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She wanted nothing more than to be with him, forever. Yet there was this thing called “freedom” that nagged at her mind. She did not want to be anyone’s captive. She wanted him to understand that if she stayed with him, it was because she had decided to—not because he had made the choice for her.
Yet, he had seemed so determined in his decision, she saw no other option but to try and escape, even if it meant losing him. And the special love that he had introduced her to.
As her gaze lingered on his muscular body, every beat of her heart told her that she wanted to stay with him.
Yet these strong feelings for him were another reason she must try and escape from him. She did not see how a love between them could work. She began crawling on her knees, gathering her clothes into her arms. Then she scurried outside where she could dress without awakening him.
As she slipped into her clothes, she looked around her, and was glad to see that the morning mists had vanished. The sun was clearing the horizon, the dew sparkled on the grass.
She peered warily into the depths of the forest, a rush of fear stopping her. She wondered that even if she did escape from Strong Heart, could she, in truth, find her way back to Seattle?
There were no true roads. There weren’t even any paths. And she would be at the mercy of all the animals roaming the land, four-legged and two-legged.
The thought terrified her, yet she saw no other choice but to take her chances.
Her future must be hers, not something planned and mapped out by someone else.
Finally she was fully clothed. She groaned as she glanced down at her silk dress and saw how wrinkled and stained it had gotten on her flight from Seattle.
And it was less than suitable for the return journey. Its yards of silk would constantly impede her movements. It was not the attire to wear while riding a horse.
“A horse,” she whispered to herself, blanching. “I must steal his horse.”
She glanced back guiltily at the tent. If she stole the horse, Strong Heart would be stranded without any transportation.
She set her jaw. It would serve him right! He had not thought of her welfare when he had abducted her. Nor would she his!
Relieved that the air was warm, that at least in her favor, Elizabeth began moving toward the roan that grazed close beside the river. When she reached the lovely animal, she grabbed for the reins, then she felt a movement behind her.
Turning with a start, she gasped when she saw Strong Heart running after her, having not taken the time to dress when he had found her gone. She watched his muscular, copper body and recalled with a rush of passion how it had felt to be pressed against it. Then she shook herself free of her trance and again grabbed for the horse’s reins, knowing that this was perhaps the only chance, ever, for her to win her freedom.
Her fingers worked clumsily with the knot of the rawhide reins, unable to untie them.
She glanced over her shoulder just in time to see Strong Heart lunge for her. Her breath was momentarily knocked out of her when he threw her onto her back on the ground.
“You leave me?” he said, holding her wrists to the ground as he straddled her. He thrust his face into hers, peering down at her angrily. “Why do you? You professed to love Strong Heart. You professed to need me!”
Elizabeth did not know how to explain to him why she was leaving him, for deep inside, where her desires dwelled, she knew that she was going against everything that her heart was telling her to do.
The sudden screech of a hawk overhead, and its loud flapping of wings as it dipped low, barely missing Strong Heart’s head, caused him to flinch and loosen his grip on her wrists.
Taking advantage of his loss of concentration, Elizabeth jerked her wrists free and gave him a hard shove on his chest.
Wild-eyed, she watched him fall away from her. Then he grabbed her at the waist, bringing her along with him as he rolled threateningly close to the river.
“Let me go!” Elizabeth cried, struggling to get away from him.
But he was determined not to let her go. He rolled her over and started to straddle her again, then lost his balance and started slipping sideways into the water. At the last moment he grabbed her hand, pulling her into the water with him.
Stunned by the spill and the intense cold of the water, Elizabeth’s wits were momentarily stolen away. When she regained her bearings, she found herself floundering just beneath the surface of the river, the sun pouring through the water like bright lamplight.
A muscular arm circled around her waist. She tried to pry it away, then rose with Strong Heart to the surface, coughing fitfully. He held her close to him as he stood, his feet planted firmly on the rocky bottom of the shallows. She again struggled to get free, slapping at his arms and chest.
“I can’t believe this!” she shouted, coughing and gasping for air. “Let me go, do you hear? Haven’t you done enough?” A shiver coursed through her. “I’m freezing. Let me out of this water!”
“Not until you tell me that you are sorry for planning to leave me,” Strong Heart said, his grasp strong as steel, his face leaning into hers. “Only then will I let go of you.”
