“Especially not.It was my uncle who arranged my marriage.”
Fergus dared to acknowledge his own relief, even as he realized it was selfish.How would he feel when she wed another man?It was strange to admit that a possessiveness lurked within him, for he had no right to make any claim upon her.Perhaps it was only that he wished to see her happy, and he doubted that a match Leila had fled had any power to make her so.
The notion that others would see her as his whore was both troubling and titillating.It was all too easy to imagine a night of exploring Leila’s charms.He liked her throaty laughter and found her smile to be both shy and knowing.
Clearly, he had been too long without Isobel’s sweet touch.
He cleared his throat again.“Bartholomew said you were to be wed against your will, and that was why you wanted to leave Jerusalem.”
Leila nodded and spoke mildly.“A marriage had been arranged.”
“That happens to many.”
“It does, and if I had known naught of the man, I would have accepted my uncle’s word.But I had heard rumors of his violence.”
That she might have been wed to a man who might treat her with less than adoration sent fire through Fergus.“You should have told your uncle,” he said, hearing his outrage.
“I did!But the alliance from the marriage was good for both families.Like a good comrade, my uncle dismissed the rumors that he believed to be malicious.”
“You did not.”
She turned to face him, her dark eyes filled with conviction.“Women do not lie to each other about such matters.All the same, I could not prove what I had heard.”
This was intriguing.Leila had pretended to be a boy in order to tend horses at the Templar stables.It seemed that she had defied expectation in other ways.Fergus wanted to know more.“Who told you?”
“It does not matter now.I believed her, and so I fled.”
“Did your cousin know of your plan?”
Leila smiled.“Aziza suggested it.She knew I went to the Temple to help with the horses, because my uncle would not have approved and she helped to disguise my absences.She told me to find a knight there to aid me, preferably one who was leaving Jerusalem soon.”She watched her own fingers as she pleated the fabric of her kirtle, and he knew she was reliving her fears in that moment.He wanted to draw her close and console her, but fought the urge for it was inappropriate.“But I only knew Bartholomew.He was not inclined to help me.”
“But fortunately, I overheard you.”
“You did.”Leila met his gaze once more.“Thank you.”She smiled at him and flushed a little, her eyes seeming to glow.Her lips parted and he found himself desiring a kiss.
Just one.
Though it was not his to take.
Leila did not avert her gaze and the air seemed to heat between them.Fergus felt keenly aware of Leila as a woman.He noted the ripe curve of her lips, the thick waves of her dark hair, the luminosity of her eyes, the sweet curve of her throat.She was tiny compared to him and delicately wrought, but achingly feminine.He had an urge to protect her, even as he was aware of her strength and resolve.It was a marvel what strong bonds grew between fellow travelers on a journey such as theirs had been.
Fergus recognized that it had not been impulse alone, or even a need to do what was right, that had prompted his offer in Jerusalem to hide Leila in their party.She was both resilient and vulnerable, beautiful and strong, mysterious yet forthright.He had been intrigued with her when he had overheard that conversation, and more so when first he had glimpsed her.She had proven to be an asset to their party more than once, gave much and asked for little, yet as her hair lifted in the breeze, he wanted more for her.
Far more.
It was not good enough for her to be considered any man’s whore.
She should be a queen.
“Any regrets?”Fergus asked, his own voice husky.
“Only for what can never be,” Leila admitted softly.“I would see my cousin again, but not return to Palestine.I would play with her son, but not risk my own future.I would wed, with my uncle’s blessing, but not to the man he chose.”She blinked quickly and shook her head once more.“I want the impossible, and so I fear that there is only disappointment ahead for me.”
“Nay, not that.”Fergus had his arm around her waist before he realized what he did, and once her soft warmth was against him, he could not pull away.
“What do you see in my future days?”she asked.“Duncan says you can see what will come.”
“Not on command.Only in dreams and glimpses.”
