Briar Rose (34 page)

Neither she nor Joshua spoke until the guards were gone, just staring at each other as if they’d been apart for years.

‘Please tell me no one hurt you,’ he said, his face drawn and haggard. ‘I’ve been going mad here, thinking that—’

‘I’m good. You?’ she asked.

‘I’m OK. What about Ruric?’

‘They caught him too. It was the princess who sold us out.’

‘That doesn’t surprise me.’

Would Joshua remember that he’d almost touched her, or would he avoid her now? She had to find out. ‘When we were caught, you tried to touch me. Why would you do that?’

‘I was afraid they’d hurt you,’ he admitted. ‘I thought I would never see you again.’

That had come out so easily.
Has he had a change of heart?

Joshua made her think that was the case when he took a step towards her, his body trembling with emotion.

‘If you could have anything you wanted, what would it be?’ he asked.

She spread her hands. ‘To get out of here.’

‘Besides that. Let’s say you’re home and the curse is history. What would you want the most, Briar?’

To touch you again.

When she didn’t reply, he sobered. ‘I know what I’d want.’ Another step closer. ‘I want to hold your hand, touch your face, your hair.’

Briar retreated out of instinct: the cell bars pressed into her back now. ‘I don’t want you hurt,’ she said. ‘I don’t want you to . . . die because of
me.’

‘I’m so tired of living our parents’ fears. If the curse comes back to me, then that’s what happens. I wouldn’t want it any other way.’ A half-step put Joshua
so close she could see deep into his eyes. He was breathing faster now.

‘When they took you away, I knew one thing – I don’t want to go to my grave never having touched you again.’

Her breath caught. ‘You’d risk your whole life for that?’

‘Yes.’

She didn’t know how to respond.

‘We used to play together all the time, before our families made us enemies. Do you remember those days, Briar?’

Briar did remember the two of them growing up together. The long summers filled with abundant laughter. It had always been her and Joshua, until it wasn’t any more.

‘Do you have any idea how much you mean to me? How hard it’s been to stay away from you all these years?’ he asked, his voice quavering now.

She hadn’t, not until this moment. A single tear broke loose and tracked down her cheek.

As if drawn to it, he raised his hand.

‘No!’ she said, flattening against the bars. ‘We can’t.’

‘We can. We must,’ he said simply. ‘It’s the only way for us to regain what we lost in the river.’

Trembling, Briar closed her eyes as his fingers delicately traced the track of the tear. His fingers moved down her cheek, in no rush, as if he were savouring the journey. They curved round her
cheek and settled against her neck, his warmth filling her. His other hand sought hers and took hold of it. This time she made no move to pull away.

‘See, that wasn’t so bad,’ he whispered near her ear. ‘What were we afraid of?’

‘You dying,’ she whispered back.

‘We’re not dead yet.’

‘But—’

‘Only
now
matters.’

Deep inside she felt something uncurl within her. Briar gasped, fearing it was the curse taking root, but this felt different than that dark night in the river. This was all heat and light, with
a sweetness that recalled a spring breeze. It wove through her like a song, erasing the emptiness, leaving peace in its wake.

‘It’s . . . good?’ he asked.

She nodded. ‘It doesn’t feel like the last time.’

‘Want to really push our luck?’

His playful tone caused her eyes to flutter open. ‘How?’

‘Like this,’ he said, and then his lips were on hers.

It was a faint touch, as if he wasn’t sure how it should be done. Then it grew and began to take on a life of its own. It was as if Joshua was the only one who knew how to kiss her the way
she really wanted.

When it ended, he looked deep into her eyes, judging her reaction. ‘Why did we wait so long?’ he said.

Because neither of them had had the courage to tempt fate.

He pulled away from her, gazing at her as if she were the most beautiful girl in the world. It made her self-conscious.

‘Oh man, I’m a mess. I mean . . . why couldn’t this have happened at the party when I looked good?’

‘Because you were too busy flirting with Daniels?’ Joshua teased, but she could hear the resentment. ‘Seriously, you look OK.’

‘No, I smell and I’m wearing someone else’s clothes that don’t even fit.’ Then she remembered the princess’s jab. ‘I’m not plump, am I?’

‘No,’ he said, laughing. ‘You’re perfect.’ A deep sigh escaped him. ‘Unfortunately, we’re still here, so that means you’re still
cursed.’

‘I noticed that. At least I’m trapped with a really cool guy.’

He seemed to appreciate that. ‘Come on, sit over here. It’s less chilly and the floor isn’t as gross.’

Briar joined him. The stones were cold under her butt so she wrapped the cloak tight. He put his arms round her and she laid her head on his shoulder. It seemed so natural, as if they’d
done it for years.

‘What happened with the regent? Do you want to talk about it?’

It was time he knew it all, so Briar told him of what she’d learned, and why the situation was more dangerous than they suspected.

‘Man-eating drazaks?’ Joshua said, both eyebrows rising.

‘Yeah, those. She was way ugly, like something out of a horror movie. I’m going to have nightmares forever.’

‘You already do,’ he replied.

‘It’s my fault Aurora ratted us out,’ she admitted. ‘I really got in her face. I shouldn’t have done that.’

‘Yeah, well, Ruric didn’t help with his
When we wed
line.’

‘He’s a fairy-tale prince. That’s what they do.’ She looked up. ‘I’m really worried about him.’

‘He’ll be OK. He seems like a survivor.’

‘Are we?’

He placed a quick kiss on her forehead. ‘We better be. When we go home, we’re going to have a talk with the folks, both sets. It’s not going to be pretty.’

‘Mom will have kittens when she finds out we touched. Yours too.’

‘You know, I like kittens,’ Joshua said, grinning. ‘Our barn cat just had a litter. They’re really cute, even though they’re still blind.’

He’s trying to make me feel better.
That earned Joshua a lot of points.

Briar wiped a line of dried blood off his cheek.

‘Ouch,’ he said, but she could tell it hadn’t hurt him.

‘Big baby,’ she replied.

He chuckled. ‘You know, I used to talk to Arabella about you. Crazy, huh? Chattering away at a horse about a girl you liked but couldn’t get anywhere near. And now . . .’

Now they had a few hours together. Briar hoped it would be enough.

Joshua selected a strand of her hair and studied it with a curious expression. ‘Does it just curl like that on its own?’

‘Yeah. I hate it.’

‘Why? It’s so pretty, all those waves.’

She frowned up at him. ‘You should try brushing it sometime. It’s a pain.’

‘At least you don’t get burrs in it like Arabella.’

She chuckled. ‘You miss her, don’t you?’ He nodded sadly. ‘I miss my peeps too. My parents, even my cat. I always liked snuggling with Dragonfly on rainy days. I’d
read fairy tales to her. She’s really into “Puss in Boots”.’

Joshua snorted. ‘Go figure.’

‘When we get home . . .’ she began. ‘What if the curse moves back to you then and—’

‘We’ll worry about that later,’ he cut in. ‘Right now, we’re together. That’s what counts.’

He tipped her chin up to kiss her again. It wasn’t rushed and it made Briar wish they were home, near the lake, just him and her.

They jolted apart at the sound of voices and footsteps that came from the stone stairs that led up into the castle. The jailer appeared first, then two guards dragging Ruric who hung limply
between them.

‘What did you do to him?’ Briar demanded, struggling to her feet.

Her question was answered as they hauled the prince past their cell. His back was branded with angry red stripes, and blood oozed through his torn shirt.

Ohmigod.
‘Put him in here with us. Please?’

For a time it looked as if the jailer wasn’t going to be that helpful, but finally he shrugged and Ruric was dumped in the centre of the cell.

‘Let’s get him back near the wall. We don’t want him lying on this filthy floor,’ Joshua said.

It took a lot of pulling and tugging to position Ruric where they wanted him; he seemed all solid muscle. As they did, he kept shivering and issued the occasional moan.

‘Oh man, his shirt is stuck to his skin,’ Joshua said. ‘We’ll have to soak it off or it’ll hurt like hell.’ He returned with the bucket of water, which
didn’t look that clean.

With considerable effort, Briar ripped off a fist-size section of her dress and dipped the cloth in the cold water. ‘This is going to hurt. Sorry.’

Ruric gave a faint nod, and when she placed the wet rag on his back, he stiffened. A faint oath sailed through the air, then an apology.

‘I’d be saying worse than that if it was me,’ Joshua said.

Slowly Briar soaked the shirt until it could be removed. With his flesh exposed, Ruric began to shiver harder now. She carefully cleaned each of the welts and the slices, and found herself
counting them, anger growing with each mark.

‘I told them nothing. I would not give up my friends,’ he said. A deep cough. ‘This was solely the regent’s doing.’ Because in his mind Aurora couldn’t be
capable of such an act.

‘Was the princess there?’

‘Not as they whipped me. She came afterwards. She was . . . upset.’

But not upset enough to help you.

‘Here, he’ll need this,’ Joshua said, stripping off his jerkin and then his shirt. She couldn’t help but note the bruises on his chest, and yet he’d never
complained of being hurt.

They replaced Ruric’s ruined shirt with Joshua’s, but there was no way to keep the open wounds from clinging to the fabric.

‘Thank you,’ he said, and lay on his side with a groan.

‘Just returning the favour, cousin,’ she murmured.

Worried that he would only grow more ill, Briar removed her cloak and tucked it around him, hoping it would be enough. A faint nod came her way and then Ruric’s eyes closed.

Joshua shifted around the prone man and took a seat next to her. After pulling on the leather jerkin, his cloak went over her shoulders and he tucked her close to his chest. His nearly
unclothed
chest.

Which was when she really noticed that he had muscles, probably from working at the stables. They weren’t as defined as Pat’s, but they were definitely there.

‘That OK?’ he asked.

‘Just fine,’ she said.
Great, even.

‘Why do you call him “cousin”?’

‘So no one would think it odd I just showed up out of nowhere.’

‘Hmm . . .’

‘We’re in big trouble. The villagers won’t go to war if the princess is supporting the regent, even if she is half drazak.’

‘True, but the regent has ruled this kingdom for a long time, so she’s used to being in charge. She won’t stop issuing orders and prissy princess won’t like that. If the
regent goes too far, Aurora might rebel.’

‘Hopefully before we’re all dead,’ Briar muttered.

‘That’s the one flaw in my plan.’

She laid her head on his shoulder and focused on his soft breathing. He didn’t seem to be panicking, not like she wanted to.

‘I wonder where the others are. If they’re still alive.’

‘I’m sure they’re fine,’ Joshua soothed. ‘Probably trying to figure out how to rescue us. Pat would love that part. Then he could play the hero.’

‘I wouldn’t mind that.’

‘Just as long as he doesn’t try to kiss you, it’s all good.’

Briar grinned as her eyes slipped closed. She tried to believe she was in her own bed, but that proved difficult with her guy holding her. Or maybe they were in the bed together and . . .

Where did that come from?

Joshua shifted a bit, making her wonder if he was having similar thoughts.

‘I remember when you were in kindergarten,’ he said, his voice barely above a whisper so as not to disturb their companion. ‘I loved your long braids. Your mom used different
coloured ribbons for each day of the week. Red for Monday, green for Tuesday, and so on. I loved Fridays – you wore blue ribbons then. I really liked those.’

‘How do you remember all that?’ She sure didn’t.

‘Just do. That’s how I found you in the river. I looked for the ribbons.’

She’d always wondered about that.

‘Why didn’t you let go of my hand in the water?’ he asked, turning towards her now.

‘I didn’t want to lose you. You were my friend.’

‘And now?’

What was he now? ‘You’re more than that.’

Joshua’s hand slid further along her back and his fingers found the open place where the dress didn’t meet. They felt warm and comforting against her bare skin. Emboldened, he kissed
her.

Briar returned it eagerly and then settled back in his arms.

He risked his life to touch me.

When Briar awoke near dawn, Joshua still had his arms around her, as if he refused to let her go. Ruric hadn’t moved all night and was snoring lightly. From the window
above them came the thump of boots as guards marched to and fro. It was the day they were supposed to die.

The curse was winning. It had divided them, wounded their champion, and put them on the fast track to the grave.

No, not yet.

Her life rested on her shoulders, not those of some prince or errant hero.

I will own this curse. I will break it.

If not, Briar would lose too many people that she cared about, like the boy next to her. The boy who’d had the courage to touch her and tell her how much he cared for her.

As if he knew she was thinking of her, Joshua muttered in his sleep. She had never really understood what went on inside that mind of his. For so many years she’d thought he hated her
because he’d almost died and that’s why her mom wouldn’t let her talk to him. Later, she came to realize the problem was less about them and more about their families. Now she
knew it was the curse that kept derailing their lives.