Zach wanted to see her?

She set the papers she was holding down and rose to her feet.

"Do show him in... he is a very good friend of my family’s."

Mr. Perlwick nodded and went to do as he was told.

Claire quickly smoothed her dress and hair, hoping she hadn’t ruined her hair with all the hunching over the parchments she had been doing so carefully.

Most of them were old - the paper was yellowing and the ink was fading, so she had to lean even closer and squint to see what was being written.

Then Perlwick arrived with Zach in tow.

Her heart started beating furiously.

What was she to expect from him?

"Lady Stenly." He performed a graceful bow that made a smile curve her lips.

Perlwick nodded and left.

As soon as he did, Zach looked up. She could see there was laughter in his eyes.

His eyes. They were always full of hope and happiness and...

Why wasn’t she in love with him instead?

He could give her everything she wanted...

Her eyes ran over his manly frame. Gone was the lanky boy she had known.

And his hair was even longer - almost as long as Yeren’s. His skin was more tanned from working so much under the sun and it made the colour of his eyes stand out more.

"Zach." She said, breathless.

He still held his smile - the same smile that used to melt all her worries away. Now, he was as good as a familiar stranger to her.

"How have you been?"

Then, he burst into laughter.

She blinked, her composed expression faltering.

What was he finding funny?

Zach came further into the room and sat on one of the cushioned stools at the other side of the room.

"You’re acting as if you don’t know what to say to me... like those pinch-faced, empty headed ninnies you always despised. Do I really look that different?"

The smile she had been holding back finally burst forth.

"Yes, you really do look different." Then she placed her hands on her hips and pouted. "How am I acting differently?"

He splayed his hands outwards in a nonchalant gesture. "You used to jump on me, nearly tumbling me to the ground. Are you too old for even that... or are you too rich?"

She blinked again.

"It’s very petty of you to think of me in such a manner. I’m a grown and respectable woman, I cannot be throwing myself at men anymore."

He laughed again. "You sound like them now." Then he leaned forward. "I want to take you on a ride on my new ship."

Her eyes widened.

He grinned. "Oh, I didn’t tell you... I had one built just the way I had always wanted."

Claire remembered when he would always sketch pictures of ships as a child.

Of course she wanted to see his invention, to see how far he had come.

But one thing was stopping her.

What would one person think?

That she couldn’t wait to throw herself into the arms of another man?

As if sensing her hesitation, he said, "It is very luxurious for a woman of your calibre, Claire. Just wait until you see it. Would you?"

She came out from her perch behind the desk and walked towards him.

"I would love nothing else, Zach."

He stood up and pulled her into his embrace.

She let him. He smelled like fresh air, like the sea.

Claire buried her face in his chest, allowing him to smooth her hair.

"You have lost a lot of weight, Claire. You seem so small to me now, is everything alright with you? Even when you lived at Loodswood, you were never this... slender." 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Claire stiffened in his arms.

At Loodswood, she didn’t have anything eating away at her peace of mind, did she?

"Whatever it is, I’m here now." He whispered into her hair. The words were familiar, but they had lost the soothing effect they had once had on her.

Then he slid his hand into hers and began pulling her out of the room.

Claire let him pull her along.

Just as they entered the main hallway, Aurora was coming out of the room with a well arranged board of checkers.

She didn’t look up as she entered the hallway, keeping her eyes focused on the board.

Zach just stood there in the middle of the hallway, intending to block her path until she would see him.

Claire took the opportunity to admire him from behind. His breeches fit snuggly on his thighs and he took to wearing long leather coats.

Aurora bumped into him, scattering her board of checkers in the process.

But the board was instantly forgotten the moment she saw who had been standing in front of her.

"Why are you so distracted, little Miss Aurora?" He teased.

Aurora’s face became brighter than the sun shining outside and she threw herself at him.

He glanced over his shoulder at Claire smugly for a brief moment.

Claire smiled at his antics.

"Do you want to see my big ship?" He gestured with his hands to show her the size of his ship.

Rory’s eyes bulged and she stole a glance at Claire. "Can we? Can I? Would you come?"

Zach turned to look at her as well. "She will be safe."

"Of course she can come. I won’t deprive her of an opportunity to spend time with you."

His eyes softened.

"I want to spend time with you too, not just her." Then he winked and let Aurora lead him up to show him her new room.

Claire remained there, wondering what his wink had meant.

Was he still entertaining feelings for her? Of course he was, he was probably working so hard to impress her.

How would she tell him that she was in love with someone else? Especially when the man in question didn’t return her feelings? He only ’cared’ for her.

Her mouth suddenly became bitter and she went to the kitchen to have a few cakes.

The cook looked up from the geese he was cutting in half.

"My Lady. To what do I owe the pleasure."

She smiled. "Do you have any leftover cakes from this morning?"

The man’s eyes looked like they would plop out of their sockets at her question.

"Leftovers are for the servants and beggars, my lady." He lectured.

"I hope you don’t give Arlan leftovers."

The man’s face paled.

"What is it?" She asked quickly.

He stared at the geese before him for a long time before speaking. "He disappeared. No one has seen him since."