“Now,” Noah said, breathing raggedly, “for heaven’s sake, can wepleaseget out of this rain?”
The Keep guardsshot Noah and Senga odd looks as they stumbled through the hallways, giddy with laughter, arms tangled up together. Pools of rainwater glistened on the stone flags behind them, leaving a trail.
“Where are ye taking me?” she giggled, flicking her wet hair over her shoulder.
“To my chambers,” Noah murmured, pulling her close with his arms around her waist. “If ye want to come along, that is.”
She giggled, reaching up to loop her arms around his neck. “I could be persuaded.”
He grinned, a wide, lopsided smile that made Senga’s heart flutter. Abruptly, he reached down, scooping her up in his arms. She gave a squeal, clinging onto his shoulders, and they set off at a trot.
Moments later, Noah manhandled her through a narrow doorway into his room, the same room she’d found him in before, when she’d tended his injury and tried to understand why the man she had loved for nearly a decade was so cold with her.
The room was just as spartan as before, but somebody had lit a fire in the hearth, sending warmth and buttery light spilling throughout the room. He set her down gently on her feet, and Senga turned her face up to look at him.
She lifted a hand gingerly, tracing the curved scar on his cheek.
“Where did ye get this?” she whispered.
A muscle in his jaw flexed, making the scar ripple. “When yer father found out that ye and I were in love. He was so angry. He struck me—nothing new—but this time his ring caught my skin. It tore open my cheek. There was blood everywhere. He was so angry, I thought he would kill me. He threatened to do it again to my other cheek if I didn’t say that I no longer loved ye. Of course, he did not stop there. I stood my ground, and I think perhaps that gave him a fright. He didn’t expect that of me.”
Senga’s chest constricted. “I hate him.”
“Ach, lass, save yer hate for those who deserve it.”
She stood up on her tiptoes to kiss him, cupping his face with her hands. The kiss ended gently, and she let out a shaky exhale.
“What about that wound on yer arm? It’s healed, I take it?”
“Aye, but it’ll leave another scar. Do ye want to see?”
She nodded wordlessly, and he took a step back, effortlessly lifting his shirt up and over his head. The firelight glinted over the swell of his bare chest, almost making it seem as if he were glowing from within.
Senga took a tentative step forward, letting her fingers drift over the curve of his shoulder. Last night, in his tent, it had seemed as though there wasn’ttimefor anything slow and soft. Everything pressed in around them—time, the cold, the noise, even the sides of the tent. Of course, Senga knew that they were still in danger, that the battle was far from won, that her father was coming for her and that war was looming.
But for now, we have time. Just a little.
She traced the knotted line on his forearm where he’d broken his arm and briefly remembered how he’d plummeted from a tree. She let her fingertips dance over the bubbled skin almost covering that scar. Slowly, almost tentatively, she skipped from scar to scar across his chest and firm stomach, counting them as she went.
“Do… Do ye still have that scar on yer calf?” she whispered.
“Aye, of course.”
“Do ye remember how ye got it? That chicken?”
Noah’s face twitched. “I will never forget that chicken, Senga. I think perhaps it was the only time I was ever truly frightened.”
Senga let out a burble of laughter, closing her eyes and resting her forehead against his bare chest. His arms closed around her, holding her close.
“I have nightmares about that bloody bird,” he muttered fervently, and she laughed louder.
She was still laughing when he curled his fingers under her chin and tilted her face up to kiss her.
Chapter 13
False Information
Senga woke up feeling warm. She was curled up on a narrow bed, a warm, breathing chest beneath her cheek. She allowed herself a small smile, remembering at once the events of last night and who shared her bed.
