AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He flinched and she knew her barb had hit its mark.
‘You were always like that about any animal you care about.’ He gathered her hands between his. ‘There is something I want from you. Let me train Rurik. Let me show you that I can get it right when my father got it so badly wrong.’
Her heart thumped in her ears. He liked Rurik. She ought to confess about Rurik’s birth before it was too late. The words refused to come. ‘I did tell him, Ash. I acknowledged you as his father. What you did was magnificent. You are a real hero in Rurik’s eyes. I suspect we shall have to listen to the tale of his rescue many times over. But we need to wait.’
‘You are always asking me to wait, Kara.’
With every breath she took, the room seemed to be getting smaller and she was more and more aware of him. This was far from ideal. She wanted to make a pragmatic and logical choice, not one based on desire and a few kisses.
She sighed. ‘I refuse to have pointless arguments with you about the past like we just had. This is precisely why I asked for time to make up my mind. The past looms too great between us, Ash. We should recognise that and move on.’
‘What if I am not ready to move on?’ He reached out and grabbed her shoulders.
His mouth loomed large over her. Her heart thumped unsteadily.
His lips descended for a kiss which invaded her senses. It called to something deep within her soul. She wanted to melt against him. She wanted to deepen the kiss and return it with vigour.
A warning bell resounded in the back of her mind. Giving into the kiss would be the worst thing in the world for her. It would signal that she was prepared to return to the old ways and she wasn’t. Logic had to prevail, not desire.
He rubbed the back of his thumb across her hyper-sensitive mouth. ‘Give me a second chance, sweet Kara. Let me prove myself to you with Rurik. You will see. We are good together. We can be a family.’
With the last ounce of self-control, she broke free and wiped her hand across her mouth. ‘You think you can kiss me into doing what you want? Into forgetting what went before? Into agreeing that you should do precisely what you want? You do me a grave disservice. You promised you wouldn’t force me.’
‘Force? There were two of us in that kiss, Kara. You wanted it.’
She clenched her fist, hating that her mouth ached for more. ‘It hasn’t worked.’
He regarded her from under hooded eyes. ‘It worked in the past. Once. Stopping your mouth so you wouldn’t talk me out of going.’
‘Things changed, Ash. I refuse to be manipulated in this fashion. The kiss did nothing for me except make me more determine to resist.’
She crossed her arms over her aching breasts and prayed he wouldn’t hear the lie in her voice.
He gave her a speculative glance. ‘It was either kiss you or shake you to make you see sense as you refuse to listen. I chose the more pleasurable option. A pity you didn’t see it in that fashion.’
He spun on his foot and left the room.
Kara slammed her fist down hard on the table, making the skeins jump. Three fell on the floor. She knelt down and picked them up. Both the elkhounds Dain and Durin came into the room and nosed her face, wagging their tails furiously. Kara dug her fingers into their soft fur.
A well of misery opened up within her. Ash hadn’t even been back a day. Already he questioned her judgement over Rurik. He was the one who had frightened Rurik, behaving worse than Hring in a bad temper.
She hated that she might have to fight the battles all over again. And then, just when she’d begun to count on him, he’d leave, thinking she was a good custodian. She thought he might have sought her out because he wanted to kiss her, but, no, it was to order her about.
Kara pressed her hand to her forehead. Less than a day and she was already questioning her schemes to keep Rurik safe. It had to stop. She had to get back to her old certainties and the place to start was with Rurik.
Chapter Ten
‘Mor! You came to say goodnight and you brought the dogs.’ Rurik sat up in his bed. His blond hair fell in wisps across his face. Kara’s heart lurched. Seeing him earlier with Ash showed her how much the pair looked alike. Her blood ran cold at what could have happened if Ash hadn’t acted decisively.
‘Don’t I always when I am home?’ she said, struggling not to scoop him up and hug him to her chest. These days, Rurik seemed to resent any physical contact, struggling to get away from her hugs or submitting with bad grace.
