Chapter 18
Megan considered telling him that she was going nowhere with him. She could race into her room and then slam and lock the door. What would he do then? Chase her? Bang on the door?
She had a sudden, vibrant image of herself scrambling up the stone stairs, pursued by a grim-faced Ryder.
Why did that scene make her feel so hot inside? Her gut twisted abruptly, and she shifted, trying to ease the strange sensation of aching there. Clearing her throat, she followed Ryder up the stairs. They passed her room without stopping.
Still, Ryder did not speak. He’d glanced over his shoulder once, as if to make sure that she was coming, and then that was all. He stamped away ahead of her until they reached his landing. He withdrew a key from a pocket, unlocked the door, and stepped inside. Megan followed him.
He closed the door behind her, turning the key. However, he left the key sticking out of the lock, so she didn’t feel as though she was locked in.
Ryder’s room was icy cold. It was dark, too, until he strode over to a low table and lit a lopsided, half-melted candle. A guttering flame sprang diligently into life, throwing a shivering glow over the space. Megan sucked in a surprised breath and wished she’d kept her cloak on.
“It’s freezin’ in here,” she commented. “Why is the fire dead? Daenae the servants make it up before ye come to bed?”
“Ye see that key I took out to unlock the door?” Ryder responded curtly, striding over to the hearth and crouching down before it.
“That’s the only key to this room. The servants never come here.
If I order food, they leave it at the door.
Now and then I let them come in and clean it, but generally speaking I daenae bother. ”
Megan dragged a finger over the low wooden table, and her fingertip came up gray.
“So I can tell,” she muttered.
He threw a narrow stare at her. “Careful there, lassie. Ye are in me space now. We need to talk, ye and me.”
Megan folded her arms tightly. He didn’t invite her to sit, and anyway, the only chairs in his room were piled with clothing and other items. She could, of course, sit on the bed, but that didn’t seem to be a sensible idea.
Instead, she stood where she was, lips pursed, waiting for Ryder to finish piling up kindling and wood in the fire.
A spark flared, and the dry wood caught fire quickly.
Ryder squatted there for a moment, watching the flames climb higher.
Buttery warm light flooded the room. The fire crackled cheerily, and she began to feel some of her tension ease away.
A glimpse out of the window revealed that the moon was now beginning its descent.
Dawn was still an hour or two away, but the bulk of the night was gone.
I daenae feel tired, Megan thought. I suppose I should. Why do I feel more alive than ever before when I’m standin’ with him?
Before she could investigate this troubling thought, Ryder rose silently to his feet and turned to face her.
“Ye defied me again, lass,” he said shortly. “Ye went behind me back. Plotted with me sister…”
“Plotted?” she burst out. “I told ye what happened. I saw her sneak out of her room. I had no clue that she planned to leave the Keep. I followed her to keep an eye on her, and it was only when I saw them mounting horses in the courtyard that I understood that they planned to go.”
“And ye didnae think to fetch me?”
“Ye werenae nearby. I would have lost them. I would have warned ye, aye, but then I would have had nay idea where they’d gone or why. Daenae ye think that would have been a worse situation than this?”
A muscle jumped in Ryder’s jaw.
“Have a care, lass. I’m more than fed up with yer cheek.”
“Me cheek? I protected Alaina. Besides, did ye nae hear what Hamish said? That kidnap attempt was him! All of this fear and panic and the danger all along was a wee lad smitten with yer sister!”
She almost wanted to laugh. No wonder Alaina had raged so much about her restricted freedom and the guards on the door, when she knew all along that the culprit was her would-be sweetheart.
Ryder, however, did not chuckle or smile, or even relax a little.
“There’s more here than that,” he muttered, half to himself. “There’s still danger.”
“There’s always danger. But since the imminent danger of Alaina bein’ swept up and carried away is gone, I’ll be taking me leave. There’s nay need for me to be here now.”
The words echoed in Megan’s mind. Nay need for me to be here now. This was what she’d wanted, after all. She wanted to leave. This wasn’t her home, and this wasn’t her real life. Alaina and Sophie were sweet, but the longer she stayed with them, the more attached she would get.
And then there was Ryder. Something inside her shivered when she thought properly of him, and that could not be good for her.
Ryder stared at her. The firelight silhouetted him, and with little other light in the room, it made his expression difficult to read.
“Leave? I think nae. Our bargain is nae over.”
“Oh, nay? Well, the danger is gone, and so…”
He took a step toward her, folding his arms. His muscles strained against the fabric of his linen shirt, no matter how hard Megan tried not to notice it.
“I’m the one who decides when the danger is past,” he said softly. “And I’m the one who decides if ye leave or if ye stay.”
Megan clenched her jaw, lifting her chin.
To prove that she wasn’t afraid of him, not in the slightest, she took a pointed step toward him, close enough that she could feel the warmth coming off him.
It sent a shiver through her, more powerful than the last. The ache was back, forming a firm ball in her gut. It plunged lower, making her squirm.
“If ye are goin’ to threaten me with another punishment for nae obeyin’ ye,” Megan managed, her voice hitching just a little, “ye had better save yer breath. I am nae afraid of ye.”
“Afraid? That is nae the word I would have chosen. I daenae believe ye are afraid of much, lassie.”
She allowed herself a brief smile at the praise. And it was praise, coming from Ryder.
“Daenae forget our arrangement,” she murmured after a moment. “Ye are nae to touch me again.”
His eyes darkened, and he took a step toward her. Megan stepped sideways, a tingling sensation thrilling through her. She hadn’t chosen to move toward the door, but rather, toward the bed. Was that a mistake? Probably.
“Hold still, woman,” Ryder growled. “We are nae finished discussin’ this. Our deal is nae over yet.”
She laughed at him. He dived forward, grabbing her shoulders and bringing her nose inches away from his.
“I’d be very careful if I were ye, lassie,” he murmured. “Ye are pushin’ yer luck with me.”
She yanked her shoulders out of his grip, but the movement caught her off balance. She tumbled backward, landing on the bed. Before she could recover, Ryder leaned forward, resting his hands on either side of her hips.
“Ye never learn, do ye?” he breathed. “I am in charge here, lass.”
“Nobody is in charge of me,” Megan snapped, although there just wasn’t enough venom in her voice.
Abruptly, Ryder leaned back, untying his belt and whipping it free. Megan narrowed her eyes at him.
“I daenae ken what ye think ye are…” She began, but broke off when he snatched up her hand, using the belt to bind her wrist to the bedpost newel.
She kneeled at the bottom of the bed, tugging at the belt with her other hand.
The knot, however, was surprisingly good and would not budge.
The belt was firm around her wrist, but not tight enough to hurt or dig in.
“This is where we’re at, then, eh?” Ryder demanded. “I have to tie ye up to get ye to obey me?”
“Tie me up… obey ye… Ye are out of yer mind!” Megan snapped.
He leaned forward again, close enough so that his body almost covered hers.
She could feel the warm tickle of his breath and feel the heat coming off his body.
Megan felt as though she were frozen, pinned in place.
She could not look away. His gaze bored into hers, sending a shiver down her spine once more.
“Then ask me to release ye,” Ryder breathed. “Go on. It’s a simple request. Ask me to untie ye, and I will. Just a few words.”
“I…” Megan opened her mouth, waiting to hear the words come out. There was nothing, only silence, followed by a tense, undignified squeak.
A slow grin spread over Ryder’s face.
“Do ye ken what I think?” he whispered, tilting his head. His gaze never left her. “I think that ye want to be punished again.”
She did not. She should tell him right now. Megan knew without question that if she demanded he untie her, he would. And that would be the end of it.
But the words wouldn’t come. Ryder let the silence sit between them for a few moments, then chuckled low in his throat.
“That’s what I thought. And just so ye ken, I have no intention of breaking our agreement. I will nae touch ye again. But I can, under the terms of our arrangement, kiss ye. That would nae be changing our minds, would it?”
Before Megan could point out that he’d already touched her shoulders and her wrist, he dived forward, fitting his lips to hers.
“I dinnae ken why, lassie, but I just cannot resist ye,” he breathed, so quietly that she almost missed it.
Heat swept through her body, a molten wave of warmth that made her shiver. She closed her eyes, more from instinct than from any real decision. Ryder crawled forward onto the bed, his weight pushing her into the mattress as he kissed her.
The aching, tingling feeling in her stomach plunged lower, landing squarely between her legs.
Almost instinctively, Megan pressed her thighs together, but that only made the sensation more intense.
Ryder’s tongue swiped along her lower lip, and she opened her mouth almost without thinking, letting him plunge inside.