Ramsay had eased back into the shadows, knowing they disguised him well, his heart leaping with terror.
For Evangeline had not risen from the water. Had Ramsay seen her crest the surface for just a moment before she floated downstream? Did she pretend to be overwhelmed or was she dead in truth? Rufus watched her so avidly that Ramsay guessed the other man wondered the same.
As much as Ramsay wanted to go to the lady, he knew naught would be gained by revealing himself. He watched, heart in his mouth, as she drifted against the rocks on the far side of the river, yet still gave no sign of life. Surely she could not be lost? Surely he could not have failed another maiden so completely?
He hoped the wound he had inflicted upon Rufus festered. He hoped an infection spread from the apparently minor injury to consume Rufus completely. Matters would be much simpler with Rufus dead than might be the case with Rufus bent upon vengeance.
When Rufus returned to the shore, Ramsay retreated to ensure that he was not spotted. He located Evangeline’s palfrey, and counted the moments until it was safe to return to the lady.
When he heard Rufus’ destrier gallop away, Ramsay hastened back to the stream.
Evangeline had risen to her feet in his absence. Relief nigh took Ramsay to his knees, but when he stepped forward to reveal himself, her expression had turned to terror.
She stared at him without recognition and he saw the depth of the shock she had endured. He could not comprehend this fearless and bold beauty ever being frightened, and he blamed himself.
His thoughts filled with recriminations—he should have been closer; he should not have granted her only a warning; he should not have permitted her to enter Dunhaven with no one to defend her from the fiend he knew Rufus to be—as he cast back his hood.
When her wondrous eyes lit with recognition and she smiled, the sight struck a blow to his own heart.
And he knew then that his yearning for this lady had been neither whim nor caprice. It had been recognition. There could be no woman for Ramsay save this one. She did not believe it. Her family would not accept it. But seeing her nearly lost meant that he could not evade the truth and he would do whatever was necessary to defend her. Rufus did not deserve Evangeline. Rufus did not desire her. Rufus would not treat her with honor.
Ramsay did not believe he deserved her either, but he would labor every day and every night of his life to make himself worthy of her if she deigned to accept him.
The choice would be Evangeline’s.
A heartbeat later, Evangeline was striving to climb toward the bank to reach him, apparently undaunted by her ordeal. She made slower progress than Ramsay might have preferred.
“Make haste, my lady!” He released the palfrey and reached for her with one hand. He wanted her as far away as possible from Rufus with all speed. They would make haste to Foudre’s hiding place, then race back to his sanctuary. “We have not much time.”
Evangeline’s gaze darted to the forest behind him and Ramsay knew she understood.
“They will come to collect your corpse,” he whispered. “We must flee and now.”
Alarm lit her eyes and she lunged toward the bank, fighting the weight of her garb with every step. Ramsay set his crossbow aside and reached for her, locking his hands around her waist once again. She might as well have been garbed in iron for the weight of her skirts. The weight was so considerable that even he was hard-pressed to lift her from the stream.
And then she was in his arms and it took all within him to keep from crushing her against his chest and kissing her senseless. She reached up and touched his cheek with her fingertips, the chill of her skin making him shiver, and he did bend to capture her lips in a quick kiss.
“You might have been caught by him,” she chided, her eyes filled with concern.
Ramsay smiled a little, hoping to banish the uncertainty in her gaze. “I had no intention of allowing that to occur.”
She swallowed. “You loosed the bolt.”
“Aye.”
“But I could not see you.”
“’Twas a good moment to retrieve Gealaich.”
She wrinkled her nose, struggling against a sneeze. Her skin was like ice and he shed his cloak, wrapping it around her. “I wish you had killed him,” she said with vigor, beginning to shiver. “That would have aided my cause.”
“Alas, he moved in the perfect moment.”
Evangeline’s gaze flicked to his, her eyes lit with surprise and new concern. She seemed more fragile and vulnerable than he knew this lady to be, as well as frightened and cold. The last thing he desired was to add to her fears.
“Perhaps it is better thus,” he said lightly, as if he was not distressed himself. “Killing a nobleman like Rufus would have made me a hunted man.” He led her toward the palfrey, alarmed by how much he had to support her.
She flicked a hot glance his way. “He meant to kill me!”
