“We’ll head directly back to the castle.” He approached his caribou and leaped onto its back, even though it was about as tall as he was at the shoulder.
I blinked, impressed despite myself. He’d made that look so easy. “You certainly know how to handle yourself.” I set my gloved hands on my waist and glared at him.
The corner of his mouth twitched, but his gaze slid to me, slow and pointed. “You’ll ride with me to ensure your safety. Do you need help mounting the caribou?”
Heat sparked in my belly despite the cold.Nope. Down, girl. How long has this cheetah been kept in her cage?
“Don’t worry. I know exactly how to mount a beast.” I winked as Kai’s posture tightened, then I studied the caribou to determine how I could do this without looking like an idiot. I was not just going to grab onto its neck and drag myself up. Last time I’d mounted one by myself, I’d jumped off a boulder.
“I could offer the lady a boost,” said a guard who suddenly popped up beside me.
“That won’t be necessary.” Kai waved him away. “Hannah, if you can't get up here in the next two minutes, I will lift you myself."
Challenge accepted. I walked to the edge of the snowy circle. It looked as if there was something helping support the barrier that kept the storm from getting closer and the snow from drifting as high, based on the depth of the snow and how it changed beyond the circle.
“What are you doing?” Kai scoffed. “You’re supposed to get in the saddle, not go for a stroll.”
My attention landed on a bit of gray stone poking out of the snow at the edge of the circle. I brushed off a little of the snow onthe mound to confirm it was a boulder, and then walked back to the caribou.
“Finally, let’s quit wasting time.” Kai lifted his chin like he was the boss of me.
I ignored him and, with a cheeky smile, I approached the caribou, took hold of its bridle, and tugged it forward. “Come on, baby boy. Wanna help me real quick?”
“What—” Kai startled, stiffening in the saddle as the caribou snorted and followed me forward.
The soldiers watched, faces all but covered beneath the hoods and scarves, though I glimpsed their widened eyes.
I guided the caribou to the boulder, stepped onto the rock, and jumped up. I landed awkwardly and folded over the caribou’s neck, practically sliding into Kai’s lap with my butt in the air.
Great. So much for dignity. Now they can all see how tight my britches are.
He stiffened against me, and muted murmurs of amusement sparked from the guards. Huffing and grunting, I wiggled and tried to navigate my way into a seated position, but the old bruises flared and complained with a vengeance. The front of my face pressed into the caribou’s neck and then against Kai’s thigh. “Just a minute.”
He sighed, then grabbed me by the shoulders and lifted me easily as I swung my legs into position. He groaned, “You’re going to injure yourself again. Be still.”
His hands adjusted me with infuriating efficiency, settling me in front of him with my back pressed to his chest, my legs pressed against his, and his arm wrapped around my waist to hold me steady. My ass was positioned directly over his crotch.
It was more intimate than I’d expected. I swallowed hard.
"Would you prefer to walk?" His breath ghosted warmth against my ear, and I hated how much I didn't hate it.
“Point me in the right direction, and I’ll figure something out.” I straightened my shoulders as the caribou huffed, its breath steaming in the air. My body still pulsed with desire from that massage, and the warmth radiating from him was already seeping through my bones.
His arm tightened around me as he spoke in a voice so low only I could hear it. “I’m sure you could.”
The traitorous heat in my belly and the pulse in my core made me want to melt against him. He was acting secretly hot toward me again, but to everyone else, it would seem like nothing was happening between us.
Not that I wanted him bragging about me either, but I wanted something other thanthis. I rolled my ass over his crotch, wanting to mess with him the way he was messing with me.
Both his posture and his dick hardened. He squeezed me slightly harder, then tugged the reins with the hand not holding me. "Move out," he called to the soldiers. “Keep an eye out for ice prowlers. The last thing we need is a fight.”
Ugh. It didn’t feel right to tease him if there were threats nearby.
The group fell into formation around us, and the caribou took off, hooves crunching through the fresh snow in a steady rhythm. When I glanced back to see our progress, the two men who had gone into the cabin to prepare it for the next visitors had returned and mounted two of the three remaining caribou. The third trailed after them, in case an extra was needed, I supposed.
We had no sooner passed the boulders and the barrier than the wind picked up like a wild creature, and everything became far brighter. The wild wintery landscape stretched out in every direction. It was a stunning expanse of white broken only by dark spears of rock and the distant smudge of mountains againsta pale sunny sky that made everything glitter. The cabin itself had vanished as if swallowed up by the snow, and our trail vanished after we had gone on for several feet. That had to be due to the wards he’d spoken of.
When I glanced over my shoulder, I realized most of the men were squinting, and I wasn’t. It was bright, but the light didn’t hurt my eyes. I didn’t have to squint at all, and I could make out every dip and crevice. Maybe that wasn’t as normal as I’d thought. An uncomfortable tension settled in my stomach.
