The atmosphere was festive and carnival-like inside Connor Keep. Out in the courtyard there were jugglers, acrobats, and jesters, and games set up for the village children. Inside the banquet hall the minstrels were playing, people were dancing, and the tables were heaped with food. Justine came and took Violet from Willow’s arms, and the Duke spun her onto the dance floor.
Willow laughed and protested, “No! I don’t know how to dance,” but she still curtsied and joined the lines of dancers that were circling one another in the center of the room. Liam laughed and clapped with the other dancers as Willow fumbled over the steps until she got the rhythm. People who watched from the sides whispered and wondered at the change they saw in the Duke. The sour, surly man with the dark co
