Page 151 of Stars in Umbra
He offered his arm.
Rina took it with an elegant nod.
She caught Mo’s growl in her cerebral link.‘I’m going to hate every second of this.’
She almost smiled.
‘Then don’t watch, lover.’
With that, she let Caidan Thrall lead her deeper into the castle.
Caidan moved beside Rina like a man who’d never been denied access to anything in his life.
His stride was a chest-first challenge, a silent dare for the world to try and stop him.
The gallery around them echoed with the soft clink of glassware and the hum of refined conversation, but he kept his gaze locked on her.
‘You appreciate bleak landscapes,’ he said, nodding to the painting she had paused before.
‘I do. They’re pure,’ Rina stated. ‘Landscape painting is the purest art form. Without people, the artist creates a space entirely open for the viewer to occupy and feel emotion.’
He stepped closer. ‘That artwork depicts The Thrall Estate, also calledTigh Aluinn, which is built on history and solitude. My ancestors were warlords, land barons, and kings, albeit in name only. Their ghosts still prowl these hills.’
His voice lowered. ‘Do you sense them?’
‘I perceive curated opulence and privilege, sir,’ she murmured, eyeing him from the corner of her eye. ‘Plus afokktonof money.’
He gave a small, self-satisfied laugh. ‘And yet, you came.’
‘You invited me.’
‘To evaluate the grounds for your art, of course,’ he said, eyes gleaming. ‘Then remain longer. There’s far more to absorb when one experiences it firsthand.’
He pivoted to face her, eyes sweeping down her gown, pausing a moment too long. ‘Are you alone, Miss Malvern?’
‘I am,’ she said, with a calm she didn’t quite feel.
‘So stay overnight.’
His statement was a command, and she arched a brow at his forcefulness.
He gestured with a casual flourish toward the east wing visible through the arched corridor. ‘The guest lodges are exquisite. The sauna and hot tub overlook the loch, and my glass-fronted gym is a cathedral to fitness. Tomorrow, we’ll fish for trout in the streams. If you wish, you can even paddleboard, canoe down the river, or perhaps indulge in some clay shooting, if you fancy. We could ride out on Highland ponies and potentially encounter a herd of stags or red deer in the glens.’
He leaned closer, lowering his voice. ‘There are beaches where no one will find us, Miss Malvern. Trails where only secrets travel.’
She gave him a tight smile and took a half step back. ‘I’m honored by your hospitality, but I have other engagements. I’ll return to the gallery, thank you.’
She turned.
His hand closed like iron around her upper arm and yanked her back.
The grin was wiped from his face.
‘Very few refuse me,’ he sneered, his breath tinged with the sweetness of plum wine and the rot of domineering authority. A man not used to being refused.
Rina didn’t flinch. ‘Then perhaps I’ll be your first.’
He leaned in further, lips grazing her cheekbone like a threat disguised as affection. ‘I think you’ll find resistance a waste of your time. See, when I spot something I like, I acquire it.’
