Chapter 6 #2
She held up her hand to show him that the cut was shallow and that whatever blood had been smeared there had now stopped trickling.
Callum tenderly took her hand in his, cradling it in his palm, his warmth seeping into her. His calloused fingers were rough against her soft skin, but the feel of them on her, even if he was only cradling her hand, was enough to drive her mad with lust.
She tried not to show it. What good would it do to let him know that she wanted him so much? And yet her cheeks heated to the point of discomfort, betraying her.
“Are ye certain?” Callum asked. “I think it would be better if ye had it wrapped.”
Rhea rolled her eyes at him and reached into her pocket, pulling out a kerchief that she carried with her. She dabbed carefully at the cut, cleaning up the blood, and then wrapped the piece of fabric around her hand just to reassure him.
“See? All better,” she said, then reached for his bow. “Now, will ye teach me how to shoot, or will ye just stand there?”
Callum didn’t seem entirely convinced, but he didn’t try to argue with her either. Instead, he handed his bow to her and stood behind her once more, guiding her into the right position.
Just like before, he was too close, and she was entirely too aware of his presence behind her.
She kept reminding herself that he was only showing her how to shoot an arrow, nothing more.
That was all it was, even as his chest pressed against her back, even as his arms circled her, even as his muscles bulged through his shirt as he moved.
Rhea was mesmerized. How could she not be? The more she tried to calm herself, the more she wanted to give in to her desire, as if resisting him was so impossible that it had the opposite effect of the one she intended.
“Take a deep breath,” Callum whispered in her ear, his breath ghosting over her cheek.
She did as she was told, drawing in a sharp breath through her nose.
Callum shook his head. “Slowly. Daenae rush.”
Rhea tried again, this time breathing in slowly.
“Release,” Callum instructed.
Rhea loosed the arrow, sending it flying toward the target. It hit, though not the center. It flew too low, lodging itself below the bullseye, and she couldn’t help but feel a wave of disappointment crash over her.
She really had thought she was going to succeed.
“Well done,” Callum praised, much to her surprise. “Ye should have seen Hudson when he shot his first arrow. He almost took Reggie’s eye out.”
Rhea let out a disbelieving laugh. “He did?”
“Och aye,” Callum said. “And Reggie was standing all the way over there.” He pointed to the left, where the straw dummies for sword practice stood.
Rhea laughed. It didn’t matter if the story was true or not. Either way, he was trying to entertain her.
“And ye?” she asked, raising a curious eyebrow.
The mirth on Callum’s face vanished in a second, his expression turning serious. “I was always excellent at it.”
Rhea was certain he was lying. Still, she didn’t call him out on it.
She tried a few more times, but each time, though she hit the target, she missed her aim. The seventh time, she let out a groan of frustration and barely managed to stop herself from throwing the bow to the ground and stomping on it.
Callum had been watching the entire time, clearly amused.
When he approached once more, he did so with a smirk on his face.
This time, he came to stand in front of her, and she thought this was much worse.
As long as he was standing behind her, she could ignore the way he was looking at her—the heated gaze, those gray eyes that seemed to undress her with every glance, the slight parting of lips that she so desperately wanted to kiss.
But at the same time, she wanted to stay far away from him, and her conflicting emotions were not making this any easier for her.
She found herself lowering her bow just as he leaned closer, when she should have used it as a shield, as something to put even more distance between them. But her body was moving of its own accord, drawn in by his pull.
They were close now, so close that she could see the gold flecks in his eyes, so close that she could almost feel the phantom touch of his lips on her own. All it would take for him to kiss her was to close the tiny gap that still separated them.
She could have allowed it so easily. She could have let him kiss her, just as she craved—just as they both craved. Instead, she pulled back at the very last minute, her heart racing in her chest as she barely managed to avoid his lips.
Callum froze, staring at her for a moment. She stared back, but only for a short while before she averted her gaze. She couldn’t bear to look at him. She couldn’t bear to chance seeing blame in his gaze.
But he said nothing in the end. He only pulled back, putting some more distance between them and shifting her hands into position.
“There,” he said, breaking the tension that had built in the air around them only moments ago. “Ye should be good to shoot now.”
Rhea took a deep, steadying breath—more so for her nerves than for anything else—then loosed the arrow. Just as Callum had promised, it hit the bullseye.
She couldn’t help the cry that escaped her—a sound of as much surprise as joy—jumping up and down a few times excitedly. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Callum watching her, a small smile playing on his lips.
“Thank ye,” she said. “I didnae think I could do it.”
“Ye can,” he assured her. “And now ye’ll do it on yer own.”
Emboldened by her victory, Rhea tried again, this time on her own. And though she didn’t hit the bullseye, she was closer than before.
They stayed there for a long while, Rhea enjoying herself as she shot arrow after arrow at the target, Callum fetching them back for her to try again and again. By the end of it, her arm was sore, but she was so satisfied by her performance that it didn’t matter.
“Thank ye,” she offered when Callum began to clean up after them. “This was… It was fun.”
“I’m glad ye enjoyed it,” Callum said, and though his expression was grim as always, he sounded a little lighter.
Rhea couldn’t help but think that their first outing had gone much better than she could have ever expected.