His lips were only inches from hers and his eyes were fired with a heat that set her own temperature rising and her heart beating madly against her chest. She had never laid eyes on a man as sinfully handsome as Cree. His looks alone could turn a woman’s thoughts wicked, not to mention the size and strength of him.
“Worry not,” he said his breath whispering across her lips. “Trust me and I will always protect you.”
Dawn shivered for she feared that if she trusted him, it would be like surrendering her soul to the devil.
She released his hand and shrugged.
“You still wonder how I could protect you being I’m locked away.”
She nodded.
Cree returned to tending her leg as he spoke. “I will give you information to give to Colum.”
Her brow rose with suspicion.
“You may not be able to talk but your expressions speak clearly.”
The thought that he could read her so easily disturbed her. It had taken Lila years to be able to read her expressions. How had he been able to do it so fast when he barely knew her?
“It is information that will satisfy him.”
But be no threat to Cree, she thought. That would appease Colum but how long before he found out the truth? What would happen to her then?
“That is all you presently need to concern yourself with,” he ordered. “Take what information I give you to Colum and you will suffer no more.”
Doubt surfaced on her face.
“Do not question your good luck,” Cree snapped and tossed the cloth into the bucket. Then he provided her with a tad of information, which she assumed was a lie but would probably appease Colum.
“Now rest. You have suffered enough this day,” he said.
Dawn wasn’t sure what to do. Never had she rested during the day. There was always work to be done whether in the kitchen for Flanna or in her own small cottage. Not that she would mind having a rest. She had barely slept last night and she was beginning to feel the pain of her wounds.
“Have you yet to learn that I don’t give orders twice?”
She yawned though no sound came with it and he stared at her oddly. Most people did when they realized that she never issued a single sound.
“Your body agrees with me,” he snapped annoyed and blew out the candles moving them aside. “Now lie down and rest.”
What else could she do? She stretched out on the blanket on her side and in no time was sound asleep.
Cree braced himself against the wall and stared at her. Little light was available, the skies outside having darkened and rain having begun to beat against the hut. He bent his knee resting his arm on it and continued to stare at her.
The more he stared the angrier he grew and he fought to contain it. It didn’t help that his eyes remained focused on her bruised cheek. His hand fisted when he thought of the pain she had endured when Colum had hit her not once but twice. He wished the man was standing in front of him right now, for he would squeeze the life out of him.
He dropped his head back against the wall and shut his eyes for a moment. It would do him no good to lose his temper now. He’d make Colum pay for what he did to Dawn, just not yet. But when the time came he would enjoy making the man suffer.
It did him no good to worry over Dawn or to place more importance on her than was necessary. She was a pawn like so many others and was to be used accordingly and yet...
He shook his head letting his glance linger on her once again. He couldn’t help but feel protective of her. When she had yawned and not a sound came from her mouth he realized, though could not comprehend, the prison that she lived in. He felt trapped in the confines of this shack, to be trapped in the confines of your own mind was incomprehensible. Perhaps that was why he felt the need to protect her. Though if he was honest with himself he would admit that for some unexplainable reason he was attracted to her. Even in his anger at her injures he found himself admiring her slender leg. She had height to her for a woman, though he still stood a head over her. And she was more shapely than thin and he liked that in a woman.
He grew hard with the thought of her and he cursed beneath his breath. He needed a woman that was the problem or so he tried to convince himself. He shook his head. He had more important matters to dwell on. He would see that she spent most of her time with him, and then shook his head.
That might not be a good idea. Having her in such close proximity and having an aching need for a woman could prove a problem. He wasn’t interested in coupling with her whether she had a body that enticed or not.
He let his eyes wander over the swell of her hip as she lay on her side and the way it curved to a slender waist and...
With a bolt he got to his feet and turned his back on Dawn. He shook his head and forced his thoughts elsewhere, anywhere but here. He heard her stir behind him and he turned to see that she had sat up.