lied.
He kissed her neck. “I doubt there’s much you can’t do.”
“Flattery will get you everywhere. How did you really get a private tour?” she pushed.
He pulled his phone from his pocket and turned with her in his arms, so their backs were facing the castle. “Smile, baby.”
She did, despite wanting an answer to her question, and he clicked a picture.
“I can’t tell you all my secrets.” He took her hand and led her out of the parking lot. “Come on. Let’s go explore.”
It was amazing how cobblestone streets could change the way a place felt. If these same streets were paved instead of cobblestone, Emily was sure she wouldn’t feel like she’d been plunked down in a fairy-tale land of romance. It was stupid, really. They were nothing more than stones, and yet she felt even more swoony than she had at the car. She glanced at Dae, and he caught her looking and flashed a smile.
Okay, maybe it has nothing at all to do with the streets and everything to do with you.
The wide, hilly walk to the castle opened into a grass and stone courtyard. Emily and Dae held hands on the way up to the entrance. There were people milling about on the lawn, but it wasn’t as crowded as the cathedral had been. Emily shielded her eyes from the sun and looked up at the bell tower.
“I can only imagine how lonely Lady Matilda must have been. I know I shouldn’t, but I kind of feel sorry for her. Look at this place. It’s magnificent, but can you imagine being left alone with only your thoughts while your disinterested bastard of a husband was away on military assignments? With no one to talk to, no one to share meals with or...” She turned toward Dae and was struck by the intensity of his gaze.
“She killed men. Dozens of them.”
“Yes, I know that. Obviously, she was crazy, and she probably deserved to be bricked up in the bell tower to die a lonely death, but come on. She was stolen away to sleep with a man more than twice her age. A cold, angry man who was part of the family that ruled this area with an iron fist. She was left with only the guards to watch over her. Maybe that’s what drove her over the edge. Knowing that outside these thick stone walls life went on for people. They laughed and loved. Women kissed the men they fell in love with. They slept beside their husbands, hugged their children. What must it have been like for her?”
Dae pulled her close and kissed her temple. “We’ll never know what it was that drove her over the edge, but I love that you have such a big heart that you want to find a redeeming quality in her.”
“I don’t think it’s a redeeming quality. I think part of who we are and how we act comes from what we know. We are products of our families and our surroundings. How we spend our days definitely has an impact on how we act, don’t you think?”
At the entrance to the castle, Dae stopped and touched her cheek. She loved how often he touched her. He had said he was affectionate, but she’d rarely met any man as affectionate as her own family was. Dae was every bit as touchy-feely.
“I do think that’s true,” he said. “Especially after spending time with you.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him close. “I feel the same way.”
THE PRIVATE TOUR Dae had arranged turned out to be the perfect way to spend the day. Without throngs of people around, they were able to take as much time as they wanted in each area of the castle and were able to focus more on getting to know each other. Dae loved watching Emily take in the architecture and listening to her explaining the history and significance of the designs throughout the castle. Emily was in her element, and her face lit up as she stroked the cold stone, rattling off facts as if she were reading from a book specifically on the architectural design of Poppi Castle. Their tour guide, a short, heavyset man, was more than happy to let Emily share her knowledge. Watching her speak with
He kissed her neck. “I doubt there’s much you can’t do.”
“Flattery will get you everywhere. How did you really get a private tour?” she pushed.
He pulled his phone from his pocket and turned with her in his arms, so their backs were facing the castle. “Smile, baby.”
She did, despite wanting an answer to her question, and he clicked a picture.
“I can’t tell you all my secrets.” He took her hand and led her out of the parking lot. “Come on. Let’s go explore.”
It was amazing how cobblestone streets could change the way a place felt. If these same streets were paved instead of cobblestone, Emily was sure she wouldn’t feel like she’d been plunked down in a fairy-tale land of romance. It was stupid, really. They were nothing more than stones, and yet she felt even more swoony than she had at the car. She glanced at Dae, and he caught her looking and flashed a smile.
Okay, maybe it has nothing at all to do with the streets and everything to do with you.
The wide, hilly walk to the castle opened into a grass and stone courtyard. Emily and Dae held hands on the way up to the entrance. There were people milling about on the lawn, but it wasn’t as crowded as the cathedral had been. Emily shielded her eyes from the sun and looked up at the bell tower.
“I can only imagine how lonely Lady Matilda must have been. I know I shouldn’t, but I kind of feel sorry for her. Look at this place. It’s magnificent, but can you imagine being left alone with only your thoughts while your disinterested bastard of a husband was away on military assignments? With no one to talk to, no one to share meals with or...” She turned toward Dae and was struck by the intensity of his gaze.
“She killed men. Dozens of them.”
“Yes, I know that. Obviously, she was crazy, and she probably deserved to be bricked up in the bell tower to die a lonely death, but come on. She was stolen away to sleep with a man more than twice her age. A cold, angry man who was part of the family that ruled this area with an iron fist. She was left with only the guards to watch over her. Maybe that’s what drove her over the edge. Knowing that outside these thick stone walls life went on for people. They laughed and loved. Women kissed the men they fell in love with. They slept beside their husbands, hugged their children. What must it have been like for her?”
Dae pulled her close and kissed her temple. “We’ll never know what it was that drove her over the edge, but I love that you have such a big heart that you want to find a redeeming quality in her.”
“I don’t think it’s a redeeming quality. I think part of who we are and how we act comes from what we know. We are products of our families and our surroundings. How we spend our days definitely has an impact on how we act, don’t you think?”
At the entrance to the castle, Dae stopped and touched her cheek. She loved how often he touched her. He had said he was affectionate, but she’d rarely met any man as affectionate as her own family was. Dae was every bit as touchy-feely.
“I do think that’s true,” he said. “Especially after spending time with you.”
She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him close. “I feel the same way.”
THE PRIVATE TOUR Dae had arranged turned out to be the perfect way to spend the day. Without throngs of people around, they were able to take as much time as they wanted in each area of the castle and were able to focus more on getting to know each other. Dae loved watching Emily take in the architecture and listening to her explaining the history and significance of the designs throughout the castle. Emily was in her element, and her face lit up as she stroked the cold stone, rattling off facts as if she were reading from a book specifically on the architectural design of Poppi Castle. Their tour guide, a short, heavyset man, was more than happy to let Emily share her knowledge. Watching her speak with
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