Chapter 7
“Never, ever, enter this room.”
Heather’s gasp caught in her throat and her legs turned weak. She did not know whether to be relieved that her husband was behind her or frightened that it was him.
He took firm hold of her hand resting on the latch and spun her around to face him. Her body fell against his and he held her there against him. He wore no armor over his black shirt so her breasts were planted firmly against his hard chest and she felt every taut muscle.
“What are you doing up here?”
“Exploring,” she said, though it did not sound convincing to her own ears.
“In your nightdress on your wedding night?”
“I got restless.” This time the truth rang true in her voice. She was restless to know what was going on, not only in the forbidden room but about the surprise attack.
The torch sconce suddenly flickered low and then, as if a strong breath blew at it, it snuffed out completely, leaving her and Rhys engulfed in total darkness.
Heather reacted instinctively, her arms went around her husband and she held on tight.
The scent of lavender from her freshly washed hair drifted up and wrapped around him as strongly as her arms wrapped around his waist. “There is nothing to fear when I am with you,” he said, feeling her body tremble against him.
His words soothed and so did the strength of him coiled protectively around her, but what of the darkness. Heather voiced her fear. “The darkness does not let us see.”
“Fear stops you from seeing, not the darkness.” He lifted her just enough so that her feet did not touch the floor and began walking.
Heather was amazed that he walked as if he could clearly see every step he took. She kept her arms firm around him, not that it was necessary she held on to him, the strength of his one arm alone was enough to hold her with ease.
She was relieved to see a flicker of light ahead as Rhys confidently proceeded down the stairs. And she did not mind that he did not place her on her feet until they were in their bedchamber.
Hundreds of questions wanted to spill from her lips, but she chose silence, waiting to see what he would say to her.
“Do not venture from this room.”
Heather stood staring at the door as it closed shut behind him.
Why had he returned if only to leave again?
The question got her thinking. How had he known she was on the upper floor or had he?
Had he come to the upper floor to retrieve something or in search of her?
And why was she never to enter that room?
With questions continuing to grow, Heather began to pace. He had left her just as he had in his solar, which could only mean that he had not returned for her. What had brought him back to the keep and what had brought him to the upper floor?
She raised her hand to cover a yawn and realized that the long, eventful day was fast taking its toll on her.
Finding out she was wed to the Dark Dragon, being taken away from her home and family, getting attacked by warriors with similar skills to the ghost warriors, tending the fallen and injured warriors, learning that many of the McComb clan had disappeared without a trace, and then being ordered never to enter a particular room made her wonder if she could possibly be caught in a nightmare.
Perhaps if she went to sleep, she would wake up at home with her loving family around her.
Though, what if it was not a dream? Her husband would certainly expect her to be waiting for him. Another yawn had her approaching the bed. She could rest, not sleep, though if sleep claimed her then perhaps she would wake and find herself home.
Home is wherever I am.
A shiver ran through her recalling her husband’s words, and she quickly got in bed and pulled the soft blanket up over her.
The bed was much larger than her one at home, but then this bed was meant for more than one person.
She had shared her bed with her two sisters when they were young and needed her close, but that had been years ago.
She was accustomed to sleeping alone now and wondered if she would easily adapt to sharing a bed with her husband or if it would become a chore.
She sighed and turned on her side, wanting to grab the other pillow and hug it to her as she did when she slept alone, but the pillow was not hers to hug.
It belonged to her husband. Another yawn eased out of her and she snuggled in the softness of the bedding, her eyes closing and sleep settling in on her.
* * *
Rhys entered his bedchamber much later than he had planned to.
The day had not gone as expected and the attack troubled him more than he would let anyone know.
He had kept the secret well, only he and one other knew of it.
But then he had known the risk he was taking at the time and not once had he doubted that the risk was worth it.
Now it had returned to haunt him, but he had known it would.
It had been only a matter of time and had he not wanted this, looked forward to it, and planned on it?
The problem was that now his wife’s life was in more danger than anyone could ever imagine.
Rhys went to the hearth to add more wood to the fire, a chill having settled in the room, no doubt from the rainstorm that continued to pound the keep. Once done, he stripped off his garments as he approached the bed.
Standing completely naked, he stared down at his wife tucked snug and warm beneath the covers and hugging his pillow.
He gently brushed a strand of blond hair off her cheek.
He had wondered if she would wait up for him but was not surprised to see that she had not.
It had been a long, tiring day for her, not to mention an upsetting one.
He wanted desperately to make love to her, had since he laid eyes on her, but after the day’s events and seeing her sleeping so peacefully, he could not bring himself to wake her. Tomorrow would be soon enough and all the days to follow.
Rhys walked around to the other side of the bed and climbed in.
He slipped into her embrace as he eased the pillow from her hands.
She settled around him quite nicely, her head going to rest on his chest and her leg draping over his.
He wished she was naked so that he could feel her soft skin against his, but then thought better of it.
If she was naked, he would not be able to keep his hands off her.
He closed his eyes, not expecting to fall asleep, his thoughts much too busy. She stirred in his arms, wrapping herself more tightly around him, as if she could not get close enough to him, and his arms tightened around her.
The last thing he recalled as he fell asleep was the scent of lavender drifting around him.
* * *
Heather woke with a slow stretch and a wide yawn that turned to a smile.
She had not slept so soundly or comfortably in years.
Her eyes sprang open and she sprang up, recalling where she was, and found herself alone in bed and alone in the room.
She cast a glance at the rumpled spot beside her and knew her husband had slept there.
She lifted the top of her nightdress to take a sniff and her breath caught when the scent of him stung her nostrils.
Her cheeks burned red. She had to have slept nearly on top of him to have his scent so strong upon her.
She sniffed again, finding the scent appealing.
It was a mixture of earth, pine, and man.
It was similar to Quinn’s scent and she was troubled by the thought that she found Rhys’ scent more intoxicating.
A light knock sounded at the door and Heather was glad for the interruption and just as pleased to find it was Nessa and she had a tray of food with her.
“I thought you might prefer to have your meal in some privacy after last night,” Nessa said, placing the tray on the table next to the chair by the hearth. “Tongues have been busy all morning, especially since you have yet to be seen.”
It took a minute for Heather to understand what Nessa was referring to and when she realized it, her cheeks tinged pink.
Oddly enough, she felt embarrassed that her vows had yet to be consummated.
Could Rhys have possibly found her unappealing?
Surely if anyone knew, she would be blamed and not the Dragon, since rumors had him having an unquenchable appetite for coupling.
“I am fine,” Heather said with a forced smile.
“I am glad to see it,” Nessa said and lowered her voice to a whisper.
“One of the servants claims to have seen the Dragon go to the upper floor and not come down for a while before going to his bedchamber. She thinks he had his slaves satisfy him, so that he would not be too demanding of his bride.”
Had he returned to the upper floor last night after leaving her in their bedchamber?
She had to find out what was in that room.
Heather hopped out of bed and went to the tray of food.
She rarely ate when she woke, but Nessa had been kind enough to bring her some food, so she ate sparingly of the salted whiting and bread.
There was a pitcher of wine, but she much preferred the soothing brew she made from herbs and would have to instruct Nessa on how to prepare it for her.
She turned to Nessa to do just that and found her staring at the bed linen.
Heather realized right away what the young woman was staring at. Heather’s virgin blood should be on the bed linen, and it was not. If word spread about this, it would not be in her favor. She doubted anyone would believe that the Dragon had not consummated their vows.
“I beg your silence on this, Nessa.”
Nessa turned wide eyes on her.
“The time will come when you find what you expected to find there this morning. Until then, I beg you not to speak of it to anyone.”
Nessa stared at her a moment before shaking her head and saying, “I would never speak of anything I see here. You can trust me to keep a tight lip, my lady.”