“My father would require me to marry a girl whose birth was equal to, or higher than, my own—the daughter of a chieftain at least,” he said. “He plays no part in the territorial struggles of this region: Whiteshore is too far west for that. But he would make an excellent ally for a chieftain of Ulaid, whether it be Lord Sean or another. He has considerable influence in Connacht, and the leaders there play their parts in the councils of the High King. In his turn, Father would welcome an ally in the east, someone in the mainstream of political affairs. Were I to present Father with the daughter of such a man as a prospective wife, he would at the very least be interested.”

“I see.” Now I was blushing too. “And what about poor Rathnait? Cathal said her heart might be broken if arrangements changed. Does he know her well?”

Aidan’s lips tightened; his eyes darkened. “Cathal likes to meddle,” he said. “His talk of broken hearts is nonsense. He’s well aware that there’s nothing between Rathnait and me but a vague agreement our fathers made years ago. As I said, she’s a child. In a few years’ time she’ll get plenty of offers.”

Something was not quite right about this explanation. “If Cathal knew that,” I said, “why did he warn me off?”

“What did he say to you, exactly?”

“That if you showed interest in me, I should discourage you.” This was getting uncomfortably direct.

Aidan was quiet for a while as we rode on, crossing two of the small streams. As yet there was no sign of the children. Perhaps they were riding on to the Pudding Bowl with Cathal. I had expected them to stop and wait for us. But then, with Cathal one could not know what to expect.

“Perhaps he’s jealous,” said Aidan eventually.

“Jealous?” I considered this. Did Cathal value his bond with Aidan, a bond that had existed more or less since birth, so much that he would get in the way of Aidan’s prospects with a woman? Could Cathal possibly be jealous of me? Before I had time to weigh this idea, Aidan spoke again.

“He wants you for himself,” he said flatly.

“What?”

“He’s jealous,” Aidan said. “He wants you for himself.”

“No, no. That can’t be it. Cathal doesn’t even like me. He considers me a complete bore. If he’s jealous, it’s over his friendship with you. Besides, he’s of humble birth, isn’t he? He must know he’d never meet my father’s requirements for a suitor. If that’s what we’re talking about.”

Aidan smiled. “That is what we’re talking about, Clodagh. Cathal doesn’t think the way other folk do. He doesn’t play by other people’s rules.”