“No!” I snapped. I might have had too many goblets of wine, butIat least knew how to keep mymouth shut.
He pressed his arms into the grass and leaned closer to me. “Sounds like someone needs to get in the water. Maybe then you’ll feel better about whatever you saidlast night.”
My heart skipped a beat and I fearfully glanced down into the lake. I pursed my lips and crossed my arms across my chest. “Icannot swim.”
Riyan raised his eyebrows. “You can’t? How could you never learn how to swim? What do girls do all day? Sit aroundand sew?”
I gripped my arms and set my jaw. “Sometimes. Embroidery isquite relaxing!”
He raised his eyebrow and grabbed the hem of my skirt. “How about I teach you how to swim?” He tugged me toward the water. “Come on, it’llbe fun.”
My stomach jumped. “Stop!” I pulled my skirt out of his grip and kicked his hand away. I was suddenly very aware of the dagger’s blade against my leg, readyand at-hand.
“Fine, I guess I do need to dry off anyway,”Riyan groaned.
Riyan pressed his palms against the earth and started to pull himself out of the lake. I quickly turned away and headed back to the carriage before I had to see any more of that man’s body.
I stomped up the carriage steps and slammed the door behind me. I sat for a few minutes but the carriage did not move. I stuck my head out the window to ask why we were still waiting when I saw Riyan lying out on thegrass…completely naked.
My heart stopped. He looked nothing like the diagrams at Ashmore.He was…big.
I gasped and raised my hands to shield my eyes from everything below Riyan’s waist. My ears burned as the coachman and footman snickered outsidethe carriage.
“What are you doing?” I shouted. “People cansee you!”
Riyan rolled his head back on the grass to look back at me, his arms folded under his head. “How else do you expect me to dry off? I can’t imagine there is a faster way than letting the sun doits job.”
I hissed a breath out of my nose. Drunk, lazy, infuriating—Riyan’s list of unpleasant qualities was just growing longer. One of the white horses flicked its tail out of the corner of my eye and gave mean idea.
I leaned out the carriage window and kept my eyes on Riyan’s face. “You were in the military academy for close to twelveyears, right?”
Riyansmiled. “Yes.”
“Sounds like you had a lot oftraining—physicaltraining.”
Riyan rolled over onto his stomach and propped himself up on his elbows. He flexed the muscles in his arms in a way he must have thought was subtle. “More training than youcan imagine.”
I examined my fingernails, keeping my voice cool and aloof. “With your size and the amount of time you trained, you must be the strongest and fastest soldier in thewhole Dukedom.”
“Definitely.”
“Maybe even theentire world?”
“Absolutely.”
I nodded toward the horses. “But I bet you cannot outrunthe carriage.”
“What would you bet me?” he responded, his eyes glistening with pride. “A kiss?”
“No.”
“I’ll do it anyway.” He pushed himself up from the grass. “Just to proveyou wrong.”
I ducked my head back inside the carriage and sat down. I folded my arms across my chest and tried to settle my pounding heart as I relived the first time I saw a naked man over and over inmy head.
Heat spread from my cheeks down to my hips. How could he possibly be that…big?No wonder the odds of my survival were low when the nobles startedmaking bets.
I forced myself to calm down as I listened to Riyan put his clothes back on and chat with the coachman about the bet. A flash of red shot in through the window like ahuge blanket.
