Page 32 of Bound to a Warrior
“Promise me.”
It was such a ferocious demand that he answered quickly. “I promise.”
“And you best keep it, Duncan MacAlpin.”
“Is that an order?” he asked teasingly.
“Aye, it is.”
“And who are you to be giving me orders?”
Her eyes softened and her voice turned gentle. “Someone who cares about you.”
Her tender words first stabbed at his heart and then punched his gut and he wasn’t even in battle, or was he? If he was, it sure wasn’t familiar tactics that were being used. And how the bloody hell did he battle unfamiliar foe?
Uncomfortable in foreign territory, he figured the best thing was to move to more familiar terrain.
“If we pick up the pace we could reach the outskirts of my land in possibly two days.”
She moved away from him. “I will do my best.”
“Finish eating, so we can get moving,” he said.
She handed the uneaten apple back to him.
“Eat it, you’ll need your strength,” he urged, feeling guilty that his own misgivings caused him to hurry her.
“I’m not hungry.”
He grew annoyed, though it was at himself. “You’re barely a wisp of a thing. You need to eat.”
Her chin went up. “I may not be stout like some woman, but I’m strong enough.”
He immediately regretted his words. He had hurt her and that hadn’t been his intention. “I worry that I push you too hard.”
He was surprised that she smiled.
“You push your warriors, don’t you?”
He nodded.
“Well, since you have claimed me a warrior woman, then I expect nothing less from you.” She rested a hand to his chest. “And you should expect nothing less from me.”
She was a courageous one and his respect for her grew.
“Then let’s get moving and get home,” he said.
She bounced up and tugged on the chain. “Come on then and see if you can keep up with me.”
“There you go challenging me again.”
“Are you up to it?” she teased with a smile and a cock of her hip.
He laughed and tugged her to him, his hands resting at her waist. “One day I’m going to show you just how much I’m up to it.”
“Promises, promises,” she said in a singsong voice.
Her breath was sweet, her lips moist like plump fruit, her cheeks flushed pink and he told himself not to do it. The warning rang in his head over and over.
