“I promised you would be warm, didn’t I? This is how my ancestors used to come in from a winter swim.”
Her eyes widened with excitement. “A sauna?”
He nodded, surprised that she’d guessed so easily. “You’ve seen one?”
She shook her head. “Nay, but I’ve always wanted to.” She hurried after him, trying not to notice the way the linen of his damp tunic and braies clung to his powerful frame or the flex of his leg muscles as he walked.
He opened the door, and the blast of heat hit her like a smith’s bellows. “Hurry,” he said, hustling her in. “Don’t let the air out.”
He ducked under the door frame, and she quickly followed him in.
The heat was overwhelming. Stifling. It felt as though she’d just stepped into a bonfire. At first it was difficult to breathe. The steamy air was thick and humid, filling her lungs. But her icy skin immediately warmed with a tingling, drenching heat.
After the bright sunlight, it took her eyes a moment to grow accustomed to the semidarkness. She glanced around the small room. It resembled a round earthen cave. The ceiling was low—less than six feet, she’d guess, as Hawk couldn’t stand up straight—and the walls were no farther than eight feet apart. The floor was set with large flat stones, but everything else looked as if it had been carved into the earth. There was a stone oven on her left, piled high with rocks. Straight ahead, opposite the door, two benches had been built into the wall—one at normal seating level and one a little higher. A few large buckets of water sat by the door.
“What are those for?” she asked.
He shook his head. “So impatient. You’re supposed to wait until the end, but I can show you now if you wish.” She nodded. “Stand right here.” He led her to the middle of the stone floor over what appeared to be a small opening. “Close your eyes.”
“Why?”
“Do you want me to show you or not?”
She made a face and closed her eyes. She could feel him beside her, and her senses flared with awareness, wondering what he would do. Part of her hoped—
“Ready?” he asked. She could hear the laughter in his voice and started to suspect …
But it was too late. A moment later, a bucket of cold water was dumped over her head.
She stood there in a moment of stunned shock, letting the water drip over her. The small opening at her feet was obviously a drain. From behind the curtain of hair, she could hear him rolling with laughter.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I couldn’t resist.”
She pulled her hair back from in front of her eyes, sputtering angrily—which only made him laugh harder. Realizing how ridiculous she must look, her mouth started to twitch and she couldn’t help but join him.
Now that the shock had worn off, she realized how refreshing the water had felt. It would be even more so, she suspected, after sitting in the heat for some time. She squeezed the water from her hair and shook out her chemise. At least her hair and skin no longer felt caked with salt.
She eyed the other bucket. “May I?” she asked.
He grinned. “It’s all yours.”
It was heavier than it looked and she needed him to lift it over his head, but a few moments later a deluge of cool water gushed down over him like a heavy spring waterfall. He shook his hair, spraying her with water, then raked it back from his face. It was amazing how gorgeous he looked even sopping wet.
“Ah, that felt good.” He pointed to the lower of the two benches set in the earthen wall. “Sit. In a few minutes you’ll be wishing for another bucket.”
He was right; her skin was already dry, though her hair and chemise would take awhile longer. She did as he asked and sat on one of the benches, not surprised when he sat beside her. It was strangely relaxing. Sitting beside him in comfortable silence, enjoying the cleansing heat. When it grew too hot, he tossed a cup of water on the rocks and the room filled with a wonderful cool steam.
Dampness gathered behind the heavy weight of her hair. Bundling it up in a knot, she tucked it behind her head and leaned back against the second bench. She could fall asleep like this. She heaved a sigh of utter contentment. “This is heaven. I never want to leave.”
He chuckled. “The rocks will cool off soon enough. But we have a few hours.”
She opened her eyes, hearing something in his voice. “I wasn’t serious,” she said.
He gave her a look that melted her bones, telling her exactly how they would like to spend the next few hours. “I was.”
His gaze held her and she felt that strange stirring of awareness that made her tingle all over. “Did you bring me here to seduce me?”
He seemed amused by her bluntness. “Do you want me to?”
