Him.
For herself. Not as a pawn in some plan.
Looking around, she saw no one. She listened and silence greeted her. Everyone, including the servants, had retired, knowing the busy and early morning they faced. Peeking through the crack once more, she saw that he’d reached the steps of the keep.
If she could not have him forever, could she instead have him for this night?
She was across the yard, using the shadows to cover her movements as she went, before she realized she’d made the decision. He’d gone in the side door, so she followed, not wanting to lose him since she did not know her way around the main keep yet. Creeping along the edge of the hall, she passed by those who slept here, careful not to wake anyone.
He’d already entered the chamber when she reached the floor above. She watched as light escaped underneath the door and knew which was his. Brienne waited for a minute or two before his door, gathering her courage, then lifted the latch as quietly as she could and slipped inside the chamber.
He stood naked by the bed.
She must have made a sound, for he had his dagger in his hand and turned to face whatever threat had entered in seconds.
He stood naked in the light of a sputtering candle. Brienne could not have looked away if her life depended on her doing so. She’d seen him clothed and seen him fighting in only his breeches. But to see every muscle and limb, defined and covered only by the flickering shadows of the candle, took her breath away.
He was magnificent. His brown hair barely touched the wide shoulders that tapered to a thinner waist and hips. Strong, muscular thighs rippled as he moved. Curly, dark hair covered his chest and narrowed as it formed a pathway down past his waist. And that part of him that hung between his legs was as well formed as the rest of his body.
And when it began to thicken and rise, she knew she’d felt it when she’d sat on his lap in the alcove.
“Demoiselle, what are you doing here?” he asked.
He made no attempt to cover himself, and she was glad of it. If nothing else came of this night, she would have the memory of him standing like this forever. But she could not put words together while he stood there naked.
“You should not be here,” he said, walking to her and reaching for the door. “What if someone saw you?”
“I was careful,” she explained, finally able to speak.
He opened the door a bit and peered out into the darkness as she watched and waited.
“I will dress and escort you back,” he said, grabbing the garments that lay in a pile at his feet.
The movement made the flame of the candle flicker and threaten to go out, so she took care of that, making it burn a little brighter so she could see every inch of him. He glanced at her and then the candle and back again as though he suspected something, but he turned back to dress.
“William,” she said, walking to his side and touching his shoulder. It was warm beneath her fingers. And strong. And hard muscle. “I did not wish this night to be over yet.”
“Brienne, this is not a good idea. There will be hellish consequences if you are discovered in my chambers. Hellish for me, worse for you, I think.”
He did not pause in trying to pull on his breeches, so she did what she needed to do to distract him. She lifted her hand and kissed him instead. His skin was hot, and his indrawn breath let her know he was affected by her kiss. He spun away and shook his head.
She did not let it stop her. If pain had not stopped her from pursuing the truth of her beginnings, pleasure—or the promise of it—would not stop her now. So she used the truth now.
“You will leave on the morrow, and I will be left here to live at my father’s whim and will. I just watched him toss Adelaide into a marriage that she had no say in,” she began. “I understand it is a daughter’s duty to obey and accept his wisdom, but I am not accustomed to his ways.”
She took a step toward him again and lifted her hand to touch him, this time his chest, outlining the ridges of muscle down to his stomach with her fingers. “I pray you, William, be with me tonight. Let me make the choice before my father takes it from me.”
She could see the desire and the wanting flare in his eyes as though he controlled the fire. His fingers curled into fists and released, over and over, as if he was trying to keep from touching her.
“Brienne,” he whispered, his voice full of longing and hoarse with passion. “You know that I want you. I have wanted you from the moment I saw you. There is something between us I cannot explain.”
She could. She could tell him what she knew. She could do it now, but she knew her father planned to on the morrow. Brienne wanted to have him this night before the knowledge of their fates was known.
“Shhhhhh,” she urged, placing her finger over his lips. “Kiss me. Kiss me now.”
And, like a storm, he did. Overwhelmed by his touch, she let him have his way with her. He slid his hands into her hair and shook it free of the braid. Then he brought her to his mouth and kissed her until she was breathless and unable to speak. Brienne held on to him, sliding her hands over his skin and feeling the way his body responded to her touch.
She felt him tug on the laces of her gown and stood in his embrace as he pushed the gown off her shoulders and down to her hips. Her shift followed, exposing her breasts to him. When she tried to cover herself, suddenly shy about him seeing her, he laughed.
