8. A Proposal

Sienna could hardly believe the words that had just come out of her mouth. Casper couldn't either, based on the look on his face.

Did I really propose to a stranger? Devri did say that I needed to move past Erik, but I don't think this is exactly what she had in mind…

The captain had finally picked his jaw up off the ground and was looking at her with the same brooding frown he had worn almost all morning. Though it would intimidate most people, she had quickly seen that he hid a caring, honorable heart behind the grim visage. It was evident in the way he had insisted on helping her in the kitchen, even though his hands were as cold as ice, and she could see the exhaustion weighing on his shoulders. She had experienced it in the courteous tone of their conversation, in the polite way he had held her chair out for her when they sat. She had seen the brief flashes of warmth and humor that he had sent Jem's way during their meal and had strangely found herself wishing that she could be the recipient of that look.

And even now, he was worried about faking an engagement because it was a lie—not because he was embarrassed or offended or inconvenienced by it all, but because it would require deceiving fae that he would likely never see again.

"Allow me to ensure that I am following correctly," he began. His voice was low and rich, and she was sure that it would be a delightful bass if he sang. "You want to enter into a real engagement? With me?"

She shrugged, pretending to be much more nonchalant than she actually was. "Why not?"

"Why not?" Casper's frown deepened. The wind tousled his blonde hair, which was just long enough to hang down over the top of his ears. He was shorter than Erik was, but broader, and his build was stocky rather than graceful. His bright blue eyes searched her face, as if somehow tracing the freckles on her cheeks would somehow provide him with an answer. "Why not? Because for all you know, I could be a hardened criminal. Because I'm leaving in a week. Because an engagement is a commitment that should be taken seriously."

A sense of sureness washed over her at his words, and Sienna allowed herself to smile. She tilted her head. "Are you a hardened criminal?"

He shoved exasperated hands through his hair. "You can't ask me that! You shouldn't trust anything I tell you about myself."

"Hmm. Well then, what would Jem's dear old Mormor say about you?"

Jem's voice piped up from the window in the wall just behind them. "She would say, ‘Often the most priceless jewels are hidden in the roughest stones, and the most tender of hearts behind the prickliest thorns.'"

Sienna pressed her lips together hard to stifle her laughter.

Casper closed his eyes and spoke through clenched teeth. "Jem?"

"Casper?" Jem's voice was far too innocent.

"Go. Away."

"Yes, Captain."

Sienna waited a moment before shrugging. "I can handle prickly."

Casper gave her a flat look.

She sighed. "I'm not worried about you being a criminal, alright? I probably should be, but I'm not."

"I'll be gone in a week, Sienna."

She was unprepared for the way her heart responded to something as simple as him speaking her name. He said it was such reverence, as if she were something precious and he was afraid of breaking her. Had Erik ever said her name that way?

Maybe at first, but definitely not after the accident.

"Then in a week you can call it off."

"You're not worried about what people will say about a second broken engagement? Wasn't the whole motivation behind this so that your reputation doesn't suffer?"

"Eh, it's already happened once. It will be more of a ‘There goes poor Sienna, the woman nobody wants to marry. I wonder what's wrong with her?' situation, rather than a ‘That woman has no morals or self-respect and will willingly take any man' situation. The former leaves me with pity and a little bit of speculation. The latter entails a whole lot more speculation, as well as unwanted attention from men who think that I will give them whatever they want."

The muscles in his jaw twitched, and she couldn't read his expression. When he spoke again, his voice was gruff. "What if I didn't leave in a week?"

Sienna boldly met his eyes. "Then I guess we would get married. Like you said, an engagement is a commitment."

For whatever reason, that seemed to be the statement that threw him over the edge. He threw his hands in the air. "Sienna, you don't want to be engaged to me. I'm leaving."

His roundabout arguments were starting to get old. She propped her fists on her hips and widened her stance. "So call it off when you go."

"And if I don't? If I just disappear into the night and you don't hear from me again."

"First of all, that would be incredibly rude of you. What would dear old Mormor say? Second, I suppose I would just waste away in my lighthouse tower, waiting for you to return. I would become the subject of sad love ballads—the rejected lover pining for her absent fiancé."

His words were close to a growl now. "I'm being serious!"

"And so am I. Look, Casper. I will understand completely if this is an inconvenience. I already told you that. No one is forcing you to agree. I am getting a lot more out of this arrangement than you are."

The tension in his shoulders released. "That's not true."

"Then what's the problem?"

He scrubbed both hands down his face, and when he met her eyes again, Sienna was surprised at the depth of grief and remorse that they held. "I just…I don't want anyone to get hurt. I'm—"

"Leaving, I know," she supplied. "But the biggest hurt will come from a broken heart, and I don't know that it's possible to fall in love in seven days."

"It's not." His answer was strangely wooden.

"Then how about this: I promise not to allow myself to be swept away by your handsome, brooding face, and you, in turn, will assist me in keeping unwanted visitors named Erik out of the house while Papa's gone." She hesitated. "Unless you're worried that Jem might object?"

"Ha!" Casper barked out a laugh. "I'm sure he'll be happier than a seal on a sun-bathed rock. You don't have to worry about Jem."

She held out her hand. "Then we have a deal?"

He stared down at it, contemplating, for so long that Sienna began to pull it back. His hand finally reached out and wrapped around hers. His fingers were still icy cold.

He really needs to invest in a pair of gloves.

Instead of shaking on their agreement, like she had intended, he sank to one knee.

Her breath hitched. "You don't have to—"

He cut her off with a look. "If we're going to do this for real, then we're going to do it right. Sienna…?"

"Denereid," she supplied.

"Sienna Denereid, will you do me the honor of becoming my fiancée for the span of one week?"

"It would be my pleasure." He started to rise, but she pushed down on his shoulder, keeping him on the ground. He looked so serious and solemn, and she couldn't help but tease him a little bit. "But as far as proposals go, I think you did it wrong."

His brows pulled together. "What do you mean?"

"I believe you're supposed to say, ‘Will you marry me?' or some variation thereof."

"Alright?"

He tried again to rise, but she kept a hand on his shoulder and shook her head. "No. Try again. You're the one who said you wanted to do it right."

There.

Just the briefest flash of amusement lit his eyes, and she could see the tiniest of quirks on one side of his mouth. He sighed heavily.

"Sienna Denereid, will you marry me?"

Sienna clapped her hands together. "Yes! That's it."

He eyed her drily. "Can I get up now?"

"Oh! Yes to that as well."

She reached out a hand to help him up. They stood, toe-to-toe, and Sienna had to lean her head back in order to look up at his face. "I won't require the customary kiss to seal an engagement, but would it be acceptable for me to hug you?"

"Hug me? Why?"

"You are my fiancé," she shrugged. "Besides, you look like you could use a hug."

"He could!" Jem's voice called through the window again.

She couldn't help the laughter that escaped that time, and when Casper gave no indication of refusing, she slowly leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his middle and burying her face in his shoulder. He felt cold, and his body was stiff and uncomfortable at first, with his arms held out awkwardly to the side. As she hugged him longer, however, he slowly relaxed, first pulling his arms in to pat her shoulders, and then finally wrapping around her upper back. She could feel the moment his body relaxed into the embrace. His heartbeat under her ear slowed down to a steadier rhythm, and he dropped his chin to the top of her head.

I think Mormor was right. I think he does hide a tender heart under all that prickle.

After what felt like the right amount of time, Sienna pulled back. "Do you think we should tell them the exciting news?"

Casper gave her a wry smile and flicked his eyes to the window. "I have a feeling they already know."

Jem's voice sounded again. "But we will pretend to be appropriately shocked and elated just the same!"

"You will be shocked and elated to find yourself on deck swabbing duty for the next six months," Casper shot back.

"Duly noted, Captain."

He shook his head, but Sienna could see amusement in his eyes. He turned towards the door and held out his arm. "Shall we?"