With this cheery thought, she shifted her position. She was already getting uncomfortable, and the rain somehow seemed heavier up here.
In another twenty or thirty minutes, he’ll reach the Keep,she reminded herself.And then he’ll decide that he’s missed me. He’ll be in a temper, nay doubt, but why would he come back this way?
She rested her head against the trunk and closed her eyes, letting time drift by. That was what she needed—time. Time to straighten up her head and forget about how Ryder made her feel. It was just a reflex, nothing else. Nothing to worry about.
When about ten minutes had gone by, she felt the familiar twinge of impatience.
Maybe I should move trees,she considered.To throw off the trail, if he does somehow track me down.
Holding her breath, she pulled aside a leafy branch and peered down into the clearing below. It was empty. Nothing moved. It was safe for now, then.
She began her descent as carefully as she could, feeling with her feet for the next branch down. Already, she was mapping out in her head where she would go next, and how long she would wait. Once she was sure that Ryder wasn’t coming back, she would…
It was the wrong branch. When Megan put her weight on it, the branch cracked audibly. Stretched out as she was, Megan lost her grip on the branch above and fell.
She didn’t scream, which was a good thing, but she didgasp, the air rushing out of her lungs. With about ten feet to go, she shouldn’t break anything, but…
She landed squarely in a pair of strong arms, bouncing against a broad, warm chest.
Megan knew at once who was holding her. She blinked, staring up at him, and Ryder grinned down at her.
“There ye are,” he said cheerily. “It’s a good thing that I am here, eh?”
She squeaked and struggled, kicking and flailing to free herself. She managed to get her feet on the ground, but he caught her up again neatly, pulling her against him. Somehow, her legs tangled around his, and both of them went tumbling to the ground.
He landed on top of her, of course. Ryder somehow managed to prop himself up on his elbows so that his weight didn’t fully crush her, but her breath was entirely pushed out of her body.
The world seemed to stop around them. Megan stared up at him, eyes wide, and found that she was unable to manage a single word. This was not how she’d imagined the little game going.
He stared down at her, and she wondered whether he could feel the strange, powerful prickling in her chest. Was it only her feeling? Did he feel nothing?
He never had any inclination to wed before. Everybody says so. Perhaps he doesnae feel the same urges as others.
No, that didn’t seem right. That wasn’t right at all. The shiver rolled up her spine again, and she swallowed thickly, pressing her hands against his shoulders.
“I cannae breathe,” Megan gasped, voice hushed.
He moved at once, lifting his weight from her, but did not climb off her. Instead, he seized her around the waist and managed to roll the two of them over, so that he was on his back and Megan straddled him. She gave an involuntary gasp, thighs pressed tight against his sides, his hands warm on her waist. He was so warm underneath her that it made her shiver.
“How about now?” Ryder inquired, flashing a grin. “Can ye breathe now?”
She cleared her throat. “Aye. That’s… that’s better.”
They looked at each other warily, like a pair of duelers, each waiting for the other to make the first move.
At least, that was how Megan felt. Ryder was looking up at her with a narrow, almost predatory glint in his eyes. His ribcage rose and fell with his breath, pressing firm against the insides of her thighs. It was like sitting on a horse, only… well,entirelydifferent in so many ways. She imagined the movement one would make with their hips if one was riding, and cleared her throat uncomfortably. There was something like an ache forming in her gut, something that was probably best left unnamed.
Ryder watched her with a faint grin on his face, as if he knew what she was thinking.
She didn’t think thathefelt out of control at all.
“Well, then,” he said at last, breaking the silence. Around them, the susurrus of rain pattering through the foliage echoed. “I win, it seems.”
“Aye,” Megan muttered, with a bad grace. There were no claims she could make of cheating or an unfair advantage. She was the one who’d wasted her head start, and he’d caught her, fair and square.
“Will ye disobey me again?” he whispered, voice harsh.
She lifted her chin. “I probably will, aye.”
