The east corridor ran adjacent to Martin’s chamber, and Aaron had business near the Great Hall. He had merely taken the quickest route. Or at least, that was what he told himself.
He looked through the partially open door as he reached the healer’s chamber, and the sight ahead immediately stopped him in his tracks.
He blinked.
Edith was standing in front of the healer, her palm pressed flat against his chest. Martin took her other hand and guided it to her bosom.
Aaron clenched his jaw. His irritation flared at how much it unsettled him, and yet he did not move away from the door.
I cannae believe it.
His fingers curled into fists at his sides as Martin leaned closer to Edith, whispering something that caused her to close her eyes.
Edith had never been nearly as relaxed as she looked around him, and the thought alone soured something in his gut.
He pushed the door open without thinking, the heavy oak swinging inward with a sharp bang that echoed through the chamber. He hated the sound of it as soon as it left his hand.
“Edith.”
She started violently, turning at once. Her eyes widened with guilt as they met his. Or perhaps fear.
Aaron could not tell which irritated him more.
He crossed the threshold, his gaze lingering on her. His eyes flicked to Martin’s hand around her wrist, darkening.
“Ye’re done here,” he said, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Edith blinked. Something in her expression shifted at once. Her brows drew together slightly, her initial shock giving way to something he could not read.
His chest tightened as she turned back to Martin.
“I thank ye, Martin,” she said, her voice softer than he’d ever heard it. “I will come back.”
Aaron almost scoffed.
His frown deepened as Martin inclined his head, unfazed. “I look forward to it,” he said.
Perhaps in yer grave.
The thought came uninvited, and it irritated him even more because it made no sense at all.
He was Aaron Gallaway. He was not the sort of man to think ill of people without cause. He prided himself on being unflappable, the sort to never indulge in foolishness like jealousy and possessiveness. And yet his anger boiled over as he watched Martin hand Edith a book with a smile that was completely uncalled for.
He reached for her hand and pulled her away, only to regret it.
Damn me.
He released her just as fast and turned toward the door, threatening—nothoping—in a corner of his mind that she would follow him.
The silence that settled between them was nearly too thick for a knife to slice through.
He walked down the east corridor, his pace far too fast for someone heading in the opposite direction from where he needed to be. He could hear Edith behind him, though her much slower steps only served to madden him further.
She had not made a single attempt to explain herself since they left the healer’s chamber. She had not apologized either.
He stopped abruptly and spun around.
“Ye forget who ye are.” His voice was low and controlled, but his words were sharp. “Fooling around in me castle while ye carry me name.”
