Chapter 9
Chapter Nine
“Iwas hopin’ that we could go outside for lessons today,” Katherine sighed, looking out the window of Agnes’s chambers with her hands on her hips.
Rain battered the walls of the castle, and several puddles were forming in the grassy areas of the garden.
“I wanted to reward ye for doin’ so well this past week. ”
Agnes hummed, preoccupied with the book of tales that seemed to be her constant companion. Though Katherine had offered to read to her, Agnes hadn’t been willing to part with the book. She was, however, incredibly insistent upon learning to read as quickly as possible.
I wonder if someone gave it to her as a gift. Or perhaps she enjoys when Lady Agnes reads to her. I suppose children do have strange fixations.
“The sun will come out again,” Agnes said, her confidence strangely at odds with her tiny stature. It seemed as though there was a much older girl trapped inside her little body. “I daenae mind havin’ a lesson indoors today.”
“I meant for today to be a bit more relaxin’ than a normal lesson,” Katherine muttered as she turned around, her gaze sweeping the room.
The quarters could easily belong to someone much older than the child.
It was neat; everything was put in its place carefully.
The only sign that a child resided here was a singular tiny cradle with a doll tightly swaddled lying within.
Katherine had only seen the girl play with the toy once, and even then, she’d treated it with the reverence that a real child would garner.
“Perhaps ye could teach me needlepoint,” Agnes suggested, ever the pragmatist. “It has always looked fun to me.”
She was watching Katherine curiously, as though she were still trying to make sense of the woman.
It wasn’t a secret that she found Katherine’s enthusiasm difficult to ignore.
That didn’t diminish Agnes’s almost scientific interest in Katherine.
If anything, it seemed that her initial annoyance with Katherine had faded into something that bordered on amusement.
“Nay, learnin’ needlepoint is easier to learn when ye have the light of the sun.
Candles and hearthfires arenae bright enough to see all the tiny details,” Katherine said, placing a hand on her chin as she put together a plan.
She still wanted to reward Agnes, disliking the idea of making the girl work relentlessly.
“Perhaps we shouldnae have a lesson at all today.”
“Ye’re suggestin’ we waste the day?” Agnes countered with a sigh. It was unlike anything Katherine expected from a normal child. “Ye could continue teachin’ me how to read.”
“I could,” Katherine hummed. Then, she grinned as an idea struck her. She could still give the wee lass a bit of fun, even if she insisted on continuing her education. “But perhaps our lesson could continue within a tent.”
“A tent?” Agnes said, wrinkling her nose. She looked at the window pointedly, almost as though she were expecting the storm to have stopped suddenly. “But it’s rainin’ outside.”
“It’s nae rainin’ inside, though,” Katherine countered, crossing the room in several long strides. The smile never left her face. “We can camp indoors!”
Agnes stayed in her seat, frowning as Katherine plucked a stool from the corner and put it in front of the enormous walnut wardrobe. Notably, she didn’t say anything to stop Katherine’s plan. It was as close to approval as Katherine was likely to get from her charge.
So, with Agne’s wordless blessing, she rested a hand against the wooden side of the wardrobe. She climbed onto the solid surface and reached for a stack of linens. It seemed, though, that she’d underestimated just how far away they would be.
“I ken I’m nae that short,” she huffed, her fingers brushing against the edge of the fabric.
With a sigh, she pressed her body more firmly against the walnut structure. Keeping her feet flat, she reached in as far as she could. This time, she was able to slide the sheets closer. Still, she couldn’t get a firm grasp on the pile.
There was movement behind her, but Katherine didn’t turn around. She was too close to getting what she was reaching for. Perhaps Agnes was coming over to help. Or, more likely, she was shifting her body to better study Katherine while her back was turned.
The air at Katherine’s back and side seemed to heat up. Before she consciously recognized who it was, her body reacted, her shoulders softening for a moment before going even more rigid than before.
Then, a large hand came into her vision.
It radiated quiet strength and devastating precision.
Wordlessly, Liam grabbed the stack and pulled it closer.
It was a careful gesture, not handing them directly to her but an acknowledgement of her capability.
Katherine tangled her fingers in the soft sheets, gathering them in her arms before carefully turning toward him.
Her breath caught when she realized their faces were only inches apart.
The stool was nearly half a meter tall, yet Katherine’s head still wasn’t taller than his.
It shouldn’t have surprised her; she knew the man was a giant.
She had seen him, been near him, but she didn’t think that she would ever get used to this.
She felt as though she could fall into his eyes. And now, at this level, she could see that there was a light smattering of freckles on his cheeks and jaw. She wondered if they grew darker in the summer sun.
He’s so close… It’s like there’s nothin’ but him.
He reached forward then, grabbing onto her waist and putting her onto the floor.
His touch warmed her, the sensation radiating all the way to the top of her head.
For a moment, his strong palms lingered, burning through the layers of fabric that separated them.
Swallowing hard, she craned her neck back to hold his gaze.
Her hands tightened on the linens, her palms sweating slightly.
Heat gathered in the pit of her stomach.
It was a strange sensation, one she’d never experienced before.
Something inside her was screaming for her to act, to give the frantic energy that was blooming in her body an outlet.
She had no idea what to do with it, though.
None of her ideas felt at all befitting of a lady.
“I’m nae sure what kind of lesson would require a stack of old sheets,” Liam said, breaking the tense silence that had fallen over the two of them. She thought she might be imagining the rasp that underlined his words.
“We’re doin’ a special lesson,” Katherine said, forcing cheer into her voice when she realized that Agnes was watching the two of them like a hawk. She must remain normalcy even if she felt anything but. “If ye’d like to find out what it is, ye’re free to stay and join us.”
“I daenae have time for play,” he said, taking a step back from her. The heat was still there, subtle despite how acutely aware Katherine was of it. “I have serious matters to attend to. I’ve gathered that ye’re nae much for serious matters. They’re nae somethin’ ye deign to consider.”
“I ken serious matters too well. And I ken how serious life can be,” Katherine replied as she readjusted her hold on the linen in her arms. Her eyes flashed to Agnes, and she was acutely aware of how closely the girl was watching them.
Not only did she truly believe what she was saying, but this could be a lesson for Agnes as well.
“But life can also be play. It’s as Plato used to say: Play educates us humans. ”
“Ye quote Plato now?” Liam asked, the corner of his mouth twitching though he managed to will away the smirk.
Katherine still saw it. It bolstered her, banishing the anxious edge of the warmth in her stomach. She’d nearly made him break that impenetrable mask.
“I thought I made it clear at the auction,” she said, half amused, half contemplative.
She shuffled forward ever so slightly, drawn to him as though he were a magnet.
Playfully, she dropped her voice lower, knowing that she was dancing on the edge of something she couldn’t quite name.
“I enjoy philosophy. Studyin’ the stars or plays, too.
Me father had a huge library: I used to lose meself there. ”
* * *
Liam looked down at Katherine, noticing the subtle smile she was giving him, unaware that he saw it. Out of the corner of his eye, he observed Agnes shifting her weight. The air and the moment felt plush, signaling to him that he should leave. Soft moments like this were not made for men like him.
Yet, he couldn’t bring himself to pull himself away. It seemed as if this was quickly becoming a problem.
“Agnes,” he said finally, not taking his eyes off the curious woman in front of him, “perhaps ye should see if yer great-grandmother would like to read to ye from yer book of stories.”
Understanding the dismissal, his daughter left the room without another word. Her maid trailed along behind her, leaving Liam alone with Katherine. The space between them seemed to shrink even further as the two girls’ footsteps disappeared down the hallway.
She was still watching him with warm, open eyes.
He didn’t know how to respond to her. It wasn’t so much that she had shared something so personal with him but that she still wore that expression.
Want welled up in his chest—to protect her, to pull her closer, to push her away, to do anything but simply stand here looking at her.
I cannae make her a target.
“Ye’re doin’ well with Agnes,” he said finally, not shifting away. There were many truths he couldn’t tell her, but this was one he could grant. “She took to ye quickly. That’s rare for her.”
Katherine’s expression softened, her smile turning more genuine and reflective. He could practically see the compliment brightening her entire demeanor. She would be a good guardian for Agnes, he realized.
Nothing more, not a true romantic partner to him. That would be a step too far. The distance would keep her safe, keep Agnes from losing another important person.
“She’s easy to care for,” Katherine said, her eyes seeming to grow warmer. “I’ve never met a more polite child. Nor one as eager as she is to learn. She was aghast that I suggest we take a day to relax.”
“She’s bright,” Liam agreed, unable to deny the surge of pride he felt at the praise Agnes had garnered. “And she doesnae enjoy wastin’ her time.”
“Ye ken,” Katherine continued after a beat, light but underscored with something completely unreadable to him, something that threatened to shake his entire foundation, “children are often quite easy to care for when they’re allowed to be children.”
Liam stiffened, standing taller as his eyes narrowed. He couldn’t tell what she was trying to say. The light delivery could easily be covering for a jibe he wasn’t meant to pick up on. His defenses snapped violently back into place.
“She is nae neglected,” he said slowly, taking two careful steps back from her. “Nor is she forced to be anythin’ but a child.”
The distance gave him clarity. He hadn’t realized how her rosewater scent had overwhelmed his senses, made him blind to his own directives.
Being too close to her was risky. He couldn’t think clearly.
It was as if the entire world shrank to Katherine, making him lose sight of why he kept so much distance from everyone else.
“I didnae say that she was,” Katherine said, taking a step of her own away from him, her tone shifting to something almost apologetic.
Suddenly, it seemed as if she’d lost the ability to look him in the eye. She fell silent, the air between them seeming to twist itself into thick knots the longer it went on. The sinking feeling felt even more damning, like she wasn’t telling him the whole truth.
She doesnae have any room to pass judgment on how I’m raisin’ me daughter.
“Right,” he growled, watching her for signs that she was pleased with the slight. She kept her head down, trying to hide even though she was in plain sight. “Perhaps ye should get to whatever lesson ye have planned.”
“Of course,” she muttered, adjusting the bundle in her arms. Pink began to bloom across the bridge of her nose. She opened her mouth twice before she finally managed to squeak out, “I didnae?—”
“It doesnae matter, Katherine,” Liam said, the sharpness of his voice making her flinch.
He nearly regretted being so harsh, but the implications of what she’d just said lingered at the front of his mind.
It was something that he couldn’t seem to shake.
“As I said earlier. I daenae have time for play.”
How dare she try to backtrack now? We both ken what she said.
Before he could regret his earlier praise, Liam stepped around her and headed for the door. He felt her eyes on his back as he left, hearing the ghost of the words that were on the tip of her tongue. It took a lot of strength to resist turning around one last time.