Page 3 of Veiled Flames
I don’t want a husband—I have no need for a man to rule over me. But while that part of her warning was no deterrent, avoiding the company of men is the only one of Nurse’s rules I’ve always followed. Beyond the servants there are no other womenin the castle, so I pretty much avoid the company ofanyonebeyond my brothers and closest servants.
“Unhand me!” I lift my chin, gathering every ounce of courage and wishing I had a sword to match the one hanging at the man’s side. I left the castle without so much as a meat knife stashed in my bodice. Foolish.
“My hands are not on you,” the stranger says.
And I see they are not. His hands are caging me, pressed against the tree trunk on either side of my head. His body’s proximity is heating my skin, and the strength housed in his body is a palpable threat. I don’t need Nurse’s warnings to understand that this man is a danger.
Glancing to the side, I mentally calculate whether I’m fast enough to leap onto my horse before he grabs me again. I don’t like my odds.
My breaths are coming too quickly, and the man’s scent, like the wind and the forest, consumes my awareness as my heart pounds. Exactly what danger does a man pose to a woman?
The word ‘drilling’ comes back to mind, and a terrifying thought sparks through the fog of the stranger’s enticing scent and his physically dominant presence. I once saw a massive pole emerge from under Sky Stallion, when he was close to a mare. Then I heard the mare’s screams when he mounted her, just before I was discovered and ushered away.
Can men’s sausages become long and stiff like a stallion’s? And can they use that stiff weapon to harm a woman, as Sky Stallion injured that mare? Nurse refused to discuss what I saw that day in the stables, and without a mother or confidantes at court, I had no one else to ask.
Suddenly, I feel foolish, childish, for not recognizing what was about to happen down by the bridge. That must be what the vile king called a drilling. And possibly why the wench’s dress was soiled with blood. Although I don’t fully understand how a man’s rod could stab her. Perhaps it becomes sharp like a sword?
Nurse’s warnings now put the fear of Othrix inside me, and for the first time, I wish I’d been born with a scrap of obedience. As much as I long for adventure, I may be in actual danger. What if this man tries to stab me?
“What was your plan?” The stranger’s voice is so deep it vibrates my bones. But his tone, while gruff, contains less malice than I expect, and melts some of my fear.
“Didn’t you see what was happening down by the bridge?” I fight to control the tremor in my voice. “They were hurting that girl.”
“And how would your broken neck have helped her?” His tone shows amusement.
“I had to dosomething!”
One of his shoulders lifts slightly. “Not even the bravest soul can prevent every wrong.”
“Sounds like a coward’s excuse for inaction.”
His hands and body continue to cage me against the tree, forming solid deterrents to escape. Glaring up at him, I catch a hint of his shrouded features and inhale a sharp breath. His hood is likely exaggerating my perception, heightening reality with shadows and imagination, but his strong features and the mystery housed in his eyes stir something deep in my belly. His heavily-lashed eyes are dark, concealing great mysteries that intrigue me as much as they scare me.
The man chuckles softly.
I am Princess Rosomon of Achotia. I will not cower before this man. And I won’t let him mock me. I straighten my posture. But instead of showing the authority I desire, my adjustment moves my body closer to the threatening expanse of his.
A shriek fills the air, and the wailing cry cuts through the twilight, unlike the call of any creature I’ve heard before.
The man lifts his gaze toward the sky. “The sun is fast setting,” he says. “Given the quality of your stolen mount, I assume you reside within the castle gates?” He pushes himself off the tree. “We must get you home.”
I drag in a ragged breath, shocked at how I miss the strong barrier his body formed, protecting me from whatever evils might lurk in the forest.
“I can get back on my own.” I step toward Sky Stallion, but the much taller man reaches the horse before I do.
“This is a very fine beast.” He pats the steed’s flank.
“Steal my mount, and the wrath of the entire kingdom of Achotia will rain down upon you.”
His palms rise to face me. “I heed your warning, young mistress.” He chuckles, and irritation rises inside me. The hood fully shadows his face, but his mocking is evident in his voice.
“Of course,” he continues, “I’d take your warning more seriously, if I weren’t certain that this steed was stolen.”
Heat rises in my cheeks, because I can’t deny that he’s right. Although, his words confirm that he doesn’t know who I am.Stroking Sky Stallion’s neck, he whispers softly into the horse’s ear, and the beast visibly calms.
“Come,” he says to me in a similar calming tone. “I’ll see you safely back to the King’s stables. That’s where this fine horse belongs. Am I right?”
Before I can answer, he swoops one arm around me as he leaps onto Sky Stallion’s back, hoisting me up to land side-saddle in front of him. His power-filled actions leave me in awe, and one of his strong arms straps around me as he pulls my hip against his spread thighs—solid as rocks.
