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“You are very welcome. I love to cook for guests, but we don’t get many.” Tara laughed. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need more logs for the fire. I have to keep my egg warm.”
“Of course,” Nisha said, reaching for a glass of wine that Ivor had set down before her.
“Take it with you,” he said, standing. “I want to show you where we’ll be sleeping tonight.” Not that he had any intention of sleeping.
“We?” She raised her eyebrows and stood.
He didn’t reply. Instead, he curled his arm around her slim waist and led her from the kitchen.
Chapter Six
Nisha looked around the circular room. Ivor’s bedchamber—as he’d called it—was in the turret with four cross-shaped glazed windows looking out north, south, east, and west. Though it was dark, she could make out the horizon and stars.
“Are you cold? Shall I light a fire?” he asked, gesturing to a large inglenook that had several candles flickering on the mantel.
“No, I’m fine.”
“Good, because I’m hot, hot for you.”
She laughed and took a sip of wine. “You’ll have to rein that in, you know.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m getting married tomorrow.” She set down her glass on a dark wooden dressing table, then looked at her reflection. “Remember?”
She hardly recognized herself. Her hair was windblown, her eyes sparkled, and her cheeks were flushed. Straightening the heart pendant on her necklace, she smiled. For the first time in a long time, she looked like herself.
“No, you’re not.”
“I can’t let my parents down.”
He was at her side in flash, his reflection looming next to hers. “Surely they want you to be happy.”
“Yes, of course.” She turned and touched his dragon pendant. “And they think what they’re doing will make me happy.”
“It won’t.Hewill not make you happy.”
She didn’t answer, for how could she truly know? An arranged marriage was all about trusting and loving her parents, showing their wisdom respect and carrying on the tradition. She didn’t expect Ivor to understand.
“I will make you happy,” he said. “Here, as my wife, mother to my children. I will make you smile every day and ensure you never want for anything. You will be the happiest, most cherished, and protected woman in all of Wales.”
She believed him, she really did. But that didn’t change the arrangement that was already in place. “What do you do for work, Ivor?”
“Work?” He frowned as though it was an alien concept.
“Yes, work. Money?”
He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her to his hot body. “I don’t need money. I have more treasures than I could ever need right here in the castle. And I have no one asking me for money. We are self-sufficient here.”
“So what is your purpose in life?”
“That’s simple. It’s ensuring the survival of my species and protecting and nurturing what is mine.”
She looked deep into his eyes. They flashed with passion and honesty.
“And you are mine,” he said. “What you really should know, right now, is that dragons don’t share. Sharing isn’t in our nature, not one bit.”
A delicious tingle went down her spine, heating her insides and creating a tug of longing between her legs. She wanted to be this unique man’s woman. It felt so right to be in his arms. The rest of the world faded away … almost.
