Oh aye, she wanted him, and the realization was enough to send his blood roaring again, despite his efforts to stop it.
And yet, there was something stopping her, something making her pull back, something stronger than desire.
“I...I...” She swallowed thickly and smoothed her dress, making sure it was covering every inch of her skin. “I shouldn’t have let things get that far. I’m sorry, Kai. This isn’t what I want.”
She was lying. It was obvious in the flush of her cheeks, the rapidness of her breathing. But she would come to him when she was ready and not before, and when she did—good God, when she did!—he would be waiting. He didn’t think he’d ever wanted a woman the way he wanted Caitlin.
He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I shouldnae have done that. I just get carried away when I’m with ye.”
“Why?” she asked. “You could have any woman you wanted.”
“But I dinna want any woman,” he said, unsure where the words were coming from. “The woman I want is ye, lass.”
She shook her head. “You wouldn’t say that if you knew.”
“If I knew what?”
“Nothing. It doesn’t matter.” She scooted away from him and climbed to her feet.
The moment was gone, and Kai felt strangely hollow inside. He was used to being rebuffed. After all, many of the women he chased turned him down—at least at first. Getting them to change their minds was half the fun. But Caitlin’s rejection hurt much more than he’d expected.
“Let’s put it down to the stress of yesterday, eh?” he said, offering her an easy excuse. “After what happened at the fair, it’s no wonder we both needed a bit of release.”
She nodded, latching onto this. “Yes. You’re right. That’s all it was.”
Kai climbed to his feet. “Well, I’m glad we got that sorted. Now, we had better be going.”
There was nothing for breakfast, so they mounted up and started riding north towards the coast.The drizzle started soon after they’d begun their journey and Caitlin shivered in her damp dress. Kai pulled his own cloak close, wrapping it around the both of them. Her body tensed for a second then she sighed softly as she leaned into him and he felt some of his tension dissipate. His mind was filled with her. He still didn’t know why she had pulled away from him, but he was determined to find out.
As they rode, Kai kept his eyes peeled.He glanced around at the surrounding hills and mountains, the gnarled trees and scraggly bushes. The ground was wet with mud and the going slow. The sky was gray with thick clouds that blocked out any trace of sun or warmth.
It was nearing midmorning when they finally passed the first major landmark—an old stone bridge that spanned a narrow stream. He remembered this bridge from his childhood—it marked the boundary of Douglas land.
The road wound its way through rolling hills and thick forests, with occasional patches of open fields. They saw not another soul: only birds and rabbits and the occasional deer that bounded away as soon as they came close.
Kai spotted a trout stream snaking its way through a clearing in the trees. His stomach rumbled. He didn’t like starting out without breakfast but this spot might just help him remedy that. He pulled the horse to a halt on the banks of the stream and swung down.
“Let’s try for some breakfast,” he said with a grin. He waded carefully into the shallows and scanned the clear, cold water.
Caitlin dismounted and watched him with a bemused look on her face. “What are you doing?”
“Fishing.”
“Fishing? But you haven’t got a line or anything.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Have ye never heard of trout tickling? I was a master at this as a lad. Let’s see if I’ve still got my old skills, eh?”
He moved slowly and carefully through the water, just as his father, Deryn, had taught him, until he spotted a tail jutting out from beneath a rock, showing where a trout was resting. Slowly, he put his hand into the water and moved it until it was beneath the fish. Then he slowly began running the tips of his fingers along the fish’s belly, lightly enough that it wouldn’t startle, but strong enough that it would send the creature into the trance-like state he needed.
He was in luck. The trout didn’t dart away from him and he was able to get his hands underneath its body and heave upwards as quickly as he could, propelling the fish out of the water, towards the bank. It flashed silver as it hurtled through the air—and straight at Caitlin.
“Catch it, lass!”
With a yelp, Caitlin ducked and the fish went sailing past her to land on the bank where it flopped and danced, trying to get back to the water.
“Quick!” Kai cried. “Dinna let it get away!”
Caitlin pounced, grabbing the wriggling creature with both hands. But then her feet slipped in the mud and she fell flat onto her back. To her credit though, she didn’t lose her grip on the fish, even though it was a big specimen that was struggling wildly.
