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He didn’t hesitate though he shared much more than merely the warmth of her cloak. His arm went around her waist, and he snuggled against her, his leg going to rest between her legs in the crevice of her red velvet dress. He settled his face next to hers, and she startled from the touch of his icy cheek.
“Good Lord, you are ice-cold,” she said, and wrapped her arms around him.
They were soon cuddled like lovers who couldn’t get close enough to each other. She rubbed his back until she could feel the warmth returning to his flesh. And though she had taken a chance inviting him near, she knew she was safe.
He would honor his word not to touch her intimately.
The long day, the cold, a full stomach, and finally warmth soon had his eyes closing, and soon after he began snoring lightly. While odd to be in a bed with a stranger, Tara found it more pleasing than not. Having not been touched, even a simple friendly touch, in so long made her cherish and want to linger in this moment.
The smell of pine and ash and woods drifted off him, along with a hint of a well-cooked rabbit. She smiled, having missed the scent of a man and not realizing just how much until now. Or had it simply hurt too much to remember and so she had shut the memories away never to visit them again.
But now she had no choice. Reeve was here beside her, and his close presence caused an explosion of memories, including desire. It had been some time since she felt desire for a man. Reeve had sparked it, to her surprise, and now lying here beside him, she worried that he might just ignite it.
Chapter 6
Reeve woke to a tickling sensation beneath his nose, and he smiled, knowing it came from Tara’s springy locks. He opened his eyes and wasn’t surprised to find them wrapped in an embrace more common to lovers than friends. And once again he was made aware of how precisely her curves melded with his.
Two halves once separated coming together as one.
The thought startled the bejesus out of him, and he suddenly felt the need to place distance between them. Not that he was running, he reminded himself. He never ran from anything. He stood his ground, fought a good fight, fought for what he believed, fought for his clan, fought to protect.
As he gently disengaged her arms and slipped out of bed, he was reminded that he was to protect her, to see her safely home. He tucked her cloak around her and glanced down at her ankle, but only her stocking-covered toes peaked from beneath the red velvet.
He went to the hearth, and though the fire had dimmed, he added no more logs. He would wait to see how her ankle fared. If they could continue, he would need to extinguish the fire; if not, he would add more logs then.
He thought the same about hunting for food. If they could get started soon, they could make it to Old Jacob’s place by early afternoon, and that was with a few stops along the way to let her ankle rest.
Taking a quick glance to see that Tara still slept, he turned and headed out the door. He’d see to the weather while seeing to his morning duties. A cloudy gray sky and crisp air greeted him, though it didn’t sting his cheeks. Snow didn’t seem likely, and he was pleased. He wanted to get home and see his family and see Tara safely settled.
His mission hadn’t produced any startling news, though, like an approaching storm, the forces of change were gathering. He had heard it at every croft he had stopped at and in villages, though more in whispers, the villagers mistrustful of prying ears that reported to the king.
One obvious change he had made note of was the presence of the king’s soldiers in areas they had not been known to frequent. He wondered if they were scouting for future reference or were there for a particular purpose. It shouldn’t have been difficult to find out, and yet he had found no answers. All inquires he had made produced the same results, no one knew why. And not knowing had made the people all the more mistrustful and fearful.
Reeve finished, though before returning to the cottage, he sensed the need to scout the surrounding area. He always listened to his instincts. They never failed him, but then he believed that was the way of all good warriors. At least it was for him and his brothers, the way they had been taught.
After covering some ground and finding no cause for alarm, he took a moment to stand and listen. Silence engulfed him, and that had him listening more closely and his head going up so that his nose could get a good whiff of the air.
The scent hit him, and he rushed to cover his latest tracks and took refuge behind a thicket of snow-covered bushes. He would have to be careful, the snow-covered land making it more difficult to conceal oneself.
He crouched and waited. It took time, but he was patient. The strong scent of a burning campfire always clung to those around it as if the fire had yet to be extinguished. In the cold, crisp air, it was even more easily detectable. And with the scent growing stronger, Reeve knew that more than one person headed his way.
He heard the voices before they appeared, the fools paying no heed to how sound echoed in the forest, especially in the dead of winter. He knew by the raucous talk and unconcerned manner that they were the king’s soldiers even before he caught sight of them.
It was unusual for a small troop to be this far north in territory that wasn’t friendly to King Kenneth. He had seen small divisions of troops like this one all too often the last couple of weeks, and their sudden presence troubled him.
Reeve remained where he was, watching the four of them pass. The fools were so busy talking amongst themselves that he could have easily attacked them and have kept one alive until he found out what they were doing here, before having him join his comrades in hell. But he had Tara to consider. She had to be awake by now, and he needed to get back to her. And he needed to get them moving, get them to Old Jacob’s place and make sure he and his granddaughter-in-law Willow were safe. Not that the soldiers usually bothered anyone on MacAlpin land, but they had been growing bolder, the king making his power known throughout the land, especially those areas that lent him no support.
He waited until he could hear the soldiers’ footfalls no longer, and then he quietly made his way back to the cottage.
He entered to find Tara in front of the hearth, cloak and bundle in place and ready to depart.
“Where have you been?” she demanded. “I was about to leave without you.”
“You would leave me behind?” he asked with a glint of a smile. He had to admire her courage, but he supposed that had been hard-won. Forced to rely on herself, what other choice had she?
“I thought that was your intention.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, feeling the need to apologize. Of course she would think he would desert her. From the little he had learned, she was accustomed to people leaving her and some discarding her. He wanted her to know that would not be the way with him. “I meant only a brief absence and expected to return before you woke. You can count on me, Tara.”
