Which remained flat.
When Maddox snorted a laugh, there was a pained look in his eyes. He then crushed me to his chest, a lot tighter than before, and lowered his face to my neck. “Be careful, sweetheart. Don’t go anywhere without either Lake, Callum, or Duke by your side.”
“You wound me, oh great captain,” a smooth voice then said. “Your lack of trust in me is quite depressing. I’m more than capable of protecting your little muffin too.”
I peeked around Maddox’s big body to see Rowan. He wore a black cloak over his tunic, and his dark auburn hair was pulled to the side and held together with the same golden cuff as before.
“Trust must be earned.” Maddox held me even closer. “And know this, thief. If any harm comes to Evan as a result of your actions, there isn’t enough magic in this world to hide you from my rage.”
“Typical brute. So quick to resort to violence.” Rowan’s topaz eyes moved to me. “What you see in him, I’ll never understand. Or perhaps it’s simply because he has a pretty face?” He tilted his head to the side. “Well, if you squint with one eye and close the other, that is.”
“Hey, be nice,” I snapped.
Maddox pressed his lips together. The insult hadn’t bothered him in the slightest. He was hot as hell and knew it. Rowan was just being an ass.
“Lovely seeing you two again,” Rowan said to Callum and Duke. “Better circumstances this time, I’d say.”
“Lovely isn’t the word I’d use,” Duke responded.
He and Callum, two men with easygoing natures and who always radiated silliness and smiles, looked murderous.
Panic set in as the two knights swung back up into their saddles and spoke to the guards, also on horseback. The coachman tipped his head to me. All were waiting for me to get into the carriage, but my feet were cemented to the grass. I felt like Rose fromTitanicwhen she didn’t want to get into the lifeboat and leave Jack behind.
“I’ll help you into the carriage, love.” Briar took my hand.
“As will I.” Maddox grabbed the other, linking our fingers. The ring I’d bought for him hadn’t left his finger since the day I’d placed it there. The feel of it as I held his hand gave me butterflies.
“Don’t miss us too much, boys. I’ll take real good care of him.” Rowan tossed them a smirk before stepping up into the carriage and disappearing into the dark compartment.
Maddox scowled. “He’ll be riding with you? Forget our agreement. I’m going to gut him here and now.”
“Now, now, Captain.” Briar sighed. “You felt the same way about Lake in the beginning.”
“I was wrong about the wolf,” Maddox said. “The thief, however, is a self-serving bastard who’ll be intimately acquainted with my sword should he step one toe out of line.”
Reaching the carriage, Briar placed my satchel inside before standing in front of me. His smile didn’t reach his eyes. Maddox didn’t even attempt one. He frowned, as usual, though like earlier, there was a pained gleam in his ocean blues.
“It’s only for a few weeks, right?” I tried to keep a light tone, but my voice cracked anyway. Then, to Maddox. “I left Miles therecipe for your favorite muffins. He said he’ll make them for you whenever you want.”
“They won’t be the same.” Maddox retook my hand. “I’ll wait for you to return and make them for me yourself.”
“Okay.”
It’s not goodbye forever.So why did it hurt so much?
Briar pressed closer and kissed my temple, letting his lips linger on my skin. Maddox then took hold of my chin and crushed our mouths together. I felt the things he couldn’t bring himself to say. My captain didn’t express that sort of vulnerability when others were around, especially his knights.
The two of them helped me up the single step and into the carriage. As I settled in place, they stepped back and shut the compartment door. The window allowed me to still see them. Their eyes didn’t leave me either. When the coachman cracked the whip and sent Samson into motion, the carriage jolting forward in response, I waved at them, blinking back tears.
Maddox stepped after the carriage, and that wall he’d hid behind crumbled, revealing a deep sorrow as he mouthed my name. When he took another step after me, Briar grabbed his hand. That same sorrow reflected in his expression too.
I stared at them until they faded from my sight. Weeks without them. How the hell was I going to do it?
A flash of silver caught my eye from the tree line. Lake. He’d be following in secret, using the trees as coverage. Would he be all right traveling on foot? Worry then knotted in my gut for another reason. I was happy he’d be with me, but the risk of him being discovered made me feel sick.
“Dry those eyes, little treasure.”
I jumped and looked at the seat across from me. Rowan had blended in with the shadows of the interior, making me temporarily forget he was inside. Probably intentional on his part. The trickster.
