Page 12 of Kingdom of Embers and Ruin

“That had nothing to do with you, Herrick. I knew the risks, just like anybody. I’m not your responsibility, so you certainly shouldn’t harbor any guilt over it,” Maude said quickly, turning away from him so he couldn’t see her face or the emotion that lay there.

Maude felt him looking at her again, just like last night before she had been knocked out. She kept her eyes forward. Better that he think of her as a villain. Better that he think of her as a heartless wretch.

Herrick began moving to the exit, accepting that Maude would say no more, but when he brushed past her, Maude impulsively grabbed his hand to stop him, unable to stop the overwhelming pull toward him at that moment. He froze and looked down at the connection. Lightning ran up her arm as she exhaled quickly.

“I will say this once, and no one will ever believe you, so don’t bother repeating it. I’d probably still be rotting in jail if it weren’t for you breaking me out… thank you.” The words awkwardly dripped from her tongue soshe sharpened them again to lighten the moment the only way she knew how. “But you can’t blame yourself for what happened here last night. Stop sulking, it’s unbecoming.”

Maude let go of Herrick’s hand, his fingers gripping hers for a second longer before letting go. She didn’t understand why she had grabbed his hand like that, but it felt like the right thing to do. Clenching her fists to stop them from reaching out again, Maude walked past him into the hidden passage, her words ringing between them as somethingotherpushed them together into the darkness.

They walked back to the house in silence for a few minutes before Maude spoke again.

“Was I right? About you being nobility? You and Hakon carry yourselves well, though Hakon is much more diplomatic than you.”

“I am diplomatic when the occasion calls for it,” Herrick said defensively. He had been quiet since Maude had her panicked episode in the kitchen, and he had talked her down. No one, not even herself, had been able to do that. Maude supposed she felt she owed him a debt for stopping her spiral, so she taunted him and attempted to pull him from his brooding.

“You jumped into a fighting pit so I would talk to you,” Maude pointed out.

“I had no choice; you are incredibly difficult to get a single word out of.”

“So exchanging punches was the diplomatic response.”

“When dealing with you? Yes,” Herrick said as he chuckled.

The sound ran over Maude’s skin, like a trickle of water running over sensitive flesh. Maude always burned; to have something cool her shell was ecstasy.

“I guess it would not have helped my case when I won, undiplomatic as that would’ve been.”

The water on her skin turned to steam as Maude stopped walking. Herrick must’ve felt her pause because he stopped and turned to face her. Annoyance flared in Maude, and she used the emotion to force hergalderto the surface. She snapped her fingers, and a small fireball appeared in her palm effortlessly. Feeling generally safe as they were alone, she floated the fireball over their heads so she could see his face. As she suspected, an undeserved smugness lay there.

“You think you would have won? Is that a joke?” she asked, voice low.

“I know I would have. You were exhausted. If Helvig’s soldiers had not raided that night, the fight would’ve ended in my favor.”

“I’m well rested now, Herrick, if you want to go another round.”

Herrick stepped closer to Maude, the fireball above them casting the planes of his face in dark shadows. His presence over her was consuming. He was standing so close that she could feel his breath on her cheeks, so she stepped back, trying to keep her head clear. She backed herself into the wall, and Herrick took the opportunity to step further into her space. His dark brown hair looked black in the shadows of the firelight, which seemed to deepen around him. This close, his golden brown eyes were all sin.

“Don’t think I won’t take you up on the challenge, shieldmaiden. I wouldn’t mind going a few more rounds with you,” Herrick leaned to place his hands on either side of her, his dark curls falling forward and further darkening his gaze.

“I’m not a shieldmaiden. There is no honorable warrior beneath this skin.”

Maude tried to say the words with the hardness her life had bred intoher, but they came out in a breathy whisper, their proximity affecting her more than she’d like.

Her flames flickered a bit, her concentration slipping as desire pulsed through her. She tried to resist, to fight against this annoying attraction to this man. It’s like she was being pushed toward him against all rational thought, making her want to run in the opposite direction.

“Thank the gods for that. What should I call you then?”

“Nothing. Don’t even think of me,” Maude forced out the words, her voice finally even.

“Impossible,” Herrick breathed.

He leaned in and ran his nose against her hot neck, leaving that cool stream and a trail of goosebumps in its place. She was radiating fire again, but anger did not ride her at this moment. Maude pushed her hands onto his chest to force him away but found herself unable to do more than just hold them there. His heart beating rapidly under her hands mirrored her own unsteady rhythm.

Desperate for air and space, Maude did the only thing she could and moved to shove her knee up into the space between his legs, but he was one step ahead of her. Herrick moved forward and forced his thigh between hers to stop her from attempting to kick him again.

She felt cool seeping into her body from the multiple points of contact between them as Herrick’s muscled thigh pressed against her very center.

It was divine. She needed to get away from him.

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