“I know. I know exactly how dangerous it is.” She tugged at a lock of her short hair before slowly lowering her hand to rest against his chest. “But I couldn’t leave you.”
“Why?” Marcus asked in anguish. “I wanted you to. I wanted you to go far away and find your family. You could have been safe. Now, we’ll have to look over our shoulders. I didn’t want this for you.”
“All I wanted was you. I don’t care about any of the rest of it.”
“I care. I care that you are safe. I care that you could have gotten away. It makes me angry to think that I’ve put your life in danger. It makes me angry to think you came back for me.”
Sage scowled.
With a gentle sigh, he admitted, “And yet I can’t be angry.” He brushed a lock of her hair behind her ear. “I can’t be angry because you are here with me. And I thought I would never see you again.”
Sage lifted on her toes and pressed her lips to Marcus’s. She nuzzled his neck affectionately. “You were wrong about Guillume.”
Marcus grunted in disgust. Then he relaxed as her gentle breath washed across his mouth before she peppered kisses over his swollen lips. It hurt, but it was a pain he would gladly endure. “I was very wrong.”
“I was right,” Sage whispered with a grin, pressing her body along the length of his.
Marcus tightened his arms around her. “You were right,” Marcus agreed with a soft laugh. He claimed her lips in a deep kiss, tasting her, relishing her. She was a treasure. His treasure. His lip burned where it was cut, but Marcus didn’t want to stop. He wanted to continue kissing her, holding her, touching her. Afraid that at any moment, she would disappear, and he would be back in the stables tied to the chair.
She nestled herself against him, holding him tightly.
He groaned, willing the agony from the blows away. But it was no use.
Sage pulled back, examining his face. “You’re hurt.”
“Just bruises. They didn’t like that I had no idea where you were.” He grinned, and his fat lip pulled. He winced and stopped. But he would suffer the pain to kiss her again.
“Let’s get my horse, and I’ll tend to your injuries,” Sage said.
Marcus couldn’t argue with that.
Sage cautiously entered the haunted barn the farmer had told her about, leading the horses. They had retrieved her horse from the spot in the forest where she had hidden it.
Marcus walked beside her, his hand wrapped around his midsection. She was worried about his injuries.
She scanned the barn. It was dark, and she couldn’t see into the outer reaches of the shadows against the walls, especially where the roof had collapsed. Moonlight shone in through the broken beams. If ghosts were real, this was where they would live, she thought with a shiver.
“We can’t stay here long,” Marcus stated, looking around at the dilapidated barn.
Sage knew he was searching the shadows. She nodded. She didn’t like lingering in one place, not with Guillume and his soldiers after them. She knew it wouldn’t be long until more soldiers were sent after them. Still, Marcus’s wounds had to be cleaned and wrapped. She wanted to make sure he was able to travel. She wanted to run her hands over his flesh again.
Sage tossed the reins of the horses over a fallen beam and turned to Marcus. Moonlight gleamed in his golden hair. His shoulders sagged, and he looked exhausted, but he managed a relieved smile. She stepped up to him.
His gaze shifted to somewhere behind her, and his eyes widened. He shoved her aside and reached for his sword.
Sage landed on her stomach; the air knocked from her. She shifted to glance over her shoulder.
A shadow separated from the collapsed part of the barn and lunged toward Marcus with the tip of his sharp sword.
