Page 14 of Saxon Blade Norman Blood
“Why did you save me?”
“Are you saying I shouldn’t have?”
“N-no.” She would never thank him, of course, but he was certain she knew she would never have made it without him. “All the same, I’m surprised you did.”
So was he. He remembered the intensity of his distress when she’d fallen off bridge. He’d jumped after her, not just because he would have saved anyone from the dreadful fate of drowning, or because he needed to find out who was after him, but because he had been compelled by a mysterious force.
Desperation.
Why he should want to save someone who wanted him dead, however, he didn’t know. Neither did he understand why she would want to kill someone who had never done her any wrong. They had never met, of that he was sure. Her blue eyes framed by fiery lashes would have haunted him if he had taken but one look at her. If they had talked, he would have noticed the way her tongue caressed the sounds of his language, and he would not have forgotten the sensual lips uttering the words.
Above all he would have remembered her indomitable spirit.
Since their paths had crossed, she had met every challenge thrown her way with unwavering determination. Although she had plainly been new to it, she’d obeyed hisinstructions to touch herself with such brazenness he had not been able to remain seated in his chair. She had also recovered from the shock of her near drowning with surprising alacrity. Even more significantly, she had not shied away from her intentions of killing him, insisting that she was not following any orders, at great personal risk. At no point had she tried to beg for his forgiveness. This Saxon girl was unflinchingly determined.
And he was more intrigued than ever.
“I haven’t finished with you yet,” he said, realizing she was still waiting for an answer. That at least was true. “I am not willing to let you go before I have found out who you are and why you came to kill me.”
“Let me go? You think I jumped into the river as a way of escaping you?”
She sounded incredulous, as well she might. But of course he did not truly believe that a woman who couldn’t swim would have chosen such a hazardous way of escaping but he pretended to consider it a possibility. Maybe he would learn something if he kept her talking.
“You have to admit that I am allowed to wonder. We both know you are not here for the pleasure of my company.”
“No. But what happened was an accident. I would have drowned without you.” Her small voice tugged at his heart. She sounded on the verge of tears.
William shook his head. Why could he not remain detached where this girl was concerned? It made no sense. Earlier he’d been worried by the purple shadows under her eyes indicating she hadn’t had much sleep the night before. Now compassion twisted his guts at the sound of her vulnerability.
Irritation swept through him. So what if she was tired or feeling sorry for herself? She was alive, and that was more than she had the right to expect under the circumstances. She should have thought about the dangers before coming to his bedarmed with a dagger. And he should stop worrying about her comfort and focus on catching her master instead. This was all ridiculous.
“You could have left me to die to get your revenge on me that way. Many men would have thought it a neat solution,” she added after a while.
“True, but I am not like many men, and I think you’ve seen that for yourself. After finding you with a weapon, I could easily have killed you outright, raped, or injured you in retaliation, handed you over to my men for punishment at the very least. I did none of those things.”
Only silence answered him. William imagined her biting her bottom lip in acknowledgement to his words. Her luscious bottom lip.
“No. I don’t think you’re like other men. But don’t you think you might live to regret your decision?” Asking the question showed commendable aplomb. A smile tugged at his lips. That girl was undaunted.
“Live. Or die, as the case may be. Unless… Have you decided to spare me after all?” She remained silent. His smile broadened. “I see. You have not. In that case yes, I may well come to regret my impulse, but it is too late now. I did save you.”
He stopped and turned to face her, but as he had not warned her about his intentions, she slammed straight into him.
*
Without warning Rowena found herself pressed against a hard, muscular chest clad in wet velvet. Inevitably she was reminded of what lay under William’s clothes. The memory of his naked chest, golden in the candlelight, would haunt her mind forever, as would what had happened in his bed. She still did not understand what he had done, and it frightened her. What dark power did this man have over her? How could he make herforget her vow to kill him simply by touching her? His beauty shouldn’t sway her so.
He leaned in, and his hazel eyes darkened. Her throat went dry.
She hadn’t taken a step back since she’d walked into him, and they were pressed together as tightly as only lovers could be. The last time they’d been so close he had caressed her with dizzying confidence and made her body explode.
He dropped her cloak to the ground and peered into her eyes as if he would find an answer to his questions without asking. Then he placed a finger under her chin and smiled.
“I am starting to wonder how I will force you to tell me who sent you,” he murmured. “My natural instincts do not lean toward torture. But how else will I ever extract the truth from you? You are tougher than I had given you credit for.”
“I told you. No one has sent me.”
His arched eyebrow made it clear he did not believe her. “If you are here by your own initiative, then tell me what I have done to make you think I deserve to die.”
