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“A feisty one,” another soldier said. “I like that.”
“I’m first,” claimed the big one.
“Good, then if you drop dead, we’ll know not to touch her,” one of the reluctant ones said with a laugh.
“He’ll drop dead, I promise you that, though it will be before he gets anywhere near her.” Reeve stepped out of the woods, his sword drawn, and walked over to Tara, his hand going out to gently stroke her cheek.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“Now that you are here, I am.”
Reeve smiled. “You must have known I’d come for you.”
“You weren’t supposed to,” she scolded with a smile.
“And miss a chance to save you once again?” He shook his head and grinned, though it faded as he positioned himself like a warrior’s shield in front of her.
Chapter 25
Reeve was furious. He didn’t want to think what would have happened to Tara if he hadn’t shown up when he did. And he intended to make each of the soldiers pay for what they had planned to do, and it had to be done quickly.
The big one made the mistake of laughing. “There’s five of us and one of you.”
Tara peeked past Reeve’s shoulder. “You need more men?”
Reeve grinned, pleased with the confidence she had in him and pleased that she knew he would not fail her, as he had promised.
The big one courageously or rather foolishly stepped forward. “I’ll let you watch while we have our way with the woman before we kill you.”
Reeve’s fist came up fast and furious and struck him before he had a chance to react. The one solid blow to the soldier’s jaw sent him reeling back, and he bounced as he hit the ground, unconscious.
Though startled, the other soldiers reacted as taught, and, with swords drawn, they advanced on Reeve. He pushed Tara back and out of the way and rushed at them with an angry roar that shook the tree branches and had two of the soldiers halting in fear. Their hesitation gave him all the time he needed to deal with the first two and then finish off the next two in quick succession. They were no match for his extraordinary skills and strength, and it took little effort to see the job done. He left the big one for the cold to finish off or the animals and grabbed hold of Tara.
“We have to go.”
She reached for her bundle. “My father follows?”
He nodded. “I did what I could to cover your tracks, but if your father has a good tracker, he’ll find the trail in no time.”
“How did you—”
“Willow told me everything.”
Tara was so relieved to see him that she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her face to his chest, comforted by his familiar woodsy scent.
“There’ll be time to thank me later.”
She chuckled, happy to hear his teasing. She so feared the possibility of never seeing him again, and for the moment she didn’t care about anything except that he was there with her.
“Let’s go,” he urged, “for if I take you in my arms right now, nothing will prevent me from making love to you.”
She felt the same, her passion burning so deeply that she actually felt hot enough to want to rip her clothes off. Not a good idea, and there was still the curse to be dealt with.
They hurried off, knowing it would take almost two days before they reached their destination and safety, all the while knowing they could be captured at any moment. Whether it was by another group of soldiers or her father, her fate with either would be wretched.
They walked a good distance before Reeve spoke again. “We must find a way to wed. It is the only way to stop your father from giving you to the king.”
Tara needed him to understand her fear of that happening, and so she confessed. “My father offered me the chance to wed you.”
