He was a brute incapable of feeling anything beyond order, control, and duty.
And yet Edith had nearly turned him into a different man with her sharp tongue and her darned lavender scent.
“I must end this,” he said to Sirius, his voice rough. “Before I ruin her.”
“That sounds like too much, even for ye.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
Aaron turned sharply at the sound of Scarlett’s voice, his hand falling away from the horse’s neck.
He had not expected to see anyone so early in the morning, let alone his sister.
“Scarlett.”
She stopped near the stable doors, wrapped in a heavy cloak that overestimated the morning chill. The gray light of dawn caught the tips of her hair, as though she had not just woken up from sleep. A folded saddle blanket rested loosely in her arms.
“Are ye goin’ somewhere?” Aaron asked.
She ignored the question, stepping closer to him. Her gaze moved over him once, lingering on his rolled sleeves and his left hand.
She nodded, stepping into the stables.
“I came to see Sirius before the whole village arrives for the harvest festival,” she said softly, her breath forming a cloud of mist in front of her. “Instead, I found me braither losing a war against his own thoughts.”
“There is no war,” Aaron said, looking away.
Scarlett almost laughed. “I ken,” she said, placing a hand on his arm. “Ye were merely cleanin’ the stables at dawn.”
Only then did Aaron realize that he was still clutching a rag in his hand. He let go of the dirty cloth as though she had not already seen it, wiping his hands as Scarlett set her saddle blanket over the rail.
It had been so long since he had seen her in the stables that he had almost forgotten how good she was when it came to handling her horse.
She stroked Sirius’s head, who snorted and moved closer—a gesture he now realized the mare reserved only for her owner.
“Saddle with me,” she said. “’Tis a fine morning for a ride, and ye clearly need to do somethin’ with yer hands.”
Aaron frowned as he watched her prepare the mare with utmost gentleness, a breath escaping his lips.
Scarlett’s brow rose slightly once she noticed that he had not moved.
“Aaron…” She folded her arms across her chest.
Aaron opened his mouth to refuse. But arguing with Scarlett had never once worked in his favor, and the prospect of leaving the stables held quite the appeal, especially on a quiet morning like this.
“Alright,” he relented.
He let his horse out of its stall, saddling it as she did Sirius.
It was an easy routine. The simple mechanics of buckles and leather offered him a brief respite from the chaos in his head, and by the time they led the horses out into the morning light, the sky had begun to soften into blue along the eastern hills.
The silence settled into a gentle rhythm around them as they rode, neither of them saying a word at first. The horses fell into an easy pace as they followed the path that wound past the eastern fields, and Aaron let the cold air fill his lungs.
It was enough of a distraction, only for a moment, as the tension in his chest eased slightly. Then his thoughts drifted to Edith again, to the way the wind had played with her long auburn hair when she rode on the same horse beside him.
He glanced toward Scarlett. For the first time in years, he was not grateful for his sister’s silence. It gave him much more room to think about Edith, and he hated it. But he had nothing to say to her.
Finally, they passed the boundary stone. There, the grounds gave way to open countryside, the mist still clinging low to the grass in some places.
