Bria chuckled softly. “He and Winnie would get along well.”
The sound of her light laughter eased something inside him.
She saw it happen, saw how some of the tension left his shoulders and saw how much he needed this shared moment with her.
“My grandfather said a hunter finally sought the creature out. Instead of killing it, he struck a bargain with it.”
“A bargain?”
Kaelan nodded. “Aye. The hunter wanted strength enough to protect his people from anything that threatened them. And the creature wanted to live peacefully with the tribe. So, a bargain was made.”
“How so?”
Kaelan finally turned fully toward her.
The intensity in his gaze made her heart stumble.
“That is the part of the story no one knows for sure,” Kaelan said, his gaze never leaving hers, “only that the beast resides peacefully within the tribe.”
Bria remained silent for several moments after he finished speaking.
The fire crackled softly between them while the wind stirred against the cottage walls.
Then she rose, walked away from the hearth, and stopped near the small window, her back to him while she stared out at the fading autumn light beyond the glass.
He knew he should let her think. Yet every instinct inside him urged him to go to her, to explain more, to somehow prevent the distance that suddenly felt as though it had opened between them.
“Bria.” His voice came stronger than he intended.
She turned slowly to face him. “You say the beast lives peacefully with the tribe. Do you mean the beast resides within the Thornek people?”
“Only the men.”
“So, that was you who saved us from those men?” she asked, needing to hear him confirm it.
“Aye, that beast was me—is me,” he said and waited, not knowing how she would respond.
“And it is the reason you heal so quickly and suffer no scars?”
He nodded, relieved she hadn’t been repulsed by the truth.
Bria remained silent for a few moments, then shook her head. “I don’t know what to make of it and if you had told me before we entered Driochmor that a beast resided within you, I don’t think I would have believed you. But having seen things I would never have imagined existed, it is far easier to accept it as truth.” She returned to the bench to sit beside him. “I cannot say it is an easy truth to accept, though having touched you, felt how you feel for me, how you contain the beast within, not letting me near it, feel it, or how it never lashed out at me, makes it clear that the beast is no threat to me.”
Kaelan took hold of her hand. “Never. Never would the beast hurt you.”
“Then let me feel him.”
Kaelan let go of her hand. “That is not wise to do.”
She spoke softly as she so often did when dealing with people who needed comforting. “If I am to love you, which I believe I do, then I need to know I can love all of you, not just part of you.”
That she believed she loved him brought him tremendous joy but that she wanted to feel the beast brought him equal fear. It could mean losing her forever and yet… it could also be a measure of her love for him.
“You are right,” he said and slipped off his leather vest, then took hold of her hand once again and slipped it inside his shirt to place it against his chest. “Go as deep as you wish.”
She closed her eyes and let herself drift. Warmth and hard muscle were the first things she felt and while her body reacted, sending a stirring through her, she pushed it aside and allowedher comfort touch to lead. His love for her engulfed her in the most pleasant way possible, but his desire for her slammed into her so hard, her eyes shot open.
“When you are ready,” he said, fighting the passion her simple touch had sparked in him.
