Chapter Eight

A nnora expected to leave the hall alone with whatever remained of her dignity. But apparently, she had thought wrong. When she entered the turret and looked behind her, she saw Richard close behind. Damn him! She wanted to take the curved stairs two at a time in order to escape him, but while that might have been possible if she were dressed in her usual hose and tunic, there was too much fabric to this dress to move quickly. It caught between her legs until she finally lifted the gown up above her knees and hastened her steps.

Richard did the same. “Annora!”

Her name called out in that deep baritone caused her body to shiver in unexpected delight. Nay! She would not give in to any feelings of attraction toward the beast who held her against her will. Instead, she would separate herself from his company completely. When she reached the floor to the bedchamber they shared, she sprinted down the passageway toward the open door that was like a beacon offering her safety, if only she could reach it in time.

She darted inside the room and went to slam the wooden portal shut as quickly as she could. She had been so close to ensuring her privacy for the day but clearly Richard was just as fast as he, too, pushed against the portal preventing her from sealing it shut. She was no match for his strength, and she finally gave up struggling against him. Letting go of the door, the wood slammed against the wall whilst Richard filled the room. He was like a dark lion on the prowl as he quickly closed the distance between them. But she had no mind to be caught in his grasp as she put first the table between them and then a chair as he followed her around the room that felt as if ’twas getting smaller by the second. The chair soon bounced to the floor when he easily knocked it out of his way and closed in on her, grabbing hold of her shoulders.

She was pulled against that firm chest of muscles. Rock hard like a marble statue, she could even feel the ripples of his stomach and she knew his body, if fully revealed, would show him to be every inch the warrior.

“You will be the death of me, woman,” he scolded. But despite the aggravation in his tone, she thought she heard a hint of unspoken desire as well. Surely, she must be imaging such a happening.

“I could not be that lucky,” she hotly retorted.

“Do you never have anything kind to say?” he asked pulling her closer causing her to lift her hands to push against his solid chest. He did not budge even an inch.

A short laugh escaped her lips. “To you? The man who is holding me against my will? I think not.”

“Perchance I can change your mind so we can find a common accord between us.” God help her, but his tone was like that of a lover. Had it really been so long since she had a man in her bed that the first one to come along who held her this close had only to murmur a few suggestive words in order to wreak havoc with her heart?

“I will never be amicable to anything you might offer,” she declared instead of giving voice to this sudden, forbidden attraction. ’Twas clear that her heart would betray her, but her mind remained her own, and she would not allow herself to be swayed into giving any quarter to this man.

“I have heard that one should never say never, dearest Annora,” he said in another purely sinful tone. When he reached up to brush a lock of her hair back, she swore her heart flipped end over end.

“I am not your dearest,” she snarled trying to catch her breath, “and you are not man enough to convince me to change my mind about the conclusions I have drawn as to your character.”

His smile broadened across his handsome features. “From the look of you, I believe you speak a falsehood, my lady. Why, if I did not know better, I would say from your heaving bosom and your attempts to breathe normally that you might even desire me just a little.”

“Desire you? You must be mad,” she lied trying to push against his chest again to no avail. “I can barely stand being in your presence, Grancourt.”

“You will be hard pressed to keep your distance given the proximity we will be forced into due to the size of this bedchamber. And while I may guard the door, a man can only stand the floor for so long before he longs for his own bed.”

“Then let me go and you may return to sleeping in your bed very much alone.”

A chuckle rumbled in his chest. “By Saint Michael’s wings, I somehow think I like the banter between us.”

“Banter? Do you find my captivity to be an appropriate matter to jest about? I would hate you for that alone, even if I did not hate you already.”

“There is a fine line between hate and love… or so I have heard since the emotion of loving someone has never consumed me. But let us prove this theory you have put forward that you are indifferent to me,” he said with a roguish grin.

“Do not dare—”

“Oh, but I think I must. You are too tempting not to taste those lips that are ripe for kissing.”

“Do not think I will permit you to kiss me,” she growled, but he seemed anything but deterred by her warning.

“I do so enjoy a challenge,” he said cutting off her words before she could make any reply as he leaned forward to slide his mouth slowly over the seam of her lips.

This simple act was so sensual that her knees immediately buckled beneath her, and Richard tightened his grip around her waist to keep her from falling. His mouth teased hers, waiting for her to open up to the possibilities he was offering, tempting her to give in to his exploring. She kept her lips tightly pressed together until she felt a gentle nibble of his teeth on her lower lip. ’Twas playful in a way that she had never experienced before, and she found herself unable to suppress her response. Her gasp gave him the freedom to plunge forward as his mouth took full possession of hers.

And possess her he did whilst every fiber of her being melted as though all the blood rushing through her veins were on fire. A moan escaped her caused the man holding her to clutch her even more tightly in his arms, pressing his body fully into hers whilst his tongue danced a rhythm with hers known to lovers throughout all time. His fingers tangled in her hair and the bun that Beatrix had coiffed came undone. The tawny length flowed down her back and was gripped in fists that tugged deliciously, even as Richard continued to assault her very senses. Annora was lost and she cared not that any words she had flung in Richard’s direction were now proven to be a complete lie. What was the point of spouting such falsehoods when he would know the truth of the matter the moment his lips left hers?

’Twas as though he read her thoughts for those startling blue eyes opened to stare upon her with what she thought was fascination. He appeared as though he was just as surprised as she was by her reaction to his kiss. His mouth lingered next to her own… their breath mingling together on a heartbeat. She could have sworn her very soul called out to his as if she had finally found her match for the passion she had always carried in her heart. This sensation was what she had once hoped to find with her husband—a feeling she had given up on finding at all. And yet here it was, with this man she had been determined to despise forever.

He pushed back some of her tresses and the palm of his hand cupped her cheek. “It appears, my dearest Annora, that you are not as indifferent to me as you might claim,” Richard whispered before he placed another quick kiss upon her swollen, sensitive lips.

He let her go and she almost stumbled without his support. She quickly recovered herself and went to right the chair that had been knocked over. There were no words she could say, not when her heart had yet to recover from the passionate intensity of his embrace. She felt as unsteady as if she stood aboard a ship sailing through storm-tossed seas, but she struggled not to show it. He must not know how deeply she was affected. Richard went to a table and picked up a book taking it over to the alcove where a comfortable cushion was placed so he could read by the window.

Relieved that his attention was no longer focused upon her, Annora all but fell into the chair near the hearth whilst her heart at last began to slow. As she stared at the knight who now appeared engrossed in his book, she could only wonder how she could make her escape before the urges of her body fully overpowered the reasoning of her mind. She could not afford to become infatuated with this man, or to crave his touch. Not when her son’s life depended on her returning to Stephen’s camp.

Annora knew if she did not leave soon, she would be in trouble. The longer she stayed, the more she might be tempted to let her guard down and this was something she could not afford. She had to keep this man from gaining any further influence over her. Her only concern should be her son, who needed her.

The hours ticked by. The day slowly progressed. Having nothing to do to occupy her mind, she could have sworn her heart was asking her with ever beat it took what if … what if … what if …