing felt quite the same. The path was the same. The grounds were the same. But Ava carried the sharp knowledge of what had nearly happened without either of them moving so much as a hand toward the other.
He had stepped away from the moment because it had become too much for him. That certainty settled in her with every step as they returned to the warm castle walls.
It was quite damning that whatever he was trying to keep shut inside himself was being pressed harder each time they were left alone together, whether in a chamber, by a bed, or under open sky.
By the time the castle rose before them, Ava knew one thing with painful clarity—Ciaran was far from unaffected.
She had thought theSilent Deathwould have no fears, but it was clear that he was just as vulnerable as any other man.
She just needed to find that side of him.
And she most definitely would.
CHAPTER 15
Ciaran tookAva riding the next morning. It was the easiest way to keep his promise without showing her more tenderness than he could manage.
Their last outing had been a mistake, as he had been a bit too transparent regarding his feelings. This one needed to have somesemblance of structure.
A quick ride had shape and everything. There would be less time to ask questions and grow vulnerable, which was exactly what he wanted. He could place her on a horse, keep her beside him, speak when needed, and return to the castle with the obligation met and his thoughts still his own.
That was the plan.
Then Ava saw the horses.
The change in her came so quickly that he noticed it before he meant to. Her face brightened, and he could have sworn he saw what looked like a laugh on her face.
She was elated, but was still careful not to show it. A part of him wanted to ask what her deal was with horses, but that would be venturing into the very territory he had sworn to avoid as much as possible.
She stepped toward the mare set out for her with the kind of pleased surprise no one could fake well.
“She’s lovely,” she gushed, resting a hand against the beast’s neck.
Ciaran had chosen the mare for her steadiness and good sense. He had not expected to care whether Ava liked her. Yet some small part of him registered the joy in her words before caution could step in.
“She is.”
Ava turned and looked at him with a spark in her eyes. “Did ye choose her?”
“Aye.”
