Chapter 13

Aaden was at the end of his rope. He didn't know what he could possibly do that would make anything better between him and Lilith, but he supposed the fact that he had not been thrown out of the castle yet meant that she hadn't told her father anything. Aaden would almost prefer that to what he was going through, though. He existed in a limbo, not knowing what Lilith would do or say next or if she would ever even speak to him again.

Surely, she will. She cannae avoid me forever.

He had to find a way to get back to her good graces, no matter what it took. He would do anything to bring the plan back on track, not only because he feared for his mother's safety, but also because he didn't want to be on bad terms with Lilith.

It was foolish to care about what she thought of him, and yet he couldn't deny it any longer. He was only lying to himself if he thought he was still doing all this just because of Ruadh's orders, as if his feelings had nothing to do with his desire to make her like him. But whatever feelings had started to bloom inside him were too complicated for him to sort through when there were other priorities for him to focus on—namely, his mother, who was still in danger.

In the week he had spent with Lilith, he had come to care for her. Now that she hadn't even spoken to him for just as long, his stomach dropped every time he caught a glimpse of her in the castle, his heartbeat picking up at the mere sight of her. He recognized it for what it was: an infatuation, the same kind he had felt when he had first laid eyes on her in that inn all that time ago. With time, it would fade, but as long as he was near her, his fascination held strong.

"Look at them," Evander said, scowling where he stood next to him, the two of them taking a break from training. Though it was a pleasant enough day, dry and cool, they were both drenched in sweat, since Aaden was still doing his best to take his revenge any way he could. After the incident with the maid, he had yelled at his cousin for days, drilling it into his thick skull that he was jeopardizing everything for the both of them.

He could only hope that Evander finally understood.

"Who?" Aaden asked, but then he followed his gaze to Freya and Cameron, the two of them walking together side by side, laughing. Color had risen to Evander's cheeks, his gaze hardening whenever Cameron appeared in front of him. Aaden could only sigh, preparing himself for whatever scene was bound to follow now that Evander had seen him with Freya, but he still tried to warn his cousin. "Behave."

Scoffing, Evander dropped the training sword to the ground, smoothing his hair back with a nervous hand. "Freya!" he called, giving her his brightest grin when she turned to look at him. The moment their eyes met, her entire expression brightened, and she waved cheerily at him, though much to Evander's displeasure, she didn't approach. Instead, she continued walking with Cameron, and Evander let out a low growl in frustration, his features settling in a mask of determination.

"Wait!" he called as he ran up to them. Cameron didn't pay him ay mind, perhaps thinking that they could escape if they rushed out of there, but Freya pulled him to a stop, waiting for Evander to catch up to them. Though Aaden couldn't hear what his cousin was telling them exactly, he could see that Cameron was anything but pleased, his hands clenched into fists by his sides as he listened to Evander and Freya talk. In the end, though, none of his silent protests mattered, as Evander pulled Freya away, leaving Cameron behind to stare at her retreating back until they were gone from his sight.

When they disappeared, Cameron turned to find Aaden staring at him and though he tried to avert his gaze, he had no doubt he had been spotted. After a moment of hesitation, he walked over, joining Aaden on the bench where he sat, collapsing on the seat.

"I was supposed tae take her tae the town," Cameron said.

"I am guessin' the plan changed, then?" Aaden asked.

"So it seems." For a moment, Cameron stood as though he was going after Freya, but then changed his mind and sat back down. "I dinnae understand why she would just go with him."

Aaden very much doubted that. Surely, Cameron understood perfectly well, but perhaps what he couldn't understand was why Freya was so fond of a man like Evander.

"Ye love her," Aaden said and Cameron didn't bother denying it.

"Does it matter?" he asked. "She only views me as her friend."

"Well… have ye tried tellin' her how ye feel?" Even as Aaden said it, though, it sounded silly to him. Freya must have known by then how Cameron looked at her—as though she was the only thing in the world that mattered. The fact that she was still so taken with Evander meant that she truly saw Cameron as only a friend and she needed a push to see him in a different light. "Or perhaps makin' her jealous? Has she ever seen ye with another lass? Ye could court a pretty maid an' see what she does."

Cameron's eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as he turned to him. "Are ye givin' me advice?"

"Aye," said Aaden. "Who better than me tae advise ye on this?"

"Och aye, since yer doin' so well with Lilith."

Aaden fought the urge to roll his eyes at Cameron, but only because he knew he was right. He had no excuse to make for his lack of progress with her, other than pointing out that Evander had almost ruined everything for him.

But I cannae tell Cameron this. He will reveal everythin' tae the laird an' then the plan will truly be ruined.

If Cameron heard about Evander's philandering, he would do anything to protect Freya from him even if she didn't want him to, and then both Aaden and Evander would surely be sent away.

"If ye helped me, then perhaps I would be doin' better with her," Aaden pointed out instead of trying to argue pointlessly.

"Have I nae helped ye enough?" asked Cameron. "I've already told ye plenty about her."

"Tell me more," Aaden said, leaning right into Cameron's space. "What does she like? Flowers? Sweets? Shiny jewelry?"

Will any o' this even make a difference?

It probably wouldn't, Aaden knew, but it would serve as an excuse for him to at least talk to her. She wouldn't be swayed by material things. She had no need for them, considering the wealth of her clan, and besides, she wasn't so shallow as to be impressed by such trivial things, but if the gesture of gift-giving gave him a few minutes to talk to her properly, then perhaps his words could sway her instead—if he picked them carefully.

With a sigh, Cameron ran a hand through his hair, tugging a little at the strands. "She likes books. Surely, ye have seen her read."

Aaden had, indeed, seen Lilith read plenty of times, but he was more of a man of actions rather than words and reading had never been his strong suit. He had never been patient enough for it, always having an irrepressible need to be moving instead of sitting down with a book.

"Does that mean I have tae read a book?" he asked with a grimace of displeasure.

Cameron snorted, giving him a gentle push back. "Can ye nae read?"

"I can read!"

"Then read," Cameron said, much to Aaden's chagrin. "She likes Gulliver's Travels. She's been readin' it ever since she was a bairn."

"Aye, I ken that book!" Aaden said excitedly.

"Ye've read it?"

"Och nay. But I've heard o' it."

"I dinnae ken what I was expectin' tae hear," Cameron said with a shake of his head. "There is a copy in the library. Ye can read it an' talk tae her about it, even though she's avoidin' ye."

With a weary sigh, Aaden leaned back on the bench, letting his eyes fall shut against the sparse light of the sun. "Is it that obvious that she's avoidin' me?"

"It is. She hasnae made any effort tae be subtle."

For a while, silence fell between them, but even with his eyes closed, Aaden could feel Cameron's gaze on him. In the end, Cameron asked, "What did ye dae this time?"

Aaden didn't know how to answer that question without lying to the other. He let the silence stretch for several more moments, remembering the betrayed look in Lilith's eyes when he refused to take her side.

"It's what I didnae dae," he said. "Sometimes that is worse."

Finding the book was harder than Aaden could have anticipated. The library of the Stewart Castle seemed to be organized with no logic in mind and the shelves, filled with books as they were, seemed difficult to navigate for someone who had never stepped foot in the room before. He went almost through the entire place searching for Gulliver's Travels and for a while, he even worried that Lilith had the book somewhere in her chambers, but in the end, he found it tucked away in a corner, its cover well-worn and its pages marked with use.

Tucking it under his arm, Aaden left the room and headed to his guest chambers, surrendering himself to the fact that he would have to read the whole thing. Just as he was rounding the corner, though, he saw Lilith approach and he stopped dead in his tracks.

Can I avoid her? Nay. It's too late, she has already seen me.

Instead of fleeing, Aaden hid the book behind his back, but that only seemed to betray its presence to Lilith.

"What dae ye have there?" she asked, trying to peek behind his back. "A book?"

"Aye," Aaden said, thinking that perhaps he could twist this to his advantage. At least Lilith was speaking to him again, even if it was just because she was curious. "I wanted tae distract meself, so I thought I would read me favorite."

"Yer favorite, is it?" Lilith asked. "Which one?"

Why did I have tae say it's me favorite? Now she'll think that I've already read it.

"Och, just a book," he said dismissively, giving her a small shrug. It wasn't his best attempt at deflection, but he couldn't think of a single thing to say to Lilith so that she would stop questioning him.

"I've most likely read it," Lilith said, taking a few steps closer to Aaden until he instinctively took a step back, trying to keep the book hidden. "If it's yer favorite, dinnae ye wish tae ken what I think o' it?"

She kens. She kens I dinnae read.

But how could she? It was more likely that she was only attempting to start a conversation with him, since she now thought that they had at least one thing in common. The stranger he acted about it, the more suspicious Lilith was going to get.

"What book is it, Aaden?" Lilith demanded then, lips pursing into a thin line.

Aaden mumbled the book's title, not loud enough for her to hear.

"What was that?"

"I said it's Gulliver's Travels."

Lilith froze for a moment, her eyes narrowing as she looked at him. Then, her lips stretched into a pleasant smile, one that Aaden hadn't seen from her in several days, and relief washed over him. They were talking, she was smiling, and Aaden couldn't help but smile back, hoping that he now had another chance.

"Who is yer favorite character?" Lilith asked.

"Gulliver," Aaden said confidently, glad she hadn't asked a question he couldn't easily evade.

"What's his first name?"

It was then that Aaden was left speechless for several moments and Lilith smiled smugly, her suspicions confirmed.

So she did ken that I dinnae read… or at least suspected it.

"I dinnae remember it," Aaden said, trying his best to salvage this conversation. "I only kent him as Gulliver."

"It's yer favorite book an' ye didnae remember his name?" Lilith asked, relentless in her questioning. Aaden had nothing satisfying to say to that and he certainly couldn't give her a satisfying answer to any other questions that were sure to follow if he insisted he had read the book. Besides, honesty seemed to be the best strategy when it came to dealing with Lilith. It was better if he told her the truth—at least as much of it as he could, given the circumstances.

"Alright, fine," he said. "I havenae read it but Cameron told me ye like it very much, so I wished tae read it an' discuss it with ye. Is that so bad?"

"Cameron is helpin' ye?" Lilith asked. "Why? It isnae in his best interests that we wed. Then he'll lose Freya fer good."

"Maybe it's because he's a good lad," Aaden pointed out. "He's only tryin' tae be helpful."

There was a short silence before Lilith spoke once more. "Will ye read the book?"

Aaden sighed, a hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "I suppose it doesnae matter now, does it?" he asked as he handed the book to her. Lilith took it, cradling it against her chest as though it was something terribly precious. "Could we have a… a truce now? Could we nae fight?"

"I'm nae fightin' with ye, am I?" Lilith said. "I am simply ignorin' ye."

"Aye, I suppose that is true," Aaden said. "But could ye stop ignorin' me? I would very much like tae spend some time with ye again an' I am tryin' everythin' I can tae gain yer trust again. I would even read the book fer ye."

"The only way fer ye tae gain me trust is tae tell the truth about Evander," Lilith said without wasting a second, as though she had expected the matter of trust to come back and had a response prepared already. "That is all. If ye told the truth, then I would be more inclined tae trust ye."

There was nothing Aaden could say to this that would appease Lilith. She would not rest until he told the truth, but telling the truth would reveal everything he had tried so hard to keep hidden. In his head, he cursed Evander for being so careless, so foolish. Had it not been for his recklessness, then none of this would have happened. Perhaps Aaden would have even managed to charm Lilith enough already to be able to ask for her hand.

"I cannae dae that, Lilith," he said. "Ye heard Evander. If I tell the truth, he will destroy yer reputation. He will tell everyone about that night."

Lilith didn't respond immediately, but even that was a victory for Aaden. He was half-expecting her to fight back right away, but at least she was considering it.

Before Lilith could answer him, two pairs of footsteps approached them and Aaden looked over her shoulder to see Evander and Freya there, walking down the corridor. Freya's footsteps were quick and Evander was trailing behind her, his expression pinched with concern while hers was a storm, anger radiating off her much to Aaden's surprise.

He had never seen her like this. The sweet, quiet young woman he knew was nowhere to be found now.

"What is the matter?" Lilith asked as Freya walked past them. Freya didn't respond, though. She didn't even stop, but rather kept walking without a single word.

It was Evander who lingered. "Dinnae fash," he told Lilith. "I will take Freya fer a ride soon."

"A ride?" Lilith asked. "I thought she was goin' tae the town today."

"The plans changed," Evander said with a small, uncaring shrug.

"Was she nae supposed tae be with Cameron?" asked Lilith. Her displeasure was palpable, but if Evander picked up on it, he didn't let it show on his face.

"As I said, the plans changed."

Aaden didn't have time to say anything before Evander, too, left them. His footsteps echoed down the hallway, chasing after Freya. Lilith, too, hurried down the hallway after Freya and before he knew it, Aaden was left alone. Cursing quietly under his breath, he turned on his heel and went the opposite way, heading to his guest chambers as was his plan from the beginning—only now he had no book to read.

There was nothing for him to do but wait and see.