It was Christmas. “You mean today.” It had to be well after midnight by now. “Are you sending me back to my room?”
“I’m afraid so, sweeting. I do not want to add to the gossip. In fact, I should probably remove myself to the barracks until we are wed.” She must have looked as disappointed as she felt, because he laughed. “It’s good to know that I will not be the only one counting the days.”
He couldn’t have given her a better gift than those offhanded words. “Do you mean it, Gregor? You are looking forward to marrying me?”
His brow furrowed. “I thought we covered this.”
“We did. It’s just that it’s all happened so fast, I feel like I’m going to wake up and discover you’ve changed your mind.”
He chuckled, brushing the back of his thumb over her bare shoulder. “There is little chance of that. It is you, I hope, who does not come to regret it.”
She frowned. “Why would I regret it?”
He paused for a long moment. “I’ve let a lot of people down in my life, Cate. I don’t want to end up doing that to you.”
“You won’t,” she said fiercely. She might not know all the circumstances of his past, but she knew something more important: she knewhim. Gregor avoided attachment and responsibility away from the battlefield not because he was incapable of it, but because he feared letting people down. But just as the king could count on him, she knew she would count on him, too. He wouldn’t let her down.
He laughed and kissed her on the nose. “You remind me of someone when you have that expression on your face. But I can’t think of who.”
Good thing there wasn’t much light in the chamber, because she feared every ounce of color had drained from her face.
Reluctantly, she inched up, clutching the sheeting to her neck, looking for the puddle on the floor that was her robe. “Can you hand me that?”
He sat up, leaned against the wooden panel of the bed, and folded his arms across his chest. She might have noticed the devilish glint in his eyes if she hadn’t been so distracted by the bulging muscles of his arms. Good gracious! Her mouth actually seemed to be watering.
“And miss you tumbling out of my bed naked? I don’t think so.”
She glared at him, ripped the sheet from the bed, and wrapped it around her as she did her best not to “tumble.”
He chuckled, obviously amused by her efforts. “Isn’t it rather late for modesty? I’ve seen every inch of you.”
She pursed her mouth primly. “Some of us aren’t used to walking around stark naked.”
He shrugged unrepentantly. “I don’t usually get a lot of complaints.”
Her eyes narrowed, taking in every inch of a body that could make Adonis weep with envy.Arrogant rogue. It was worse because it was warranted. “I bet.”
Grabbing the robe from the floor, she purposefully let the sheet drop before securing it in front of her. A quick glance at the thickening column of his manhood made her smile. “Sweet dreams, Gregor.”
“Wait.” He stood from the bed and thankfully for her peace of mind, drew on his braies. “I have something for you.”
She glanced down at his manhood. “I think you already gave it to me.”
He grinned appreciatively. “You are turning into quite a wicked lass, Caitrina.” She opened her mouth to correct him—Catherine—then slammed it shut. She wouldn’t disillusion him. He walked to the ambry, opened the door, and retrieved a small wooden box and a leather bag. “I have two gifts for you as well. I was going to give you the first when I came home, but after what happened with Dougal, I wasn’t sure whether I should encourage you.” He handed her the bag. “Promise me you will not draw this unless you have to.”
Knowing he was mostly teasing her, she refrained from arguing about how she “had to” with Dougal. Pulling back the flap of the bag, she retrieved a very thin leather scabbard and what looked to be a small dagger. But it was unlike any dagger she’d ever seen. The blade was about five inches long but it was thin and narrow, coming to a very sharp point. The handle was of horn, and when she put her hand around it, she realized it could have been sized just for her. “I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said.
“A friend of mine made it for me. It’s a special kind of dagger.” She looked at him questioningly. “It goes through mail,” he explained.
Her eyes widened; suddenly the shape of the blade made more sense. It was ingenious. Moving the blade around in her hand, she said, “You had this made for me?”
He nodded. “You can attach it to a leather girdle and wear it at your back or on your side.”
Cate was unbelievably touched by his thoughtfulness and by what it revealed. He knew her every bit as well as she knew him. They’d both gotten each other weapons! “It’s perfect,” she said. “Thank you.”
“Aye, well, put it away until I teach you how to use it. You did mention gelding one time.”
She laughed and slid it back into the scabbard. “Aye, well, I might have reconsidered. You’ll just have to not give me a reason.”
