Page 64 of Winter's Scorching Kisses
“Know what?” She turned to face her sister.
“Mathar is to be your guard while you’re here at the castle.”
“My what?” Her eyebrows raised in surprise.
Jasmine looked a bit uncomfortable as she shifted her fur boots over the snowy cobblestones. “Dryden has assigned him as your guard to make sure you’re safe while you’re here.”
“You mean to make sure I don’t escape.” Adorra corrected her.
“No,” Jasmine rushed to reassure her, “that’s not the reason. We just want to make sure you stay safe here and don’t do something that could bring harm back to the ice giants.”
“Can I change who my guard is?”
“We trust him to keep you safe, and you should as well. Mathar’s a good man. You’ll see in time.”
Adorra still wasn’t too sure about that. Mathar still hadn’t answered her accusation about him being her husband’s killer. She did some deep breathing to relax. She didn’t have any answers, and until she did, she wasn’t going to jump to any conclusions. He seemed like a decent man, despite him being an ice giant.
Dryden finished with his horse first and strode over to them his boots crunching on the thin layer of snow on the ground.
“Adorra.” He greeted her. “I’m glad to see you’re coming to ride with us. I think you’ll find our ride enjoyable and maybe even eye-opening.”
She inclined her head. He might be an ice giant, but he was still a king, and she knew they loved people respecting them. “I’m sure it will be an eye-opening experience.” She agreed thankful for all her days at court.
He held out a hand, like a gentleman, and Jasmine slipped hers into his hand. Their eyes met, and even Adorra could see the sparks of attraction from where she stood. She studied Dryden’s face, but she couldn’t spot any deception. It looked as though this man might actually be head over heels in love with her sister.
She shook her head. She was being fooled. Both of them were being duped. She wasn’t ready to believe that a giant king would just fall in love with a human woman.
Then she looked at her sister as Jasmine was guided over to the waiting horse. Jasmine’s eyes spoke volumes. She was in love with this man before her, and Adorra was still having a hard time accepting it.
Mathar led a horse over to her. “This horse will be yours.”
“Thanks,” Adorra said shortly. She had nothing more to say to him, and she turned her gaze to the pure white mare in front of her.
“Let me assist you.”
“I can manage.” She hissed icily.
“As much as I would like to see you land on your ass when you try to mount up, Dryden would not be pleased with me for not assisting you,” Mathar growled low in his throat.
“You offered. It won’t be your fault.” Adorra glanced at where the stirrup was on the horse and had no idea how she was going to get her foot that far off the ground.
“Then have you accuse me of not offering when you do fall?” He snorted. “Don’t think for a second I’m that stupid.”
“That’s not my problem.” She hadn’t actually thought of that idea, but now that he mentioned it… that wasn’t a half bad idea. Blaming him might get him away from her.
Mathar cocked an eyebrow and then grabbed her around the waist.
“What are you doing?!” Adorra tried to wiggle out of his grasp, but he flung her up and over the saddle until she was sitting side saddle.
But he left a hand on her thigh and her cheeks heated as she remembered their nights together as they traveled through the mountains with clarity.
“I could sit with you.” He purred as his obsidian eyes caressed over her face.
Adorra glared at him. She wasn’t sure if he was trying to get a reaction out of her or if he meant it.
Taking up the reins, she whipped the horse around to join Jasmine and Dryden. Her only regret was that the horse didn’t trample over his feet.
This was going to be a long day, and she wasn’t looking forward to it at all. She just wanted to make her sister happy and get on Jasmine’s good side, that way she could convince her sister this was all some sort of smoke screen.
