He did not.
She shoved against him, but his grip held.
“I said, let go.”
Still, he did not.
So she did the only thing she could. The onlystupidthing she could think of. She inhaled deeply and balled her hand into a fist.Then, without thinking too hard about it, she slammed it hard into his jaw.
Her knuckles hit bone as his head turned to the side. He barely groaned or reacted. Instead, he blinked once, then closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his gaze was the same.
“Try that again,” he warned quietly, “and ye’ll lose both yer hands.”
Emma stared at him, her chest rising and falling with quick, shallow breaths. She wanted to hit him again. She wanted to scream, but her hand throbbed, and the threat in his voice, low as it was, settled in her chest.
She tried to yank her arm back. “I’ll run again,” she said.
“Aye,” he uttered.
“Ye’ll nae stop me.”
“Did I stop ye the first time?” His eyebrow rose. “Ye made it this far.”
Her throat tightened. So she was right. Hewasfollowing her.
“Did ye really think I wouldnae catch ye if I wanted to?” he added. “Ye ken, for some reason, that offends me.”
A flush crept onto her cheeks.
“To think I cannae catch me bride?—”
“Daenae call me that,” she hissed.
His eyes searched hers. “Why nae?”
Her eyes narrowed as if to say,Are ye being serious?
“Because I am nae yer bride!”
“Oh, well, I suppose there is the issue of formalities?—”
“This isnae about formalities. I daenae want to marry ye. That is why I ran,” she snapped.
“And I came after ye. That is why I walked,” he returned. “And yet here we are.”
She glared up at him, hating how steady he was and how calmly he spoke. Her breathing was ragged, her dress was torn, her heart was pounding, and he looked like a man taking a stroll.
It was smug and utterly arrogant.
“Why are ye even here?” she demanded. “Why come after me?”
A smirk spread across his face, deepening the green in his eyes. “I said I’d talk to me bride. Is that nae clear?”
She tried again to pull away. “Let me go!”
His fingers loosened, but he did not let go entirely. Just enough so that she could shift her weight.
“What do ye want?” she asked.
