“No.” His hand came around the back of her neck, softly, but firm in his grasp. “I’m not asking.”
Gone was the passionate husband and in his place was an iron-willed chief. He was entirely serious in his command.
“I’ll take Callum with me, as a guard,” she offered. “I won’t do my work alone.”
“You won’t do it at all. It’s not safe for you to be by yourself, so far away from Glen Arrin.” He took her hand in his and started to pull her back inside Ross’s house.
“Alex, no.” She refused to move another step. “I’m not going to fall into Nairna’s shadow. I’ve been given a task that I promised I’d complete.”
“Do you know what would have happened to you, if he’d succeeded in taking you hostage?” His voice went low and she sensed the danger beneath it.
“Yes,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “I know how they would have used me.”
“And do you think I would ever let a man touch you in that way? I don’t care what the glass means to you. You can let it go.”
Inside, she was torn apart by his words. She’d thought that by bringing in so much silver, he would respect her skill. That he would encourage her glassmaking, being proud of the way she’d earned them wealth.
All her life, she’d been treated like the beggar her father was. Never had she possessed any sense of pride, and she’d grown accustomed to everyone looking down upon her. And now that she’d finally proven that there was something more, that she could be a woman worth something, he wanted her to let it go?
From deep inside, a dormant anger intensified, rising higher until it cracked apart. “I can’t give up my glass, any more than you can give up being chief. It’s who I am.” She was crying now, but he hadn’t softened even once. If anything, his stubborn will had grown more rigid.
“You’ll have to,” was all he would say. Then he took her hand and guided her inside Vanora’s house. When the matron and Grizel both asked questions, their voices rising and arguing as they exclaimed over what had happened, Laren didn’t speak a word. Instead, she went to lie beside her daughters, sleeping as far away from Alex as she dared to go.
Larendidn’tspeaktohim all the next day. Alex had sent more men to find the intruder, but they’d found only traces of blood and the horse’s tracks disappeared near the stream. There was no way of knowing where the man had gone or when he would return. At least they’d managed to wound the enemy soldier.
Though he tried to continue working on the outer wall, his thoughts were consumed by Laren. She’d avoided him that morning and he sensed the resentment simmering beneath her mood.
He tried not to care. Aye, she was angry about not being able to work on the glass, but this was about her safety. Though rationally he knew it was impossible to keep her in his sight at every moment, he’d been caught off-guard last night. When he’d seen her fighting against her attacker, he’d nearly lost his mind. The visceral need to protect her, to surrender his own blood for hers, had surged inside him.
And later, when she’d reached for him, needing the physical comfort of his body, he’d thought they were starting to mend their broken marriage. All this morning, he’d remembered her touch, the sounds she’d uttered when she experienced her climax, her legs tightening around his waist.
Alex grew aroused just remembering it, and it only added to his dark mood. He busied himself with hefting stones from the wagon to the outer wall, trying to drown out his needs with the punishing work, but he couldn’t help but be aware of Laren. She’d done as he’d ordered, walking behind Nairna and helping the women gather thatch and smaller pieces of wood for the new homes they had to build.
Deliberately, she walked past him once and he noticed the scent of wood about her. She didn’t speak, but the gentle sway of her hips captured his gaze. When she glanced beyond the fortress, he sent her a silent warning.
Upon her cheek, he saw the reddened mark that was beginning to bruise. It angered him even further, wishing he’d been able to kill the man who’d touched her.
Laren started to walk toward the gates, and at her open defiance, Alex dropped the stone he was holding and crossed the space. “Where are you going?”
She stood tall and stared back. “To fetch water from the loch. Or am I not allowed to do that either?”
“Not alone.” He gestured for her to walk forward, and she picked up a wooden bucket while he trailed behind to guard her.
She stepped on the outer layer of ice, moving toward the unfrozen portion. He didn’t like her venturing out, not when she could slip or fall into the icy water. Without asking, he seized the bucket and started to get the water for her.
Laren watched him, her gaze infuriated. “And now I’m too helpless to even dip a bucket into the loch?”
He slammed the bucket down, his fury erupting. “What do you want from me, Laren? You were nearly taken last night, and you expect me to grant you freedom to go where it pleases you? He’s going to come back. And I’ll be damned if I’ll let you be his captive.”
“Instead, I’m your captive,” she said. Her voice was cold, full of her own ire. “Do you plan to tie me to your side, so I can’t escape you? Or perhaps you’ll bind me to your bed and use me as it pleases you?”
“You were the one who wanted me last night,” he shot back. “I was going to leave you alone.”
Her expression was brittle and she was near to tears. “I wish you would. At least then I could be of some use, if you’d let me make the glass.”
He took a step back, feeling as if she’d struck him. He didn’t understand why she was so insistent on returning to the cavern. They didn’t need the silver as badly as she believed they did.
“If the furnaces weren’t so far away, it would be different.” He tried to appease her and continued, “Perhaps in the spring, when it’s safer, you could return to the work if it pleases you.”
