Though numerous scars crossed his body, there was no sign of any wound on his forearm that Godfried mentioned.
Emily went cold. Who would dare such an evil scheme?
And why?
At least Draven wasn’t as obtuse as her father. He had known her father wouldn’t do this. Mayhap when he awoke, he would look for the culprit and see justice finally met.
Her thoughts distracted by the attack, she pushed the blanket down his chest to his waist.
Emily froze as she finally realized what she was doing. Almost the whole of his body was bare before her.
Swallowing, she trailed the wet cloth slowly over the mountainous terrain of his body. His hard, supple chest rose and fell with his breathing.
Laying the cloth aside, she traced her hand over his skin, marveling at the texture, at the feel of his taut nipples beneath her hand. He felt like velvet stretched over steel. Never had she felt anything so marvelous! Biting her lip, traced one hand over his pectorals, delighting in the feel of him in her palm.
Draven moaned.
Emily paused her hand over the planes of his rippled stomach.
Draven heaved a heavy sigh, then shifted his body to the right. His movements caused the blanket to slip down, exposing him to her.
Her breath caught in her throat as she stared at his nakedness. Even unconscious there was a raw power that emanated from him.
She had seen most of him when he fought the boar, but fear had robbed her of the pleasure. Now there was nothing to distract her from his body. Nothing to cloud her thoughts except the red-hot desire burning through her.
He was magnificent.
Impulsively, she leaned over and touched her lips to his. He groaned as she kissed him while trailing her hand down his ribs and to his naked back.
“Emily,” he breathed, her name a caress on his lips.
“I’m here,” she answered, only to realize he was still unconscious.
Pulling away from him, she reached for the covers and pulled them over his body.
“I will always be here,” she said to him. “And not even you will be able to drive me away.”
At least she hoped she could live up to that. She still had to find some way to reach him. Some way for him to open up his heart to her.
She just hoped it was possible to get a man to open a heart he claimed he didn’t have.
Fifteen
For days Draven drifted in and out of consciousness. But with each awakening, he recalled glimpses of heaven. Of a blond angel sitting beside him urging him to drink water and broth. Of her singing to him as he lay there unable to move.
And when he finally came to his full senses, he found Emily sleeping in a chair beside his bed. She was curled into a small ball, and her chest rose and fell ever so slightly. The only light in the room came from the low burning fire which flicked across the planes of her face. Dark circles marred her eyes even in slumber.
Her long blond braid trailed down to the floor only inches from him. Without conscious thought, Draven reached out and touched it. Her hair felt like fine silk in his palm.
She had stayed.
Draven blinked at the thought as unknown emotions swirled through him. Every time he awoke, she had been there. Indeed, he could even remember Simon and Beatrix begging her to leave, but she had steadfastly refused.
Why?
He couldn’t fathom it. No one had ever been so diligent. No one.
Her arm fell from her lap and she jerked awake. Clearing her throat, she rubbed at her eyes.
