bogle!” With that, he hitched his trousers, raised his chin, and strode up the stairs, leaving Ciaran laughing behind him.
“I hope the bogle gets you!” Bannon called over his shoulder.
Ciaran laughed harder, damn him.
§ § § §
May 30, 4831: Lochwood Castle
“Oh my galaxy! What have you done?”
Bannon jolted awake at the screeching, then quickly slammed his eyelids back shut at the sight of Louie standing beside the bed, glaring at him with her hands on her hips. It wasn’t unusual for her to wake him by yelling. Galaxy knew, he’d done enough stuff to her over the years to deserve most of those dressing-downs—like the time he’d cut all her dresses to knee-length while she slept, or when he’d put shaving cream in all her shoes—but he could not think of anything he’d done to her lately. She was ruining his glow. Oh blast! That’s what she was up in arms about. He was still in Ciaran’s room.
Heat climbed up his face as he sucked in a quiet breath. He debated pulling the covers over his head but settled on playing possum, hoping she’d think him still asleep and go away.
You know this is Louie we are talking about, right?
Right. Who was he kidding? With a sigh, he blinked his eyes open, expecting the pain of morning sun to greet him, but the only light was the soft glow of the fireplace. Ciaran must have lit it before leaving. Bannon vaguely remembered him climbing out of bed earlier, because all the warmth had left. “What time is it?”
Louie completely ignored his question, crossed her arms over her chest, pouted her bottom lip out, and dropped down on the edge of the bed with a huff of indignity. “I cannot believe you! Are you trying to ruin my reputation?”
It was too early for this kind of drama without a cup of tea. Maybe after a gallon he’d be ready, except Skye did not have any tea. At least none but herbal tea, and who wanted weeds steeped in water? Bannon sat up and looked around. The bed curtains on the left were still closed. He opened them enough to peek out. Light pooled on the floor beneath the curtain on the window, so it must be morning. Closing the curtains back, he glanced over at Louie. “How am I ruining your reputation?”
“As a chaperone!” she snapped.
“You are a terrible chaperone and always have been. Besides, who will know?”
Louie looked away and dropped her arms. “I know,” she said without any heat. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me about this….” She waved her hand around the room, indicating everything and nothing, still staring at her hands in her lap. She rolled the fabric of her dress between her thumb and finger. “I went to your room to find you, and you weren’t there.”
The lining of Bannon’s throat felt as though it were three feet thick, and no amount of swallowing helped rid him of the situation. This wasn’t about her prestige—which she didn’t have—as a chaperone. This was about her not knowing. Bannon scooted forward until he was right next to her, being sure to take the covers with him. “Louie.”
“What?” she said without looking up.
“Louie, look at me.”
When she still didn’t look at him, he lifted her chin with his finger.
She tried to look away, but he wouldn’t let her. A single tear dripped down her face, and damn it all, his stomach tied itself into knots. He’d hurt the one person who’d always been there for him, always believed in him, and…. The breath escaped from his lungs, and it felt as though someone cinched a corset around him so tight, he couldn’t get air back in. He had not even thought to talk to her about staying…. He’d been so caught up in his own thoughts, so caught up in Ciaran, he hadn’t thought to talk to Louie. That had never happened in his entire twenty-one years and ten months. He’d been discussing things with her since he could talk, and he’d learned to talk an entire two weeks before she had. It hadn’t mattered, though. He’d still jabbered at her as they’d played together in their playpen, and she’d seemed to understand him. She always did understand him better than anyone.
“What?” she said, bringing him out of his reflection.
“I’m sorry, Louie. Forgive me? I should have told you I had feelings for him.”