Arrow To The Heart (De Bron Saga) (21 page)

Tossing and turning upon the bed
, he was frustrated. What if the Prince's men came on the morrow to take Rowena away.  Maid Marion had been imprisoned with the excuse of being made a ward of John, why not Rowena as well?

"Rowena."  He glanced up at the rough ceiling and envis
ioned her face, and it was in that moment that he knew beyond a doubt that the feelings he held for her were real.  His pursing her, wanting her, asking for her hand in marriage hadn't been just a matter of male ego but a matter of deep affection.   He felt a warmth inside whenever her name came to mind.  Now his emotions were in turmoil as he realized he would be unable to protect her.  From the sound of her pacing in the chamber adjoining his, he thought perhaps she was thinking the very same thing.

Up and down.  Back and forth.

"Rowena."  He called her name louder.  "Rowena!"

Thinking perhaps that he was in pain she hurried through the door.  "Aye, de Bron.  What is it?" She was beside him in an instant.  "Do you hurt?  Are you chilled?"

He shook his head.  "No.  It's just that I heard you walking about and since I can not sleep either, I thought perhaps we might talk."

She looked at him skeptically. "Talk?"
Her gaze wandered over him, capturing the memory of his muscular strength nestling close in her arms, but she pushed such thoughts away.  This man had already caused her trouble and promised to cause her more if she gave him but half a chance. 

"Talk," he said softly, tho
ugh seeing her in that angel-white gown brought other ideas to mind.  Oh, to strip away the last vestiges of that loose-fitting garment and view what lay beneath. Lord, what a beauty she was.  “I do not think you are safe here.”

"Nor do I."  That was the reason for her inability to fall asleep.  The que
stion was what to do about it.  To fight Prince John's men single-handedly was stupid.  Flee then?  To go where?

"I think you should seek out the confines a nunnery.  The church will protect you."  It seemed a logical suggestion.

"A convent!"  Rowena nearly choked on her indignity.  Better to be in John's darkest dungeon than that. "Never.  I will not hide." 

Oh, but another idea was coming quickly to her mind.  Little John had asked her to join Robin Hood's band.  Why not?  Perhaps it was time to admit that she could not fight John alone.  The outlaws would be her allies. With them she ha
d hope of rescuing her father. Alone she did not.

"Besides, if I went scurrying to the sisters who would take care of you?  Who, de Bron?"  She had meant to tease him, taunt him, but as she leaned cl
oser her hand touched his leg. That touch was his undoing.  How erotic it would feel stroking him, he thought, shuddering with longing.

"BiGod!"  The hot ache of desire sparked within him. He found himself reaching out, taking her by the shoulders, drawing her down.

"Let me go!  Are you mad?"  She was unprepared for his embrace.

"Mad for you."  And he was. 

"Oh.....?"  She wanted to move away but something, the glitter of desire she read in his eyes perhaps, held her there.  She remembered the firm gentleness and pressure of his warm lips against her own and swallowed hard.             

"Shall I show you just how mad I am about you?"  The soft material of her gown tightened across her breasts
, making him fully aware of their tempting allure, but it was her mouth that fascinated him at the moment.  It looked so soft.  Her lips were moist, parted, inviting.

"No," she whispered, a futile protest.  She didn't pull away as they moved together into an embrace.  His mouth touched hers, coaxingly gentle at first
, then exhibiting  more pressure, forcing hers to open.   His tongue eased its way between her lips and teeth. 

Kendrick pulled her
down beside him, ignoring the pain that blazed in his shoulder.  Once a man so close to death, desire had given him sudden strength.  He was completely ruled by his emotions.  She was lovely, tempting and warm.  Since that first time he had kissed her he had wanted her.

"Mmmmm......."   Oh, but kissing him was so enjoyable.  Rowena clasped her arms around his neck as they lay side by side.  His body was completely bare, not even a loincloth covered him  yet instead of making her feel threatened it only heightened her own passion.  

"Rowena.  Lovely, lovely Rowena," he breathed.  His fingers parted the neck of her gown and he reached inside her bodice to feel the warmth of her, stroking and teasing the peaks of her breasts until she moaned low and whispered his name just as he had whispered hers.  She yielded to his hands as they searched out the secrets of her woman's body. 

Kendrick's hands pulled at the hem of her gown but when she might have protested he silenced her with another kiss.  Skin against skin, how would that feel? 
Curiosity got the best of her. "Take it off, de Bron," she invited, tickling his ear with her warm breath.

As he undressed her, Rowena was lost in the flush of sensations that swept over her.  She felt wanton, aware of her body as she had never been before.  If this was what it felt like to be a woman
, perhaps it really wasn't so bad.  So thinking, she answered him kiss for kiss, touch for touch.  Her eyes met his and held and it was as if some primitive emotion was driving them.

Kendrick savored the expressions that chased across her face, the wanting and passion so clearly revealed.  "Oh yes, you are
a woman all right," he murmured.  Slowly. Move slowly, he told himself.  He didn't want to hurry or break the spell.  He wanted to save all his strength for the right moment.  Rowena Fitz Hugh was so unpredictable that he could fully imagine her changing her mind and suddenly swearing at him.             

Rowena was totally immersed in her newfound passion, so much so that she didn't hear the sound at first
, but suddenly it invaded her senses blocking everything else out.  "Listen!" She sat up in bed so suddenly that she took de Bron with her.

"Rowena........"   Kendrick kissed the valley between her breasts with his tongue, the
n stiffened.  He heard it too. "Damn!"  The sound of splintering wood gave warning that someone was breaking the door down.

"We have to get out of here!  We'll saddle two horses and ride towards the safety of t
he forest."  We, she had said. Rowena clearly realized that she could not leave de Bron behind.  Not now. He was as marked as John's enemy as she, perhaps more so.  The memory of his attackers was still fresh in her mind.

"Ride?"  Making love was one thing, traveling another. "I can not." 

"You can and you will!"  Not wasting even a moment, Rowena had hurriedly leapt from the bed and was now gathering up the  necessary garments for de Bron as well as herself.  "You thought to ride me just then, don't deny it, and if you had energy for such a tumble then I will not listen to any arguments decrying your lack of strength."

"Rowena!  Be sensible."  He thought of her.   He would only slow her down.  "Go alone.  I will only be a burden."

She thought for just a moment.  "Aye, a burden you will be." A nuisance for more reasons than one.  What would he do if he learned that she was the forest archer?  "I should leave you, but strangely enough I can not."  She thrust a bundle of clothing at him.  "Get dressed, de Bron, and be quick about it."   The violent noises below punctuated her anxiety.  "Hurry."

Running stark naked to the adjoining room, she hurriedly retrieved her archer’s garments, donning them with trembling fingers.
Oh, but life had its odd twists and turns, she thought watching him dress and fumbling with her own clothes.  She had wanted to seek out Robin Hood alone, now it seemed she must reassess her plans.                

Tied to the saddle of his horse so that he would not fall off, Kendrick looked with anger at the saucy wench who rode beside him.  She was dressed in lad's attire--a tunic, hosen, and boots, similar to the garments he had seen the archer wear. Now beyond a doubt he knew her to be one and the same. The eyes gave her away, as did the way her shapely legs filled out her hosen. It was time for a confession.

As they rode, Kendrick kept his silence, waiting for Rowena to explain and ask his forgiveness. Alas, such an outpouring of guilt never came. Instead she acted as if riding beside him dressed as a lad was not something out of the ordinary. Thus there was tension between them.

So that is the game that she intends to play
.   Oh how she had made a fool of him, not once but several times.  It was galling.  Though he might have been amused had it been anyone else, though he might well have enjoyed such a prank, he was thoroughly annoyed. But he would not let her know. “Where are we?” is all he asked. She had led him deep into the woods. Though he had often hunted, he realized he had lost all sense of direction, at least for the moment.

“The forest to the north of my father’s manor,” Rowena answered. “Try to keep up with me if you can.”

Try to keep up.  Though he felt as dizzy as a fool and suffered a torturous agony where he had been wounded, Kendrick's pride dictated that he do just that, or die trying.  He urged his horse onward, feeling the wind brush his face.  He saw the trees speed by as he gave chase to the daring young woman.

They rode in silence through the thick foliage, Rowena glancing back at Kendrick de Bron from time to time.  She knew he must be hurting
, yet he somehow managed to stay just six horse's lengths behind her. Amazing.  Either he was stronger than she had imagined or more stubborn.

"Shall we rest, de Bron?"  she threw over her shoulder.

"Rest?"  The very word was endearing to him at the moment yet he shook his head.  "No, let us press on."

Rowena's gaze took in his hands, grasped so tightly to his reins, remembering how they had felt upon her skin.  She flamed with sudden desire at the memory.  All she said, however, was "press on.  So be it."  And press on they did, at a murderous pace, their journey guided by the moonlight.  All the while Kendrick de Bron did not utter even one word of complaint, or swoon in the saddle.

That did not mean he was not in agony, however.  He bit his lip to keep from crying out.  He would not let some chit of a girl witness any show of weakness.  He would not! 

"But I am only human......"  he groaned.  Then  just when he was about to admit defeat
, it was Rowena who declared they stop.  A welcome boon.

"It's going to rain.  We'll take cover here."

"Rain?"  Sliding from his horse, nearly falling on his face, Kendrick nearly stumbled but somehow managed to walk over to a log where he thrust his aching body.  He looked up at the sky.  It was so dark.  The moon had been covered by thick clouds.  A rumble in the heavens gave warning of a storm.  "Damn."  The thought of a thorough drenching was not a pleasant one. 

"At least we know the p
rince's men will be as miserable as we, if they are following," Rowena said as she likewise dismounted.  

Huddled together, using Kendrick's cloak as a tent beneath the trees
, both felt a rekindling of their earlier passion.  Rowena could feel the maleness of Kendrick's body through the thin, damp cloth of his garments.  She could smell the scent of him, of spices and sweat, a strangely pleasant and masculine odor.  She could hear the intake of his breath rustling in her ear.  It sent shivers up her spine. There was no need to deny that she had a strong attraction to this man.  Her senses flamed at his nearness.  Perhaps traveling with him was not such a good idea after all.  The hard patter of rain mingled with the beat of her heart. 

Rowena and Kendrick were soon soaked to the skin, shivering against a sudden burst of wind which howled around them.  Despite the storm
, he was determined not to complain, nor could he had he wanted to, for his teeth were chattering so violently that he was not even certain he could speak a coherent word. 

Rowena felt a sudden twinge of conscience. "De Bron, forgive me.   It was not my int
ent that you should grow ill." Her eyes mirrored her concern and for just a moment Kendrick suspected that her feelings ran much deeper than she knew.  "Here let me keep you warm." 

Gathering Kendrick's cloak tightly about them, Rowena tried futil
ely to warm him but the shaking of his limbs would just not cease. Each quiver, each tremor was noted by her, increasing her feeling of guilt.  How could she have forgotten the dangers of catching a chill?               

"Rowena..."  Drops of rain glistened on her thick lashes and brows and he reached out to wipe them away.  His finger moved over her cheek with a gentleness few such masculine men possessed.

Before she had time to think or to answer, his mouth was only inches from her own.  Now it was she who shivered. "De Bron...." Her voice was husky as his lips drew ever closer. 

"Rowena.  Sweet, sweet, Rowena...."  He was touching her, moving his hand slowly up her arm from el
bow to shoulder as he explored. Caressed. 

A flash of lightning crackled nearby, bringing Rowena instantly and disagreeably back to reality.  Instantly she stiffened.  What in damnation was she doing?  Hadn't she any self-control? 
Think, you fool. Think what you are doing
. With an indignant sniff she pulled away.