It was not enough. She crumpled the parchment and threw it straight into the fire.
Her chest heaved as she stared at the flames, watching the blackened paper curl and disappear. Still, it did not satisfy her to watch the drawing burn. Not in the slightest.
She pressed her palms against her face, groaning softly.
Even before the arrangement, she had known Aaron to be unpredictable. She had expected to experience a certain level of it when she agreed to be his fake betrothed, but not once did she imagine it on this level.
Her thoughts turned on her again, sharper this time, refusing to let her rest.
Why did he kiss me like that? Perhaps he thinks so little of me since I agreed to the arrangement.
The thought made her stomach twist, and her cheeks burned, as though her body rejected the idea.
It cannae be.
She dropped her hands and straightened, releasing a breath that felt loud in the quiet night.
What would Scarlett think of this?
The thought softened her slightly, but only for a moment.
She reached toward the table, nearly grabbing a fresh parchment to write to her best friend, before changing her mind. Scarlett had yet to respond to her previous letter. It would be cruel to burden her with more when she did not yet know how she was faring in her new home.
Edith sighed, climbing back into bed in resignation. As much as she missed her best friend, it was her fault that Scarlett was not here with her. Her heart ached with guilt.
I hope she writes soon.
She closed her eyes, sighing heavily as she drew the blankets up to her side.
Nothing was in her power. She could only hope that Scarlett was fine. And that wherever she was, her husband would grant her leave to visit soon.
She lay still for a long moment, listening to the castle around her. The night watch had long since passed. The corridors beyond her chamber were quiet, the kind of quiet that onlyexisted in the deepest hours, when even the stones of the keep seemed to hold their breath.
She rolled onto her back again, still unable to find sleep.
The fire had burned to a low ember, pulsing faintly in the dark. She watched it settle and thought, against her better judgment, about the moment right after the kiss.
She should have said something to Aaron. Something that would have made it clear that she was not so easily managed. Instead, she had lain there in silence and watched him leave like a woman with no spine.
This willnae happen again.
She held onto the thought as though it were the most important thing, and it was. She’d be damned if she allowed herself to fall so easily a second time.
Dawn came slower than ever.
Edith watched the pale light slip into her room through the open windows, her eyes burning faintly from exhaustion as the long, sleepless night finally slipped away from her.
She had not realized when she stopped trying to sleep.
At some point, she had simply lain there, staring blankly at the canopy as she allowed the same endless circle of thoughts to take over her mind. The memories returned so easily now, and she barely had any energy left to be irritated by them.
That arrogant arse.
It had not even been a week since they agreed to the arrangement, and Aaron had already claimed ownership of a spot in her mind, refusing to allow her a moment of rest.
His face was permanently etched in her memories. And worse still, she could not forget the look in his eyes before he had kissed her and his anger afterward. Neither could she forget the jealousy she had seen, even though she hardly believed it.
She let out a soft breath in resignation, forcing herself out of bed even though her limbs felt heavy and stiff.
