Page 86 of A Virgin for the Stone Highlander
He could have sworn he saw her eyes narrow. And for a moment, he wondered if Edith had told her the truth of their agreement.
Surely nae.
“Oh, Braither,” Scarlett drawled, stepping toward him. “I didnae imagine I would someday see ye like this.”
Aaron had hardly processed her words before she threw her arms around him, catching him off guard.
Damn me.
He sighed, returning the hug as his eyes pleaded with a smiling Caelan for help. “Scarlett.”
She only pulled back after she had had her fill, her smile wider than he had ever seen it.
She looked different. Not in a stark, glaring way, but in a subtle way. Her complexion was as fair as ever. She still carried herself gracefully. Yet there was a lightness to her that he could not place. A certain freedom to laugh more carelessly.
He softened at the sight.
“’Tis good to see ye.”
“Ye as well, Braither,” she said quietly, returning to her husband’s side. “I have missed ye so, and the news of yer betrothal has made me the happiest sister in the Highlands.”
Aaron’s lips curled into a small smile. His gaze fell on Robert as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind Scarlett’s ear.
The gesture was so effortless that Aaron found himself staring. They moved around each other as though they had done so all their lives, and Scarlett’s smile grew at every word Robert whispered to her.
Truly, they seem taken with each other.
Aaron’s heart stirred with a feeling he did not understand. He had never imagined himself the sort of man to display such affection. But watching the couple before him, he felt quite taken by it.
He reached for Edith, his hand finding hers as though it were the most natural thing in the world.
Perhaps it will make our betrothal more believable.
But when she failed to look at him or even smile, he faltered slightly.
Caelan cleared his throat, breaking the silence that had begun to grow uncomfortable. “Lady McLaren,” he said. “’Tis a pleasure to have ye at the fair. Yer presence has been sorely missed by all.”
Scarlett turned her attention to him, finally leaving her husband’s embrace. “Thank ye, Caelan.” She smiled genuinely. “I have missed yer humor as well.”
Caelan nodded, satisfied. He took another sip of the whiskey he swore he could not drink, meeting Aaron’s gaze with a mischievous smile.
A silent understanding passed between them. He had broken the tension for Aaron’s sake, and he expected something in return.
Robert stepped toward Edith. “Pleasure to meet ye, Lady Edith,” he said, taking her hand gently. “Scarlett has told me all about ye.” He bent his head, planting a kiss on the back of her hand.
For the first time that morning, Edith smiled.
“Only good things, I hope,” she said sweetly.
Aaron’s eyes narrowed. He had not let go of her other hand. He held on to it, watching the interaction as disbelief tangled with a different feeling in his chest.
Robert was an ally and his sister’s husband. But if that kiss had lingered a second longer than it did, Aaron would have yanked him away with less thought than it took to draw breath.
“Are ye ready for the fair?” he asked abruptly, his tone sharp enough to draw Edith’s attention without startling her.
He did not expect a response. Besides their outing, he did not care for the fair in the slightest.
Still, Edith straightened, glancing at him for a brief moment.
