He couldn’t resist teasing her. “Think you, we should leave her here?” he asked Sin.
“Well, she did say ‘Men, who needs them.’ Perhaps we should leave her, just to prove a lesson that we are good for something.”
“You wouldn’t dare leave me here like this!” Then she added less forcibly, “Would you?”
Braden gave her a devilish, dimpled grin. “Why don’t you catch up to us after you get yourself free?”
Maggie groaned, cursed him yet again beneath her breath, then fell prone on the bed of leaves. “If you were a gentleman, you wouldn’t even consider leaving me here in this unfortunate position.”
“Well,” he teased, “according to you, I’m not a gentleman, but a lust-ridden, warted sow’s ear fit for naught save eating, belching, and chasing after other men’s wives.”
Her face flushed even redder. “You heard that?”
“Aye, and I wouldn’t be surprised if the King of England sitting on his throne in London heard it as well.”
Maggie wanted to bury her head in shame. She hadn’t meant for him to hear her words, and she didn’t really mean any of them. She used those words to stiffen her resolve and try to keep herself focused on his flaws. Her only real problem with him was that she loved the scoundrel entirely too much.
Well, except for this moment. Right now, she would like nothing more than to choke his arrogant hide as he stared at her with humor dancing in his greenish brown eyes.
Sighing, she tried again. “Very well, I’m sorry for what I said. Men are good for some things. Now, please help me.”
Braden looked skeptically at Sin. “I just don’t feel she meant that apology. What say you?”
Maggie huffed and squirmed. “Please,” she said, stressing the word.
Pressing his lips into a grim line, Braden shook his head. “Still it lacks sincerity.”
She froze and glared at him.
Braden bit back a laugh as he regarded her anger. If her amber gaze could kill, he would definitely be shredded by the malice she directed at him.
“If you don’t get me out of this, Braden MacAllister, I swear I’ll haunt you for an eternity.”
“Now that could be frightening,” Sin said.
Or it could be a whole lot of fun.
Braden’s gaze drifted back toward her bottom. A whole lot of fun, indeed.
Stifling the thought, Braden used his foot to move his pack out of his way, then leaned over to try and move the leaves from her back.
It didn’t work.
Braden frowned as he looked more carefully at the limbs. “This was a trap of some sort.” He noted the way the branch had been rigged to fall from behind Maggie.
“Probably some child wanting to trap another. You can tell it wasn’t meant to hurt anyone, just pin them down for a bit.” Sin examined it as well. “Sort of like the ones we used on Kieran and Lochlan.”
Braden laughed at the memory.
“While you two admire the handiwork of miscreants, would one of you please find a way to free me?”
“I’m working on it.” Braden moved to stand behind her so that he could pull the limb back in the direction from which it had swung.
It suddenly dawned on him what he’d have to do to free her. And in his gut, he knew she wasn’t going to like it.
He, on the other hand....
Braden licked his lips in anticipation.
