“Randvior Sigurdsson.” It rolled off his tongue as prettily as a line from one of her favorite sonnets. The last syllable heavily emphasized.
“Rand for short,” he offered with a brilliant smile.
Thank God, a moment’s reprieve from his doltishness. She sighed as he moved the tray of food toward her and plopped down in a chair.
“We sail this eventide.”
Noelle found it impossible to look at him for longer than a few moments at a time. Something made her feel inconsequential in his presence, which forced her to navigate through a wide spectrum of emotions she’d sooner forget than face.
Smirking at her apparent distress, he burst out laughing. Disgusted by his brutish manners, she looked away. She could easily call him dozens of filthy names… Having a brother as dastardly as Brian had served a purpose after all, it increased her vocabulary tenfold.
“Am I that bloody entertaining?” Noelle simply couldn’t harness her emotions any longer and balled her hands into fists at her sides. She threw him a venomous look.
“Yes.” His grin broadened.
Noelle’s throat went dry with irritation and she blushed. He was purposely trying to aggravate her. A humongous hand brushed the side of her face and she jerked away.
“Why do you assume you can touch me whenever you wish? You care nothing about how I feel or the lives of the people you interrupted here. But I congratulate you on a stunning victory, Jarl Randvior. You’ve conquered my father’s lands without a proper army to defend them. And we shall provide the necessary praise to keep you pacified to keep us from further harm. Must you persist in denigrating me, even after I submit to your every demand?”
His loud chuckle vibrated off every stone in the hall and down her spine. How she desperately wished she possessed the strength to kill him. Instead, she retreated to the other side of the chamber. Immersed in thought, she didn’t hear him follow. And without warning, his hands rested on her shoulders as heavy as millstones.
“I’ve seen the way you look at me,min lille dukke,” he whispered tantalizingly near her ear. His breath swept across her neck like a hot summer breeze.
Rattled, she knew if her face revealed half the things she was thinking, it was no wonder why he made sport of her. Determined to keep her pride intact, she responded. “And I’ve seen the wayyoulook at me.”
“Assume nothing where I am concerned.”
“My father says a man’s actions speak louder than his words.” She faced him, then stepped around him to take her leave.
He caught her by the sleeve before she made it too far. Randvior Sigurdsson was undeniably surreal. God carved his physique with such precision he reminded her of a statue.
“I’m sure your father is an educated and competent man. And I readily admit ifmyeyes reveal half the emotions yours do, consider it the reason why you’re going with me.”
Her breath caught in her throat. This unexpected confession pushed her closer to hysteria. She should hate everything about him—but he had played her protector and spared her family. He was taking her away from the only world she’d ever known. Godless heathen. And if she surrendered, everything she had hoped for in life and considered special, including honor, would surely be lost.
“Your brother parted easily with you, if I swore to leave this castle standing and spare the lives of his men. It was an astute decision on his part, but a clear indication of where his loyalties lie—with himself. We greatly outnumber your men.”
Why did he speak of this now? “But…” She struggled with her thoughts. “…I saw how many bodies littered this hall and the courtyard. Not all were my father’s guards.”
“Aye,” he said. “Many died, even some of my own soldiers.”
“And my sister, Ophelia, was she part of your unconscionable bargain?” She shuddered.
He stood in a warrior-like stance, with his barrel chest pushed out and his nostrils flared. His face darkened. “Her death changed everything.”
Noelle found some consolation in the fact that she had ruffled his emotions so easily. Not made of stone. Maybe he wasn’t dumb as dirt after all.
“I am not the type of man that condones the unnecessary killing of women and children. Despite what you assume, my men are held to higher standards than most. Above all things, Istrive to be a fair man. There are limits to my violence, and mypatience.”
She hung on those last words and shut her eyes to avoid his penetrating stare. But his face was forever imprinted in her mind. She felt her most intimate feelings were on display for him alone to judge. “I don’t care if I’m a pawn in your twisted game. But my sister’s death is only further proof of whyyourkind should be wiped off the face of the earth—annihilated for the crimes you commit. Have you no shame?” Before she could even think, she reached up and slapped him so hard she left a perfect outline of her tiny hand on his cheek. “When did you find the time to barter for me as part of your plunder?”
He looked at her with amazement.
Randvior folded his hands over his stomach and sucked in a breath. She guessed his first reaction should be to beat her senseless for striking him.
“I did not offer those terms late this morning.”
“When then?” she demanded.
