It was mortifying and shameful. Something inside Giselle snapped. Tears stung her eyes and began pouring down her cheeks.
‘Aw, lass, come on now. Don’t do that.’
‘I can’t help it,’ she said, in a great, gasping sob.
‘God’s bones, I hate it when women weep. Look, I was teasing that’s all. I didn’t mean anything by it, and you are in no danger from me, I swear.’
Giselle tried to control herself, but all she could do was let out a whimpering, spluttering sound as all the fear and violence of the last two days crashed in on her. When she squeezed her eyes tight to stem the tears, two strong arms came around her and pulled her in. Her cheek was pressed to a naked chest, fuzzy with hair and warm as an oven. He smelled better than Giselle would have expected for a dirty Scot.
‘I won’t make you wash me any more. I’ll have a proper wash when I get the chance, but I’m clean enough for now. It’s not like I care if I sully Lord Edric’s clean linen with my dirty Scottish body.’
He let go of her and started looking about the room, flinging open a chest at the foot of the bed.
‘What does Edric the toad have in here? Ah, a little large,’ he sniffed it, ‘but it doesn’t have his stench on it.’ He held up a linen shirt, smiling, all bare chest and pale skin.
‘Can you not put it on?’ Giselle sniffed.
‘I will, but only if you have had your fill of leering at me.’
‘You are disgusting, and I can’t bear the sight of you.’
‘When did you last eat, lass? You are dead on your feet.’
‘I can’t remember, and don’t call me lass?’
‘Very well, Lady de Villers, I will go to the kitchen in search of food. Stay here and bolt the door behind me and don’t open it until I come back. And don’t think of locking me out, or trying to flee. That wouldn’t end well for you.’
With that, he sped off, and Giselle rushed to the door and scraped the bolt across then backed away and got before the fire. She let out a sigh of relief. With any luck, Lyall Buchanan would fall down a dark stairway and break his arrogant neck.
The fire drove some of the ache from Giselle’s tense muscles, but her heart was still thumping against her ribs. She was so tired she had almost stopped caring what happened to her.