Page 76 of The Warrior Priest
“You made that clear when you refused to eat the meals I brought from the order. Even when you were starving, you would barely touch it.”
“If I had my way, your cook would be exiled from Glancia for the crime of cooking bland food.”
He laughed softly, his breath ruffling my hair. “And touch?” He released the sword hilt and lightly stroked my thigh with his thumb. My blood responded with a resounding thud and my cheeks flushed with heat.
I blew out a shuddery breath. “I feel everything, everywhere. The touch of something soft and smooth can be pleasurable, making all my nerve endings hum in delight. But pain…it hurts more than just at the source. I can feel it in my bones, my teeth, my scalp…”
“Merdu’s blood, Jac,” he whispered. “The cut in your side…I thought you were being dramatic when I cleaned it.”
“Once my shock and the numbness that went with it wore off, the pain was rather intense.”
“I should have been gentler. Next time?—”
“There won’t be a next time, Rhys. We both know that.”
We rode in silence for a while, every part of me tuned to him, so I felt him tense the moment before he spoke. “I’m sorry, Jac. Everything’s a mess. If I hadn’t been tempted?—”
“Don’t. Self-recrimination will only make you feel worse.” I laid a hand over his on the reins. Even though I couldn’t see his face, I heard the soft hitch in his breath.
The track widened, and Rufus rode up alongside us. “Next time you send a note, Jac, you should wait for assistance.”
I bristled. “I would if the situation was right, but I had to catch Giselle in the act otherwise she would never stop.” I turned in the saddle to appeal to Rhys.
“I will never believe it’s a good idea for you to confront a dangerous killer without me,” he said.
“There was a good reason?—”
“There isnevera good reason.”
“There is,” I said testily. “We’ll confront my uncle with what we know and tell him we’ll go to the councillors if anything happens to me. You can confront the high priest. They’ll both deny it, of course, but they’ll be forced to withhold their payments to Giselle, otherwise they risk public exposure.”
“That may neutralize their involvement, but she isn’t doing it for the money, Jac. She must have other reasons to do this to you.”
“You’re right,” I said darkly. “She admitted as much.”
“She won’t stop until you’re dead.”
The steel in Rhys’s voice put me on edge. I suspected that was why he spoke so harshly. He wanted me to be worried, and therefore alert.
Rufus leaned toward us in the saddle. “At the risk of being stabbed by Rhys’s glare, I urge you to leave Tilting, Jac. For good.”
Behind me, Rhys swallowed heavily.
“I’ll go,” I agreed. “I’ll leave as soon as possible.”
Rufus didn’t wantto leave Rhys alone with me at the inn, but Vizah and Andreas moved up alongside his horse, grabbed the reins, and led him away. Rufus tried reasoning with his friends until they turned the corner. He must have thought I couldn’t hear him at that point because he reminded them of what Rhys had already suffered by breaking his vow of celibacy in the past.
“That’s not why we’re walking away,” Andreas said.
“It isn’t?” Vizah asked.
“No. We’re leaving them alone so they can say proper goodbyes this time. This way it’ll be final.”
One of them gave a grudging grunt. I suspected it was Rufus when he said, “Very well.”
“It’s a good point,” Vizah added, his tone thoughtful. “We need to avoid the madness of last time. Maybe he’ll get rid of that beard now.”
One look at Rhys made it clear he hadn’t heard them. He led the way inside and asked the innkeeper for a room, being particular to point out that I was a cousin staying in the city for the first time. Once upstairs, Rhys inspected the crate of firewood. “There’s enough here to keep you warm for one night. There’s a jug of water and a basin. Both look clean.”
