He gave her an appreciative glance now. She was lovely as she moved purposefully behind the bar, giving this man a smile and that a sharp rejoinder. Her hands were never still as she wiped the counter, poured beer, or palmed the coins slapped down before her. Strands of her dark hair, which had been neatly pinned this morning, fell down about her shoulders and framed her face. She repeatedly tucked one recalcitrant lock behind her ear.
But of course, her best feature—well, second best—was her eyes. Her blue gaze was everywhere, alert and assessing and…glaring.
King realized she was glaring at him. But of course she was. He was standing in the middle of the tavern doing nothing but grinning like a child. He couldn’t help but wink at her just because he knew it would make her cheeks turn pink, and she was so pretty when she blushed.
He watched the color rise in her cheeks then forced himself to join her behind the bar before she started throwing things at his head. He tugged his coat off, tossed it aside, and rolled up his sleeves. As though they’d worked together for years, he took one side of the bar and Violet took the other.
By the time evening fell, the crowds had thinned, and Violet stepped into the back room, presumably to relieve Georgie from washing duty.
King gestured to Joshua. “Take over for me a moment, will you?”
Joshua grinned. He loved working behind the bar, and he was good at it. He couldn’t be left alone long in case of trouble, but King didn’t think this would take long. And he couldn’t wait another moment to tell her.
He left Joshua wiping the bar and stepped into the back room. As he’d guessed, Violet had her hands in soapy water. She looked up. “Who’s behind the bar? Joshua?”
“Yes.” He went to stand beside her, took the wet mug she offered, and began to dry it.
She washed another mug and handed it to him. “Joshua said you had something important to do today. Did you complete your errand?”
“I did.” Telling her was harder than he’d thought. He couldn’t seem to find the words.
“Good.” She handed him another mug, her movement jerky. Clearly, she was annoyed he hadn’t elaborated, but she wouldn’t ask for more details.
“I went to see my father,” he said, when she practically shoved the next mug at him.
Violet dropped the mug back into the water and turned to look at him. “You said you would, but I didn’t think you would go so soon.”
“I thought I’d better not waste any time. He’s in the Tower awaiting execution.” Of course, she knew this. It seemed not to matter how many times he’d looked into those blue eyes of hers—they still made him stupid.
“How is he?”
King snorted. “The same as ever. Proud and unrepentant and…cold. I don’t think he cared a whit that I had gone to see him.”
“I’m sure that’s not true.”
“Yes, it is. He’s never cared about anyone or anything other than himself.”
Violet reached out and put a wet hand on the bare skin of his forearm, where he’d rolled up his sleeves. “King, I’m sorry.”
King had learned never to take it for granted when Violet offered him affection. He covered her hand with his. “He’ll be executed in the next few days. A week at most. Hanged by the neck until dead. I imagine that’s punishment enough for any man.”
“Can you forgive him, do you think? For ruining your life?”
King stilled and tightened his grip on her hand. “I do need to forgive him, but that’s for never being a father to me. He didn’t ruin my life. He sent me away as a child and all but abandoned me, but because of him, I met Rory and Henry. The friendship we formed saved all of us.” He looked her directly in the eyes. “And because of my father, I met you.”
She tried to pull her hand away, but he held fast.
“The day I met you, I thought my life was over. I thought I was ruined. The truth was, my life was just beginning.”
“Have you been drinking when I wasn’t looking? This is no beginning.” She gestured to the small, dark back room with her free hand.
“I don’t mean this place.” She tugged her hand away again, and he let her go. “When I spoke to my father, he did give me one piece of advice. It’s trite. Nothing original. But for once, he said something I needed to hear. He said,Don’t waste the time you have left.”
Violet lifted her brows, in tacit agreement that this was no great piece of wisdom.
“I don’t want to wait another moment to tell you how I feel.”
“King, don’t—”
