She sighed in frustration.
She walked up to the window and stared out at the empty fields beyond. By the end of the hour, she was sprawled across her bed with one arm thrown dramatically over her eyes.
This is ridiculous.
She groaned.
Avoiding Aaron was proving far more exhausting than simply speaking to him. But speaking to him was dangerous, and once she remembered how the last two times had ended, she sat upright.
Nay.
She absolutely could not face him.
Her face heated, and she pressed her hands to her cheeks.
Enough.
She stood up abruptly. She needed a distraction. Something entirely free of Aaron. Someplace where she could fill her thoughts with something other than his face.
The healer’s chamber.
The answer came to her almost immediately.
Martin was forever complaining about needing help organizing supplies. Surely he would welcome the assistance. And, most importantly, Aaron would never go there.
It was the perfect plan.
Edith did not waste a moment more. She headed to the healer’s chamber at once, her excitement causing her to push open the door without knocking.
“Martin, I?—”
The words died in her throat at the sight before her. Aaron was sitting on one of the stools with his shirt off.
She froze so abruptly that she nearly stumbled backward over her own feet. Her eyes fell first to the broad expanse of his chest, then lower to the hard lines of muscle beneath his skin, before she even noticed the fresh wound on his shoulder.
A small sound escaped her lips, and Aaron looked up, meeting her gaze. His brows lifted ever so slightly.
Martin turned around, a strip of gauze dangling from his hand. “Me Lady,” he said, surprised. “Ye have no lesson today.”
Her throat tightened. She opened her mouth to explain, but nothing came out. Her eyes betrayed her, drifting right back to Aaron’s chest.
Merciful heavens.
She closed her eyes briefly to make sure it wasn’t a dream. When she opened them again, Aaron was still looking at her.
“I-I…” she stammered. “I came to…”
Her voice cracked, and she paused. She had forgotten what she had come to do.
Damn me.
Heat climbed into her face as she forced her eyes away from Aaron’s glistening muscles, looking at Martin instead.
“Do ye need something?” Martin asked carefully, his brow furrowing.
“Nay,” Edith choked out.
She looked at Aaron and then back at Martin, wishing desperately for the ground to open up beneath her feet and swallow her whole.
