Chapter 9 #2
She folded her arms tightly across her chest. “Because it doesnae. Ye seem to believe that ye are me laird and master, Ryder, and that is nae the case. We are partners in this, ye and me, and if ye daenae learn to cooperate with me now, this is goin’ to be a disaster.”
“Partners? Cooperate? I think perhaps it’s ye that has the wrong end of the stick here, lass.”
There was a moment of taut, angry silence. Megan was determined not to look away first. He stared at her, a furrow between his brow, and she stared right back. This was not a battle she intended to lose.
And it did feel like a battle. Everything to do with Ryder felt that way, as if one misstep or one sign of weakness would send everything crumbling down to the ground.
Perhaps that’s how he lives, she thought suddenly. Perhaps he could never risk showing weakness, could never back down, or else his enemies would pounce.
It cannae be easy, being a laird.
Abruptly, he broke away, striding over to Ewan, who had just managed to calm the horses.
“Take the lasses to Mistress Weatherby’s,” he instructed. “They’ll buy dresses here. Tell Alaina to pick one out for Megan—she has good taste.”
“Aye, Laird,” Ewan answered with a nod.
“I will see ye back at the Keep,” Ryder continued, stepping back. The driver snapped the reins, and the coach went lurching forward, rattling away down the road.
Then he turned back to Megan.
“I thought I was meant to go with them,” she managed.
He lifted his eyebrows. “I rather got the impression that ye dinnae want to go dress-shopping.”
“Is that the point?”
“Nay, it is nae.”
He strode past her, snatching up his horse’s reins. He led the creature a few steps off the path, tying it securely to a tree. Megan stood there, staring at him, trying to work out what was going on.
“If ye plan to punish me by makin’ me walk back to the Keep, that’s nae much of a punishment,” she snapped.
He gave a low chuckle. “Oh, that’s nae yer punishment.”
“I daenae intend to be punished at all.”
“Nobody ever does.” He came striding over to her, eyes glinting. His shirt still clung to his skin, and Megan tried her best not to notice.
“I brought ye here,” he continued, standing far too close to her, “to protect me sister.”
“Aye, and that’s what I was doin’! Ye think I could protect her well enough from inside that coach?”
He growled. “I meant that ye were to protect her when I was nae around. Do ye ken how much could have gone wrong? Ye could have died; me sisters could have died. They could have been taken, could have risked…”
“But we did nae die,” Megan interrupted sharply. “None of those things happened.”
He threw up his hands. “Because we were lucky. Luck is a fine thing, lass, but we cannae rely on luck. So, that is why ye must learn to obey me.”
She stared up at him. “Ye must be jokin’.”
“I am deadly serious.”
The rain was making Megan’s cloak heavier.
The wool was good and kept out the rain, although it wouldn’t keep it out forever.
She could feel dampness seeping through at the back of her neck.
The ends of her hair hung out of her hood at the front, curling down in a thick braid over her chest, and of course, it was already wet, soaking into her cloak.
“Here is what we will do,” Ryder continued, offering a lopsided smile. There was something mischievous in the back of his eyes, a glint there that Megan could not quite interpret.
Whatever it was, it sent fire leaping down her spine, coiling in the pit of her stomach. She wanted the feeling to go away. It clouded her mind, making her feel dizzy and ill at ease.
I daenae desire him, she told herself fiercely. I daenae. There’s nay reason at all for me to feel like this. It’s just… It’s just a feelin’. It will go away.
If he would only leave her alone, it would go away more quickly.
“Go on, then,” she heard herself say. “Tell me what punishment ye have cooked up. I’ll try nae to laugh.”
He grinned. “I will give ye a head start. Ye will run into the forest, and then I will chase ye. Ye ken the way back to the Keep, aye? It’s just a mile from here. If I catch ye, I will punish ye.”
“Punish me?” she echoed, sure that she must somehow have misheard. “I’ll nae agree to that.”
“I did nae ask for yer agreement, did I? If I catch ye, ye will pay for yer mistake.”
She stared at him, trying to swallow past the dryness in her throat.
“Ye are mad,” she said at last. “Ye think that allowin’ a captive to escape is a good idea?”
He tutted. “Guest, lass. Ye are a guest, nae a captive.”
She rolled her eyes. “At any rate, lettin’ a guest run away from ye is nae very wise.”
“Aye, but only if she escapes. And I have a feelin’ that while ye are fast, Megan, I am faster. So, off ye go. I’ll give thirty seconds before I come after ye.”
She snorted. “I’ll nae go along with this.”
He backed away a couple of paces. “Best get movin’, lassie. The countdown begins now. If ye are still standin’ right in front of me in half a minute, I’ll catch ye with great ease.”
“I am nae afraid of ye.”
“I am nae asking ye to be afraid. I am asking ye to stick to the rules. We are down to twenty seconds.”
She clenched her jaw. “This is nonsense. I’m nae goin’ anywhere.”
“Ye daenae have to go anywhere. But after twenty seconds are up, ye will nay longer have any say in it.”
“I could run away from the Keep, go home.”
“Ye could do that,” he conceded. “But ye daenae have yer faither’s book with ye. And would ye forgive yerself, I wonder, knowin’ that Alaina is lonely and unprotected?”
“I’ve only been here for a day,” she shot back. “Perhaps I don’t care about the girls yet.”
He chuckled, low in her throat.
“Aye, but ye do. Ye give yerself away too quickly, lass. I can tell that ye care for them. Ye see yer own sisters in them, don’t ye? What now, then? Eh?”
She stared at him, her heart thumping in her chest. She wanted to feel anger, or, better yet, fear, but all she could feel was that insistent, pulsing desire.
The smile widened on his face, and she wondered, with horror, whether he could feel it too. Whether he knew what she felt.
“Ten seconds,” he whispered, taking a careful step forward. Leaning down, he put his lips almost against her ear. “Come on, Megan. Run.”
Run.
The seconds seemed to count down in Megan’s head.
Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five…
Her nerve broke, and she turned on her heel and plunged into the forest, his chuckle drifting after her.