He could not hide his surprise, though he did question what he heard. “You will stay?”
“Aye, I will stay,” she confirmed with a firm nod.
One word slipped out of his mouth. “Why?”
She spoke the truth. “I need you.”
He could not keep the scrunch out of his brow as once again he asked, “Why?”
How could she be as truthful as possible with him without admitting the truth of why she was there and had no choice but to remain there?
A reasonable response came to her, “You offer me protection, which you proved more than capable of a short time ago, and a home, and I am in need of both.”
“I offer you no home, only temporary shelter,” he corrected, making it clear this would not be permanent.
“I understand,” she said and was stabbed once again with a pain of guilt for the lies that kept mounting between them. And again, she tried to convince herself it was necessary if she was to accomplish the task agreed to. Otherwise, he would send her on her way.
Rannick walked over to her and even before he stood in front of her, he could see apprehension grow in her eyes. He raised his hand and was surprised and pleased she did not flinch. He cleaned the dirt off her cheek with a soft swipe of his thumb.
“You were not hurt?” he asked.
His touch was gentle. It had been since he had first tended her. It was in stark contrast to the brutality of the man who had not only killed two men but made one suffer.
“My shoulder hurts some from the way he yanked my arm, but otherwise I am good,” she said, grateful to finally speak the truth. His next words surprised and worried her.
“We will not be intimate until you are well-healed.”
Time was of the essence; she could not delay in trying to conceive. “I am not fragile,” she said.
“I can be demanding in bed,” he said as if that was explanation enough.
“I am not fragile,” she repeated, not sure how else to respond and with a twinge of concern of what might await her in bed with him.
“We shall see,” he said, his glance going to her lips. “I will bed you soon enough so if you find it distasteful, you may take your leave before winter sets in.”
She would not leave. She was there to stay and far beyond winter, unless the curse thought otherwise, but she simply nodded in response.
He rested his hand at the back of her neck, his fingers rubbing there, and she closed her eyes for a moment relishing the ease it brought the taut muscles. As her eyes fluttered open, her lips parted slightly in surprise at how close his mouth was to hers and she felt as if her whole body gasped when his lips touched hers.
The kiss was soft and tentative, leaving her to respond, and she did. She instinctively returned the kiss, welcomed it with the same softness and hesitancy. That she acquiesced made all the difference. His kiss turned powerful and commanding, shooting sensations through her that were far more pleasant than she had expected and made her respond in kind.
Her hands went instinctively to his arms, grabbing hold, finding herself not wanting to let go. That was until his tongue darted into her mouth and the shock of such an intimate invasion had her pulling her head back only to be stopped by the grip he had on the back of her neck. Her heart pounded against her chest as she realized at that moment she was trapped in his arms.
She was shocked even more when he eased his hold on her and ended the kiss.
“Think of what I will demand of you before you fully commit,” he said and stepped away from her.
I demand so much more of you than you demand of me. Her thought startled her almost as much as his tongue had, but she had to face both. She had no choice.
Her decision was made. It had been made before she arrived, and she did not want to dwell on it. She did, however, have pertinent questions for him that she could not help but ask.
“Who would want you dead?” she asked.
Rannick had walked over to the bed and snatched up the blanket folded at the bottom. He returned to Bliss, his hands settling on her shoulders to move her away from the fire, then draped the soft wool blanket around her.
“Many people,” he said as if it did not disturb him at all.
“Did the man tell you who hired him to kill you?”
That she even thought that he would ask told him that even while fearful; she had been observant.
“You ask many questions,” he said, not sure how much he wanted her to know.
She tucked the blanket close across the front of her, glad for its warmth. “How else would I keep you safe?” His sudden burst of laughter surprised her and somehow made him seem less evil.