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Chapter 25
Iwoke up to a loud crackle, shot up in my bed, and turned toward the noise. It was Alrick, placing firewood into the small fireplace near my bed.
He peeked over his shoulder. “I didn’t mean to startle you. Rest some more.”
He stood and quietly left.
“Henrike?” I whispered and leaned over the bed to see if she was sleeping on the blankets on the floor. I was ready to offer her the bed—I felt a lot better—but she was gone.
Pushing my blanket back, I sat up and dangled my bare feet over the edge of the bed. Where were my dress and shoes?
I scanned the small room, but they weren’t there. Slowly, I rose to my feet to see if they supported me. They did, so I walked to the door and opened it just enough to peek out. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light from a larger stone fireplace, a bigger room came into view. It consisted of a simple table with four chairs, a few shelves, and several barrels pushed against the gray stone walls. My dress was hanging on a hook on the wall next to the fireplace. Alrick was not far from it, sitting in front of the warm fire on a blanket. His back was facing me as he stared into its dancing flames. He was wearing a cotton shirt over his leather pants. Under any other circumstance, this would be highly inappropriate. A man and me—alone, barely dressed.Now that I thought about it, it still was, even under this circumstance.
“Do you need anything?” he asked, turning to look at me.
I shook my head and opened the door. “Are Henrike and Conrad gone?”
“They left a few hours ago.”
My gaze dropped to the floor. So we were indeed alone.
“Rest some more,” Alrick said. “They will return late in the day with an escort for you to your cousin’s. From there, you can notify your father of your whereabouts. You’ll have your old life back sooner than you think.”
He sounded neither cheerful nor sad. He was emotionless, as if he were trying to hide his feelings or as if he simply didn’t care.
If I were smart, I would do as he said—turn around and close the door. Rest, sleep, then await my cousin’s soldiers to safely escort me to his castle where servants and riches would be waiting for me once more.
But all of it would be without Alrick.
“Will you join me on the road to my cousin’s?”
Alrick’s eyes darkened.
“No. Henrike and I shall rest for a day or so, then move east back to my lands. There is much work to do if the war truly ends. And if not, I will have to prepare for that as well.”
“Please come with me.”
Alrick looked at me, confused.
“I mean, don’t you have to collect your reward for bringing me north?”
Alrick grinned. “No man of honor would charge for a journey like this. You were being hunted for your life. Almost killed. I feel like the services I provided lacked.”
“Not all of them,” I said, smiling. Alrick’s eyes widened.
I stumbled a step backward when I realized what I had just implied. Especially as he might not share my fondness of the moment we had shared in the hut.
I played with the rough fabric of my nightgown. “I mean . . . I was trying to say that I still made it north alive. It’s hardly your fault that King Algar wants me dead. The reward is yours.”
“That is very kind of you, but I can’t accept a single coin for any of this. It’s the least I can do after I—” Alrick froze, then turned back to stare at the flames.“Rest now.”
I licked my lower lip. The old me would say something arrogant and cold to protect her feelings and pride. But I didn’t want anything to do with that girl. I was someone new now.
I took a deep breath and approached Alrick. He tilted his head in surprise and looked up at me. For a moment, his gaze wandered from my naked shoulder where the nightgown had slipped off and then to my lips, then his eyes found mine.
I searched every inch of my heart to gather all the strength it held.
“Alrick...at my father’s castle—” was all I could say before my words were lost.At the castle what, Mina?Should I start with an apology for the insults? Or jump straight to all the benefits a union with me would bring? Sell myself like an exotic mare on the horse market? For a moment, I lost my confidence. But if I was to marry, then why not him? Why not a man who made me feel dizzy when his hand ran over my skin? Maybe he would be able to grow fond of me with time, which would be better than any political match.
