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“ V iolet!”

Nicholas scanned the scene frantically until his gaze landed on her—Violet, crumpled in the grass, her pale riding dress spread around her.

She stirred slightly at the sound of his voice, propping herself up on one elbow with a wince. “I—I’m fine. I just had a fall.”

“Fine?” he barked, dropping to his knees beside her. His hands hovered uncertainly, unsure where to touch without causing her pain. “You fell off a rearing horse, Violet.”

“I lost my balance,” she admitted, her tone apologetic as she tried to sit up straighter. “Perhaps my riding skills have gone a little rusty.”

Nicholas clenched his jaw, his eyes scanning her for any visible injuries. His gaze lingered on her ankle which was bent at an odd angle beneath her. “Don’t move,” he ordered, his voice sharper than he intended. “You could have broken something.”

“I told you, I’m fine,” she insisted though her wince betrayed her again as she attempted to shift.

He could not believe how calm she was being about this when he felt on the verge of losing his mind. Exhaling sharply, he raked a hand through his hair before softening his tone. “Just—let me check.”

She nodded reluctantly, allowing him to gently inspect her limbs for any breaks or swelling. His touch was firm but careful, his large hands surprisingly tender as they worked. When he pressed lightly on her ankle, she hissed in pain.

“People who are fine wince like that?”

“It’s just a sprain,” she tried to argue, albeit weakly.

Nicholas didn’t dignify her protest with a response. Instead, he rose to his feet and extended his arms toward her.

“What are you doing?” she asked, blinking up at him.

“I’m carrying you back to the estate.”

Her eyes widened. “That’s completely unnecessary. I can walk?—”

“You can barely stand,” he interrupted, his voice brooking no argument. “This isn’t up for debate, Violet.”

Before she could protest further, he bent down and scooped her up effortlessly, cradling her against his chest. She let out a small gasp, her hands instinctively clutching his coat.

“Nicholas, really?—”

“Be quiet,” he snapped though his tone was gentler now. “You’ve done enough for one day.”

Lost is his panic, he hadn’t realized how close he was to her. Her face was merely inches apart from her. Their eyes locked together.

“Nicholas,” he heard her say, but he was only focused on getting back.

I need to make sure she is safe. Healthy.

Until he felt her fingers brushing his face and turning him back to her, and before he had time to think, he felt her lips on his.

Nicholas did not know what overcame him after that.

But the moment he felt the warmth of her lips, all the adrenaline shortly vanished from his veins. . and all he could think about was her.

Violet. Violet’s lips. Violet’s touch. His Violet.

He pressed his lips further to hers. She let out a murmur of shock but kissed him back.

It lasted only a few moments before Nicholas’ thoughts started coming back to him, and he pulled back.

“I…”

“That…”

They both spoke at the same time, breathless. Nicholas could not take his eyes off of her, and then the very next moment, he could not look away fast enough, his heart thudding loudly in his chest.

“Perhaps we should…”

“… get inside, yes,” he continued her frazzled train of thought. It did not surprise him that she sounded equally stunned. As though the fall had been a minor thing, and the kiss had eclipsed it completely.

The fall. The fall!

Nicholas quickly reminded himself of what he should be focusing his energy on.

“I must make sure that you are fine,” he said, pretending as though the kiss had not happened just moments ago. Though the lingering feeling of her lips on his suggested otherwise.

He was not sure if he was ever going to forget how that felt.

“I…” Violet started but then paused.

Good. The pause was good. It gave him more time to collect his thoughts. Even though he felt shaken up on the inside, his grip on her remained steady. He was not going to have her fall again—never again or at least not on his watch.

So, with Violet now firmly cradled in his arms, he began to make his way inside.

“I think you are worrying for no reason,” she said once they had covered some distance in silence, reaching the main door. The staff scrambled to make way, their concerned murmurs blending into the background.

“Get a room prepared for the Duchess,” Nicholas barked out his orders to the staff, who listened immediately, sensing the seriousness in his voice. “She has hurt herself.”

“I feel just fine,” she protested once more.

“Can you stop insisting that?” he said, irked.

“But I am only telling you how it is that I feel,” she said, not relenting. Even now—even when she had found herself in trouble—she was stubborn.

A sudden thought occurred to him. He wondered if he kissed her again, perhaps he could erase that stubborn…

Stop, he cautioned himself immediately, irked by the direction his thoughts had taken.

“Then keep your feelings to yourself for now,” he replied.

She murmured something in protest, but he did not register it.

He didn’t respond, either—with his jaw set tightly as he ascended the grand staircase. Something awful could have happened to her, and she was being so aloof.

It was best to just ignore her instead. For he couldn’t risk stopping now. Not until he was sure.

Inside the room, he gently lowered her onto the bed, his movements surprisingly careful for a man so visibly tense.

“Stay here,” he commanded. “I’ll fetch the supplies.”

Violet opened her mouth to protest, but he was already gone. When he returned moments later, a small basin of water and a first aid kit in hand, she sighed softly.

“I really don’t think this is necessary,” she said as he knelt before her, rolling up his sleeves.

Nicholas shot her a look that silenced her immediately.

“You’re bleeding, Violet,” he said sharply, gesturing toward her leg. It was not a serious wound, only a gash, but it was enough to make him worry endlessly.

“I… oh!” Her cheeks flushed as she realized the hem of her riding gown had shifted, revealing the faint scrape along her calf. She hastily tugged at the fabric, trying to cover herself, but Nicholas gently caught her hand.

“Stop that. Let me see.”

Her fingers trembled as she released the gown. Nicholas dipped a cloth into the basin, wringing it out before carefully pressing it against her skin. Violet flinched slightly at the contact but said nothing.

“You’re trembling,” she whispered after a moment, her eyes fixed on him.

Nicholas paused, startled by her observation. His hands had been steady as he worked, but now that she mentioned it, he could feel the faint tremor in his fingers.

Why am I trembling when it is she who has been hurt?

He exhaled sharply, willing himself to regain control.

“It’s nothing.”

But it wasn’t nothing.

As he cleaned the scrape and applied a bandage, his thoughts spiraled.

The image of her falling, the thought of what could have happened, the sheer panic that had gripped him—it was all too much. And then how he had lost every thought the moment she kissed him.

Somehow, too many things had happened in a very short time period, and he was barely managing to keep track of it all.

“You’re lucky it’s not worse,” he muttered, more to himself than to her.

“It wouldn’t have happened if I had been paying more attention,” she argued, “but it’s hardly worth all this fuss.”

Nicholas’s head snapped up, his eyes locking onto hers with a sudden intensity. “Hardly worth it? You could have been seriously injured, Violet. Do you understand that?”

She flinched slightly at his tone but held her ground. “I understand that you’re overreacting.”

“Overreacting? You think this is overreacting? Do you have any idea what it was like to see you fall like that?”

Her lips parted, but no words came. Both of them were surprised by his intensity.

“I didn’t mean to worry you,” she said finally in a soft tone.

Nicholas sighed, his hands pausing their careful work. “Reckless,” he muttered under his breath. “Completely reckless.”

“I was trying to be careful. It was an accident, Nicholas. These things happen.”

“That’s exactly my point,” he shot back. “Accidents happen. And when they do, you don’t always get to walk away with just a scrape.”

Violet’s brow furrowed. “I didn’t realize you were so invested in my riding skills.”

“I’m invested in your well-being,” he blurted.

She blinked, perhaps taken aback by his candor. “Oh.”

He resumed cleaning the scrape, his touch surprisingly gentle. “I cannot imagine what I would have done if you were seriously hurt.”

There was something very raw in his voice. He did not know how to conceal it.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” she said after a moment.

“You didn’t scare me,” he replied brusquely though his eyes betrayed him. “You terrified me.”

The admission hung in the air between them. Nicholas finished bandaging her leg, his hands lingering for a moment before he leaned back, creating distance between them.

“There,” he said, his tone carefully controlled once more. “You’re patched up.”

“Thank you,” she murmured, tugging the hem of her gown down hastily.

Nicholas stood abruptly, the shift in his demeanor jarring. “I need to go.”

Her eyes widened in surprise. “Go? But?—”

“I’ve done what I came here to do,” he interrupted, his voice clipped. “You’ll be fine now.”

She frowned, her confusion evident. “Nicholas?—”

Nicholas didn’t respond. He couldn’t. The emotions swirling inside him were too chaotic, too overwhelming. This wasn’t supposed to happen. He wasn’t supposed to feel like this.

By the time she called out to him again, he was already halfway to the door. He didn’t dare look back as he left the room, his mind littered with all kinds of thoughts.

This is dangerous.

The realization hit him like a thunderclap. The panic he’d felt at the thought of losing her, the unbearable weight of seeing her hurt—it was too late.

He was already in love.