Page 61 of The Masked Baron
Andalin nodded. She was hurt.
“Where?”
Andalin bit her lip. “I’m well enough to ride.”
“Where, Annie?”
Andalin’s lower lip trembled. “My heart.” A sob escaped her throat following her confession. She covered her eyes again with her hands as the tears renewed themselves. She was so thoroughly humiliated. She wanted nothing more than to be away, anywhere other than next to Ellis.
Ellis didn’t bother trying to remove Andalin’s hands again. Instead he just wrapped his arms around her and held her while she cried. He softly stroked her hair and then laid his head on top of hers. They sat like that for some time. Andalin’s tears finally ran dry, and she hiccupped a few times and then relaxed into Ellis’s arms.
“It’s getting late, dearest,” Ellis said into her hair. “I don’t want you to be out here once the sun goes down. The temperature will drop considerably, amongst other reasons.” Ellis released her, and she kept her head down. He pulled her to her feet and led her to Ginger. She grabbed at the saddle to mount, but Ellis pulled her back toward him.
“I have a confession, and it cannot wait.” Andalin knew her face was smudged with dirt and blotches of red, but Ellis had her complete attention. “It’s about your father.”
Andalin’s heart sank again. It was too much. “Please, another day. I cannot bear it.”
Ellis put his hands on his hips and sighed. “Very well.”
Fatigue settled on Andalin’s shoulders, and she was eager to return home. She turned to mount, but Ellis stopped her again.
“Please, Annie, do not be angry with me. I only want your happiness.”
Andalin shook her head. “That’s a lie. You don’t care about my happiness. Not as much as you care about feeding the serpent of hate coiled around your unfeeling heart. Why can’t you love me like I love you? That is what would make me happy!”
Ellis looked like he had been slapped in the face. He took a step back. His voice was louder than a whisper but soft and sincere. “Are you in earnest?”
Andalin just stared back at him. Weren’t the tears proof enough?
Ellis closed the gap between them and cupped Andalin’s face in his hands. “May I kiss you?”
This was not the time to ask questions. She gave an almost imperceptible nod, and Ellis did not hesitate to act. He captured her lips with his own. Warmth exploded inside of her, and she melted against him. She kissed him back with all the longing in her heart.
When he pulled away, his eyes locked with hers. He lifted his thumb and caressed her cheek. “I do so love you, my sweet Annie. Is it possible to have you while the rest of my life is such a nightmare?”
Andalin reached up and took Ellis’s hands in her own. “It has to be possible. Please don’t make me marry Lord Kerrigan. I want to stay with you.”
Ellis let his breath out slowly. “Your presence is like a balm to me. I could never wish it away.”
Ellis kissed her again. This time when he pulled away, he let his forehead rest against hers.
Andalin suddenly felt conscious of her red-rimmed eyes and her hair sticking out of her braid and falling into her face. She started to fuss with her hair and dust at the dirt on the shoulder of her cloak, when Ellis grabbed her hand to stop her. “Please, leave it. You have never looked more beautiful.”
“Have I secured your affections, then?” Andalin asked.
Ellis smiled down at her. “You managed that some time ago.”
“Good, because I have some conditions.”
Ellis threw back his head and laughed. “You would! Very well, let’s hear them.”
“Well, I am not sure quite yet. I will have to think on the particulars. I would like to discuss that mask of yours, for starters, and then...” Andalin’s voice caught when she saw something out of the corner of her eye just behind Ellis. She leaned forward, peering into the trees, where so clearly stood a woman.
Chapter 22
“I would gladly take mymask off right now if it pleases you,” Ellis teased. His unencumbered smile would have normally made her heart race, if it had not already been racing for another reason. The unfamiliar woman, half-concealed behind a tree and its leafy foliage, was watching them. Andalin ignored Ellis’s comment and wrapped her arms around him so she might whisper into his ear.
“Ellis,” she whispered, “don’t move. There is a woman behind you in the trees.” Ellis froze, and she continued. “She watches us and is not yet aware I have discovered her.”
