“Hardly. Introspection is more when—” When he grinned, his aim became glaringly obvious. She narrowed her eyes. “You were trying to get me to talk.”

“Guilty. Still, isn’t that better than being lost in your own head?”

Yes, though she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of admitting it. “Shall we go back?”

“Let’s keep going. This will lead us to the edge of the property, behind the gardens. Look, there’s another egg.”

Sure enough, he was right. She added the egg to the pile in his hat. “You don’t strike me as the type of man to enjoy an egg hunt, yet you are surprisingly good at it.”

“See? And you were disappointed to be my partner.”

Was that what he believed? “Not disappointed. Embarrassed.”

“Which we already discussed. You’ve nothing to be embarrassed about.”

She disagreed, but wasn’t up to debating it at the moment. “Furthermore, I know you’d rather be paired with anyone else.”

“Not true. I was already planning to get you alone to check on you. From the moment I walked into the tent you ignored me.”

Her brows pulled together. “I didn’t think you’d notice.” Or care.

“Of course I noticed.” He stopped and held her arm, his grip tight without causing her pain. “I saw you right away, staring at your hands and not meeting my eye. I was worried about you.”

Her face slackened in surprise and she blinked several times. “Why?”

The edge of his mouth curled, and he dragged his free hand through his dark hair, making it even more unruly. “I don’t know. Probably because I didn’t like disappointing you last night.”

“And you thought you’d broken me, was that it?”

“Broken is a harsh word,” he muttered, but didn’t deny it.

Before she could stop herself, she blurted, “You have an inflated sense of yourself, sir.” Instantly, she covered her mouth, horrified. “Oh, that was rude. Forgive me.”

He didn’t appear offended, however. “No need to apologize. Has anyone ever told you how pretty you are when you’re riled?”

Pretty. The word wrapped around her and sank into her flesh, deep into her bones, nourishing her like a plant starving for water. Kit thought she was pretty? Or . . . was he just trying to make her feel better? Unsure, she turned and started walking.

“Wait up.” His long legs easily caught up. “Why are you hurrying away?”

She didn’t know how to put it other than to tell the truth. “You needn’t ply me with false flattery. You’ve already turned me down, remember?”

“I’ve never lied to you, Alice.” He stepped in front of her, leaving her no choice but to stop. “And I told you why I turned you down. It has nothing to do with you.”

“Fine, but may we never speak of it again? It is mortifying.”