Jamie’s gaze shifted then, settling squarely on Frederick with a weight that was far too perceptive for a lad his age.
“Then how did ye and me mam do it?”
Frederick felt the question land in a place he had not yet prepared to defend.
There it was. Not simply curiosity, but connection. The boy sought to make sense of something that had been left unsaid for too long.
He exhaled slowly, buying himself a moment.
Caitlin glanced at him, clearly amused now, though she said nothing. She would let him answer. That much was obvious.
A test, then.
He straightened slightly in his seat, forcing his tone into something measured.
“There are matters,” he began, choosing each word with care, “that are better explained when ye are older.”
Jamie frowned. “But I am nae that young.”
Frederick almost let out a short breath of disbelief.
“Nay,” he agreed, “but ye are young enough that ye need nae ken all of it this morning.”
Jamie did not look convinced.
“But I daenae understand,” the boy insisted. “If ye werenae married, how did it happen?”
Frederick felt Caitlin’s gaze sharpen beside him, waiting to see how he would manage it.
He could not tell the truth. Not like this. Not without Iona present. Not without knowing what she had chosen to share, or what she had held back. There were lines here he would not cross without her.
So he did what he had done countless times before when a situation threatened to turn beyond control.
He redirected.
“What game did ye say ye liked best?” he asked, leaning forward slightly as though the shift in subject was the most natural thing in the world.
Jamie blinked, thrown off balance.
“The… the climbing,” the boy said slowly, though suspicion lingered. “And racing.”
“Aye,” Frederick said, nodding once. “Then we shall see how fast ye are later. There is space enough in the yard for it.”
Jamie hesitated, the earlier question still hovering between them.
Caitlin said nothing, though Frederick could feel her attention, measuring whether he would be challenged again.
For a moment, it seemed the boy might press further.
Then, slowly, the tension eased.
“Aye,” Jamie said at last, though the agreement came with a trace of reluctance. “I can show ye.”
Relief did not come all at once, but it came.
Frederick allowed himself a breath he had not realized he had been holding.
“Good,” he said. “Then we will see it done.”