Her dark honey gaze melted his resolve.“’Twas true.”
“And when ye came to the priory…”
“I wanted to be sure ye were unharmed.”
Her voice was little more than a whisper.“But ye said ye protected those yecareabout.”
“Aye.”
“So ye care…about me?”
He swallowed.In another moment, if she kept gazing at him like that, with her eyes all dewy and her face all hopeful, he’d close the space between them and show her just how much he cared about her.
But that would be a mistake.She’d already confessed to being untried in the ways of love.And sitting here in his damp leine, he might as well be naked.The last thing an innocent lass needed to witness was the rousing effect she was having on the beast in his braies.
Instead, he acted in her interests once more, protecting her.From himself.With a one-sided smile and a great deal of regret, he said, “O’ course I care about ye.Ye’re my sister, aye?”
Her brow creased.
Before she could shove him off the log again, he stood up and carefully turned away.“We should be movin’ on, m’lady.We’ve a ways to go.”
He donned his clothes, which were still uncomfortably damp, and tried to hide his disappointment as they returned to the road.She was disappointed as well.He could see that.They’d spent the day in a beautiful spring glade, whiling away the time in pleasant conversation, like two old warriors swapping battle stories.And now he’d put a cork in the bottle of their discussion.
He felt bad about it.But if they were to carry on this fiction of being brother and sister, they couldn’t afford to ruin the deception with any show of romantic affection.Even now, with his unruly cock stuffed into damp wool, his show of romantic affection was undeterred.
After about a hundred yards, she spoke.
“So if ye disguise yourself to keep others safe,” she asked, “who was the emissary o’ the Pope keepin’ safe?”
Adam hadn’t been prepared for such a pointed question.
He should have been.The woman had a way of burrowing into him like a tick and sucking out the truth.
She already knew his real first name.She knew of the Rivenlochs.He’d been a whisper away from telling her about his real brothers and sisters.He’d shared some of his real exploits, divulging some of the characters he’d played.He didn’t dare expose any more of his secrets.Some of his work was on behalf of some very important people.
“I’m not at liberty to say,” he told her.
She emitted a frustrated sigh.
“What about ye?”he asked.“What were ye doin’ at Perth that day?”
She was saved from having to answer him when they spotted two travelers approaching on horseback.
He fell silent as well.
In their profession, minimizing interactions was always best.The less memorable they could be, the better.
But as the horsemen neared, he studied their appearance with a critical eye.
The men were well-dressed.Their clothing was made of high-quality wool, beautifully dyed and trimmed.But it was stained and ill-fitting.
The horses too were decent rounceys.But they looked as if they hadn’t been groomed in weeks.
“Outlaws,” Aillenn whispered.
Exactly what he’d thought.He was impressed she’d figured that out as well.
“Or scouts,” he whispered back.“Stay close.”
