“It just means that Laurel can be flighty,” James said. “She acts first and thinks later. She’s…”
“Impulsive?” I supplied dully.
“Exactly.”
The word should have felt satisfying, coming from someone else. It should have proved that I had been right. Instead, itonly made the hurt deepen. I stared down at my hands and remembered the way Laurel’s face had changed when I said it. Still, it was good to know I wasn’t the only one who saw it.
“Do you want to talk about it?” James asked.
I shrugged. It was so dark I doubted he could see the motion. “I don’t know.”
“What if I tell you what I think,” James suggested, “and you can take it as my opinion and ignore it if you want to?”
“Okay.”
James rested his forearms on his knees and looked out into the trees. “Laurel needs you more than she realizes, and far more than she would ever admit. She feels like she has something to prove, and I’m sure you can understand that. She’s Robin Hood’s daughter, so she believes she has to live up to his name. She’s also the first woman in the Merry Men, which means she feels like every mistake she makes will be used as proof that she doesn’t belong.”
I looked at him.
He went on, his voice steady and thoughtful. “Those are big shoes to fill. Because of that, she thinks she has to be tougher than anyone else. She thinks she has to show the world that she doesn’t need anyone’s help, so she does everything in her power to avoid appearing weak or dependent on anyone else. It can be a strength at times, but it’s also a weakness.”
I listened. I’d never thought of it quite like that, but as soon as James said it, I could see it.
“When we first saw her with you,” James continued, “everyone was a bit shocked. Honestly, most of us thought she was stringing you along so you would help her escape and break us out of prison.”
I gave a humorless laugh. “How comforting.”
“But then I realized how different she is when you’re around,” James said. “She doesn’t have to be strong all the timewith you. She can relax. She can lean on someone when she needs it, even if she pretends she isn’t leaning. She really loves you, you know.”
“Not anymore,” I said.
“Why do you think that?”
“I said things today.” My throat tightened, and I looked away. “She got really angry.”
“She’ll get over it. Give her time.”
“I don’t know.”
“What did you say to her?”
I hesitated. I didn’t want to repeat the shameful words we’d spat at each other. They felt ugly now, stripped of the anger that had made them feel so powerful at the time. But James seemed genuinely concerned, and he understood Laurel better than I did.
“I said she doesn’t think ahead,” I said. “And that she’s impulsive.”
James laughed.
“It’s not funny,” I snapped.
He stopped at once, though I could still hear the remnants of laughter in his breath. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s not funny to you.”
“But it is to you?”
“A little,” James admitted. “Only because I think every one of the Merry Men has told Laurel she is impulsive and arrogant at least twice. Her father used to tell her daily.”
I blinked.
“She always reacted the same,” James continued. “Once, she threw soup all over Little John. Dumped it right over his head.”
