“Straighten your spine.”
I tried, but the wounds on my back pulled and itched and ached. “I’m trying.”
Pierce regarded me with his cold eyes. “Not terrible.” Faint praise.
Ahead of us, Grayson twisted in his saddle. He glowered at us, then barked, “Pierce, with me.”
Pierce’s lips thinned as if he’d prefer to stay at my side and criticize my nonexistent riding skills. His horse moved restlessly beneath him, as though sensing his reluctance. “Remember, heels down,” he said, his voice rougher than usual. Clearly, my incompetence frustrated him. After several awkward seconds, he spurred his horse to a canter and joined Grayson.
Left alone, I gazed at the trees that pushed against the edge of the narrow lane. I was accustomed to tight streets, seedy buildings, and air befouled by factory smoke and the stench of too many people living too close together. This forest, with its pure air and trees reaching upward, made me nervous. The trees’ trunks felt like bars, locking me into a fate I didn’t choose.
Ahead of me, Pierce turned in his saddle. When my horse’s hoof caught a root, which sent pain shooting across my back, he wheeled his mount.
“Pierce!” Grayson’s voice was loud in the quiet forest.
“Sorry.” With a frown, he turned his horse forward, likely calculating how much time we’d lose if I actually fell.
“You’re gawking.” Flynn had snuck up on me and taken Pierce’s spot beside me.
Was I? Ignoring the sudden flush staining my cheeks, I dragged my gaze away from Pierce’s rigid back.
“It’s like you’ve never seen a tree before.”
“There aren’t many trees in Grimswood.” Those that survived were small and stunted and stubborn—tough as nails. By the name—Grimswood—presumably larger, healthier trees had flourished there at some point.
“You have seen a tree?”
“Not like these.” Towering. Menacing. Eerie. “Not so many at the same time.”
“Well, Princess, look your fill.”
Princess? He meant to insult me, as if I were a pampered girl who expected men to spoil me. I was a woman who’d lived her whole life in Grimswood. I’d worked hard for everything. I’d tried to protect girls who were too afraid to defend themselves. I’d tried to make a difference. I was no princess. I opened my mouth to correct him, then decided a man who called me “princess” wasn’t worth the effort. Instead, I tilted my head and admired the leafy branches spreading above me, the way the sunlight dappled through the vibrant leaves, and the birds that swooped from tree to tree.
We rode in silence for long minutes, and I began to enjoy my surroundings.
“It won’t work,” Flynn groused.
I glanced at him. “What won’t work?”
He nodded toward the men who rode ahead of us. “Pierce is a coldhearted bastard. Fucking him won’t get you anything.”
I should keep my mouth shut. Flynn was clearly trying to bait me, and engaging would only make my situation worse.But when he mentioned fucking Pierce, like it was some kind of strategy, my temper flared. “I don’t want to fuck Pierce.”
Pierce glanced over his shoulder with a fearsome scowl on his handsome face. He’d heard me. I gritted my teeth and wished the narrow track would open up and swallow me.
Disappointingly, it didn’t.
“Now, me?” Flynn waved his hand from the top of his head to his groin, allowing me time to admire his gorgeous face and well-muscled chest. It was hard not to admire his looks—he really was gorgeous. Too bad all that beauty was only skin deep. “I take care of girls who take care of me.”
They were assholes. They simply couldn’t help it. I tightened my grip on the reins, and the horse tossed its head.
Flynn chuckled softly, as if he knew he was getting to me. And he was.
But not in the way he hoped. I’d never sell my body for an extra blanket or a meal. Not that I blamed the women who did, but trading sexual favors for survival wasn’t a choice I’d make. “If I see a girl who looks hungry, I’ll let her know you’ll feed her in exchange for a quick fuck.”
He grinned. “Princess, you’ve got it all wrong. It’s not a transaction. The women I’m with enjoy themselves.”
I remained silent, concentrating on sinking my weight into my heels.
