She drew herself up to her full height and glared at him, her anger making her bold. “Fine. I’ll give you my oath. But I won’t like it.”
He gave her a cruel, victorious smile, and Eian handed him his sword. “Place yer hands on the hilt, lass, and kneel before me.”
“Kneel? Are you crazy?”
“On yer knees!”
She looked up at him, and she could easily see why so many feared him. Yet she didn’t.She didn’t. Holding his gaze with a smoldering look of fury, she slowly sank to her knees, and reached to grip the hilt until her knuckles turned white, bowing her head.
“I give you my oath of loyalty.” She looked up and muttered under her breath. “But I don’t have to like it.”
Bren stared down at the lass for a long moment as she knelt before him. God, but she had spirit! She wanted to defy him, he could feel it in her every heartbeat. She had thought it through, though, and knew that he would have to carry out his threat, and abandonment would mean her almost certain death. He would have sent someone back for her, but he would never tell her that. Still, she had tried to flay him with her eyes and her tongue, and he wanted her all the more for it. He held out his hand to her.
She hesitated to take it, remembering how strongly she had felt his touch before. He smiled at her, holding her gaze, and took her hand in his, pulling her gently to her feet. She felt him shudder a little at the contact, saw his eyes darken and his lips part just a little. He felt the same thing. That knowledge somehow made her stronger, more empowered. And much,much sexier than she had ever felt before. She had stood up to him, well she had tried to anyway, and survived. His rage had left as quickly as it had come, and so had hers. As if such a small thing was of no real consequence between them.
He led her through the open door. The hunting lodge itself was not much more than four walls and a roof, with a fireplace at one end; a fire already roaring in the hearth to take the chill off the cool spring evening. The place smelled of dirt and wood smoke, and a faint underlying musty odor from years of use. The floor was bare earth, swept clean, and there was no furniture to speak of. It was clearly meant only as a shelter from the weather, little more. She stood there in the firelight, unsure of what to do next. The men were unrolling blankets onto the floor, bedding down for the night with no particular care as to where they lay. She watched as Bren rolled out a thick woolen coverlet in one corner, then motioned to her.
He smiled at her when she hesitated. “Come, lass, yer bed awaits.”
The naked desire in his eyes made her stomach flutter, and her heart skip a few beats. She went over and lay down on the blanket, because she couldn’t very well stand there all night, and he covered her gently with a second one. Then he spread another bed roll not three feet away. She gave him a reproachful look, and he smiled at her again, his straight white teeth gleaming in the firelight.
“Dinna worry, I will be right here all night, protecting yer virtue.”
Faith flounced to her other side, facing the wall, a little smile on her face that she hoped he couldn’t see. “Great, I will definitely sleep better knowing that.”
He laughed, and she turned her head back to watch him lie down on the blanket. His every movement was fluid grace. Sensual, full of promise. His body was built to admire, tofascinate, but the aura of shameless sexuality that he radiated at all times would surely be any woman’s undoing, should he turn it on her full force. She clenched her eyes shut tighter, willing sleep to come so she would stop being tempted to roll over and press her body against his. What on earth was wrong with her, that she couldn’t even control her thoughts near this man? She tried to think instead of her biggest problem: her displacement in time and space, and what she was ultimately going to do about it. Still unable to come up with any answers, at last she slept.
Bren lay awake for some time after Faith drifted off, watching her sleep. He was not really lying so close to her to protect her virtue; that had been a lie. None of the men he had brought with him would ever touch her, as they were under threat of death if they did so. He had seen to that. He had simply wanted to be near her.
No, that was a lie too.
What he wanted more than anything right now was to crawl under that blanket with her, push her skirts up to her hips, and sink himself deep. He was already hard and aching just thinking about it, and perhaps one of the only things stopping him from reaching for her was the fact they were surrounded by his men.
Another lie.
That was theonlything stopping him this night. He was damn well ready to break his vow, sully his honor, anything just to have her. He imagined all of the different ways their bodies could come together, how sweet she would taste, how good it would feel… He lay half the night staring at the wooden beams of the ceiling, his body throbbing, his hands aching to touch her. She had been at Creagmor mere days, and already he was hopelessly lusting after her. He could not imagine how he could go on like this for much longer.
***
Faith woke slowly, feeling warm and drowsy. Everyone else still slept; she could hear the myriad of soft snores filling the room. The fire had died down, but there was just enough light to make out dim shapes scattered across the floor. She started to stretch, still half dreaming, but she couldn’t seem to move her left hand. She came fully awake with a start. Bren had moved closer to her in the night, and he held her hand wrapped in both of his, tight against his chest. A moment of aching tenderness came over her. She could see the outline of his face, still asleep, and she had to wonder if he was really the hard and dangerous man everyone thought him to be. She suspected there was more, much more.
Gently, slowly, she pulled her hand away, and he woke, giving her a dreamy, boyish smile, his hair falling about his face in unruly waves and curls.
“Good morning, lass.” He stretched his arms over his head and sighed contentedly. “Mmmm. Are ye ready for yer first hunt then?”
The hunting party, minus some of the guardsmen, headed out into the woods. Faith was near the back, still a bit wary of riding, but growing more comfortable by the minute. She patted her mare’s neck affectionately. “You are a sweet girl, aren’t you? You know I don’t know what I’m doing, and you’re being nice to me anyway.”
It was less than an hour before they had flushed out a deer, then another, and a third. Bren and the other huntsmen took off after them, riding hard. By the time Faith got close enough to see, the hunters had already gutted the animals and strapped them to the backs of extra horses brought along for just that purpose. Then a couple of men headed back to the lodge with the meat, while the rest stayed to try for some pheasantor rabbit. They were having no more luck finding game, but Faith was thoroughly enjoying herself. Riding in the Scottish countryside under a blue sky, the pleasant scent of horses and leather mixing with that of peaty earth and damp grass; she was almost... happy. In a way that she’d never been happy before. From time to time she caught Bren watching her, the intensity of his gaze making her a bit uneasy. And more than a bit excited.
Of all the other men along with them, only Eian spoke to her, or would even look at her for that matter. It was odd, now that she thought about it. Were they all that unfriendly, or was there another reason for their odd behavior? To test her theory, she tried to meet the eyes of several of the men nearest her. Each one studiously avoided her gaze. Did they maybe resent having a woman along on a hunting trip? But ladies went on hunting trips sometimes, she was almost positive. Biting her bottom lip in thought, she pulled back gently on the reins, slowing her horse until she was riding at the back of the group with Eian.Helooked at her. Gave her a smile, even.
“Why won’t any of the other men look at me, or speak to me?” she asked in a low voice.
Eian gave a small snort of laughter. “Perhaps because they value their heads above polite conversation, lass.”
Realizing what he meant, she drew in a quick breath in disbelief, “He wouldn’t!”
Eian shrugged. “Aye. I rather think he would.”
