Page 23 of The Scot's Perfect Match
His answer was equally unguarded. “Because I promised I’d look after her. And because I know what happens when men like Ferguson are left unchecked. She’s my family, dash it.”
Her grip on the parasol slackened. A part of her wanted to argue or maybe mock him. She wanted to keep their usual banter sharp and easy because then it was only surface level, nothing deeper. But another part knew he was only doing what he thought was right. And she couldn't fault him that. Gavan had always been someone his people could depend on.
She thought about Lachlan's easy smile and issue of compliments. The gentleman had quickly he’d sought her out today to thank her for the hospitality, and he had effortlessly charmed Moira.
The tiniest flicker of doubt needled its way under her skin.
And then, as quickly as it came, she buried it beneath a dazzling, practiced smile. “Ye do love to brood, do ye no’?”
Once again, he didn’t rise to the bait, instead gazed at her with a steady and unreadable expression.
They stood there like that for several heartbeats, alone in the shaded path, with her hand tight around her parasol, his gaze fixed on her, tethering her in place. The space between them felt charged, like one wrong word could shift everything.
He stepped a fraction closer, enough that she could feel the warmth of him even through the summer breeze. His eyes flicked, briefly, dangerously, to her mouth.
Her breath caught and the world felt like it tilted. Like he might actually close the remaining distance.
And with it came an echo, sharp and unwelcome, of another summer evening, years ago, when she’d let herself believe in the promise of a glance, the weight of a hand at her back… only to watch that promise dissolve into polite dismissal.
She would not make that mistake twice.
Ava straightened her spine, lifting her chin in what she hoped looked like defiance rather than self-preservation.
Her breath caught, and she hated that he noticed.
Then from the distance, “Ava!”
The call shattered the moment. Freya’s voice, bright and oblivious, floated down the path. “Ye must come tell Lady Drummond about the seating for the next assembly, she insists on knowing! Oh dear, did I interrupt? I’m so sorry.” Freya’s gaze moved suspiciously between the two of them.
Ava blinked, stepping back just enough to feel the air cool between them.
“I suppose duty calls,” she said lightly, though her pulse still hadn’t steadied.
Gavan’s jaw flexed. “Go play hostess,” he said, voice unreadable.
She dipped her head in a mock-curtsy, forcing her brightest smile. “And ye go back to scowling at gentlemen ye dislike.”
But as she swept away, parasol spinning lazily in her hand, the tiniest crack in her confidence remained, an unwelcome, whispering thought she couldn’t quite shake, What if he’s right?
Freya raised a brow at Ava the moment she stepped back onto the main lawn, Poppy closing the distance with two lemonade glasses and an expression far too knowing for Ava’s liking.
“I saved ye, ye’re welcome,” Freya said, looping her arm through Ava’s with the ease of a sister. “Ye disappeared into the rose path with Lord Darkwood and when I spotted ye, ye looked like ye’d been caught in a storm.”
Ava blinked, forcing her brightest, most effortless laugh. “Do no’ be ridiculous. It was hardly a storm.” Just a gale force wind.
Poppy arched a brow. “Oh? Because from the blush on your cheeks, it seems rather… charged.”
Ava scoffed, reaching for the lemonade Poppy offered as if that would shield her. “He was brooding. I was managing it. Ye know how he gets.”
“Managing it?” Freya’s grin turned positively feline. “Funny, that’s exactly how ye describe taming a particularly ill-tempered horse.”
“I do no’ need taming lessons, thank ye verra much.” Ava's tone was crisp even as her cheeks warmed.
Poppy leaned in conspiratorially. “So? What did he say?”
“Nothing worth repeating.” Ava sipped her drink with a grace she didn’t feel. “He’s concerned for Moira. That’s all.”
Freya hummed, unconvinced. “If that’s all, then why do ye look like someone just told ye your favorite dress has gone out of fashion?”
