As he continued on his path, he caught sight of Amelia scurrying toward the front door. Isla was at her heels, and the two of them were smiling, which was a rare expression to see on either of their faces. He was so enticed by that look of joy on Amelia’s face that he was following her before he realized what he was doing.
He stopped just below the overhang, watching as Amelia and Isla approached the cart loaded down with the delivery. Though he couldn’t hear what they were saying, he could see that Isla’s demeanor surprised the driver. Then, he caught it.
Amelia’s laughter on the breeze.
Mixed with the earthy smell of hay and distant hearth fire smoke, that sound of happiness relaxed him on a bone-deep level. Over the past few weeks, she’d become less guarded around everyone, and she became more and more open with just how amusing she found Isla correcting staff members more than twice her age.
Staying on the pathway, Darragh crossed his arms and watched as Amelia conversed with the courier. Even from a distance, he could tell that she was struggling to hide her laughter. The well-timed coughs weren’t fooling anyone.
After a few moments, Isla turned, a sharp look of determination on her face, and walked back to the castle with purpose. Shewas so absorbed with her task that she didn’t even stop to greet Darragh in that overly proper way of hers. He nearly laughed aloud at how much she seemed to care about the event.
Perhaps I should put her in charge of the rest of the preparations. I’m sure that’s a task she’d love, but I daenae think anyone else would approve… aside from Amelia.
“Miss, ye daenae have to?—”
“Nay,” Amelia said, leading the man to the servants’ entrance, her footsteps brisk and authoritative. “It’s much easier if I show ye.”
“I do appreciate yer assistance, but I’ve delivered linens to the storeroom before,” the man replied. He sounded exasperated, though he was likely concealing his emotions to the best of his ability.
Poor bastard doesnae ken what to do with the lasses we keep here.
Smirking, Darragh followed the two of them, keeping a respectable distance. While Amelia no longer bristled when he approached, he didn’t want to risk dissuading her from expressing this type of leadership. She was a fiery thing, and he quite enjoyed observing it when it wasn’t directed at him.
“Well, the room’s been rearranged,” Amelia said, glancing over her shoulder to give the man an apologetic smile. “I’m a wee bit partial to the way it’s organized.”
“I wouldnae dream of disruptin’ the way everythin’s organized,” the courier muttered, more to himself than to Amelia.
“Ye can just leave them on the foldin’ table,” she said, leading him through the kitchen. She paused long enough to lift her hand to greet Nigell. “I’ll take care of puttin’ them away. I’ll need to add them to me inventory list regardless.”
Darragh very nearly laughed when the courier said, “Naturally,” under his breath.
When they reached the storeroom, Jinny was already waiting for them. She seemed to recognize that Amelia was taking control of this operation and stepped to the side, allowing her to guide the courier. Darragh leaned against the doorframe, watching as she surveyed what had been delivered.
“I will need time to sort this out. Ye can leave the rest in the empty room across the hall,” she said, looking up at the courier. It was then that she realized that Darragh had been observing. Their eyes met for a beat, and he saw her breathing stutter. She cleared her throat before nodding and dismissing both the courier and Jinny.
Darragh raised an eyebrow as he stepped out of the way to let the two servants leave. That movement was just another tiny thingthat he could add to the list of tells. She was used to sending servants away without a word. She belonged in a place like this.
“Are ye stealin’ me command now, lass?” he teased, his smirk deepening when her pencil skipped on the page.
Slowly, she raised her head, meeting his gaze with that same challenge he’d come to expect. Without breaking eye contact, she placed her ledger on the table. Then, with movement far too practiced to be deliberate, she folded her hands behind her back, giving herself the posture of nobility.
It doesnae matter how much she tries to behave otherwise, I’d have always learnt she was nay orphan.
He stepped fully into the room, closing the door behind him. Still, she didn’t look away from him. There was the ghost of a smirk on her face, but something else beneath it that he couldn’t quite read.
“Ye ken,” he said, circling the room lazily, “I hear that ye’ve been rearrangin’ me stores.”
She scoffed before she replied, “They were chaos.”
When he looked away from the admittedly much more orderly shelves, her smile had deepened. She was unapologetic about doing this, he realized. She would do it all again if she pleased.
“Me keep has stood for generations,” he said, pressing a little further, meeting her challenge with his own. His slow trek around the room brought him closer to her.
She didn’t flinch nor move away, tilting her head to keep him within her sights, looking as if she may scold him if he disturbed anything. “And now yer keep stands a bit straighter.”
A genuine smile snuck onto his face for a beat before he schooled it into neutrality. Stopping next to her, he said, “I must thank ye for that. I must admit that ye’ve shaped things up considerably.”
“Men always seem to forget about these invisible places,” she said, though the heat had faded significantly. She shifted from foot to foot, clearing her throat before forcing herself still. “Thank ye. For… the freedom.”
