Page 66 of Historical Hotties
She was more interested in her book, and in Cassius, unable to relax enough even to eat.
The morning progressed. Dacia could hear men out in the bailey, going about their duties, and the occasional neigh of a horse. There were birds all around the keep because they had made their nests high in the eaves. She could hear them tweeting, feeding their newly hatched babies because spring was here. In fact, everything seemed to indicate a fine spring day. She would have thought so, too, had Cassius not been laying in a bed, recovering from battle wounds.
The morning continued towards noon. Dacia was still reading her book, now listening to Cassius as the man began to snore. He was breathing heavily now and she put her book aside, standing up to go to the bed and put her hand on his forehead, something she did twenty times a day. Only this time, it was different.
He was hot.
Her heart sank.
Quickly, she went to her medicament bag, pouring a little white willow powder into some wine. White willow was known to fight fevers. After three days, Emmeric the physic had not yet been located, so Dacia was having to rely entirely on her knowledge and what ingredients she had with her. Though she was confident in her knowledge, she was hoping they would be able to find the physic at some point, especially if Cassius was going to run a fever. She didn’t want to do this all on her own if his condition grew more serious.
Mixing the powder with her finger, she went to Cassius, gently rousing the man.
“Cassius?” she said softly. “Cassius, please awaken.”
He snored a few moments longer before abruptly falling silent. Dacia shook him again.
“Please, Cassius,” she said. “Wake up and look at me.”
He remained still, his eyes closed. But then, his head turned in her direction. “I will gladly look at you, my angel,” he mumbled, though his eyes were still closed. “What is amiss?”
Dacia sat on the bed next to him, putting her arm behind his neck. “I need you to sit up a little and drink this.”
His eyes lolled open but he was having a difficult time staying awake. Still, he did as she asked, weakly lifting his head as she helped him and draining the wine cup. Carefully, Dacia lay him back down.
“Good,” she said. “I am sorry to have awoken you. Go back to sleep.”
She tried to move away but his hand shot up, grasping her wrist. “Nay,” he muttered. “Do not move away. Stay here with me.”
She set the cup aside but remained on the bed. His hand moved to hers and he grasped it, bringing it to his lips and kissing it sweetly. “Sweet Dacia,” he slurred, his eyes finally closing. “What would I do without you?”
Dacia smiled in spite of herself. “You would be in the hands of someone not as competent as I am,” she said. “Consider yourself fortunate.”
He grinned, dimples carving through his unshaved cheeks. “I consider myself the most fortunate man in England,” he said. “How am I faring?”
Her smile faded, just a little. “As well as can be expected,” she said, not mentioning the hint of a fever. “The arrows didn’t strike anything vital and I was able to clean out the wounds and stitch them up. Barring anything terrible, you should recover.”
He kissed her hand again. “Sweet girl,” he said, laying his cheek against her palm. “You have my unending gratitude.”
He was rather adorable in his sleepy, slurring state. Dacia could have quickly become accustomed to his touch as he held his face against her hand. There was something so comforting and intimate about it, something she’d never experienced before. She’d never been close enough to a man not her father or grandfather to be hugged or touched in any way, and she knew that she liked it. Very much.
His touch was magic.
“And you have my undying gratitude for riding off to save the village from the raiders,” she said. “You did not have to go. You could have very well remained in the hall and let the Doncaster men go forth, but you did not. You risked yourself for us. The least I can do is tend to your wounds.”
His eyes rolled open again and he looked up at her, the pale eyes studying her. “Be under no false impression,” he said. “I risked my life for you and no one else. Those bastards weren’t going to come anywhere near my sweet angel.”
Dacia flushed furiously. “I think I must have given you too much of my potion,” she said. “You are being silly now.”
He shook his head, slightly. “Not at all,” he said. “I am quite within my right mind. Dacia, will you do something for me?”
“Anything.”
“Kiss me.”
Her eyes widened. “K-Kissyou?” she stammered. “Now?”
“Now.” When she hesitated, off guard by his bold request, he sighed heavily. “I am dying right before your eyes and you will deny me a simple kiss? How can you be so cruel? I would have done better had I asked my dog to kiss me.”
