Pathfinder's Way(75)

Basically, Shea was to be at Fallon's beck and call. She was so good at  taking orders, too. She'd be dead in a week. If Fallon didn't kill her,  the other guards just might.

Maybe she was being too pessimistic. She thought she'd been making  progress in her people skills with Eamon. If she kept those in mind, she  might survive. Maybe. She just needed to keep her mouth closed and not  insult anyone.

She was already wearing the same uniform she'd seen the other guard's  wear. By the feel of the clothes in her arms, she figured she'd been  given three spares. That was better than what she'd had as a scout.

She hoped whatever had possessed her last night was well and truly gone  because from now on she was treating Fallon as an enemy captor. Someone  she had to show respect if she wanted to live, but not someone you  shared your body with.

"You'd better get to work now," Trenton said. "He'll be expecting breakfast shortly."

"Uh, right."

She stored her gear and grabbed a warm biscuit from one of the cooks.  Shea tugged at her uniform one last time as she stared at the entrance  to Fallon's quarters. She ignored the examining look the guard was  giving her.

She could do this. She could. She'd just go in there, figure out what  Fallon wanted to eat and get it for him. This was nothing. It would be  like every other morning for the past few weeks.

"Food won't serve itself."

Shea looked sharply at the guard. He stared back in challenge.

"A word of friendly advice, the warlord doesn't like to be kept waiting."

"I'll keep that in mind."

He scoffed. "Don't just keep it in mind. When he's in a mood, everybody  suffers. We don't need to suffer because you can't do your job."

His tone wasn't hostile. At least not totally. It was more that he was  giving it to her straight, with no regard to feelings or dancing around  the issue.

It had the welcome effect of quelling some of Shea's nerves. His way of talking was something Shea was familiar with.

"I understand."

"If you understood, you'd quit flapping your gums and get your ass inside to attend to your warlord."

Shea sighed inwardly. Yup. This was familiar.

She kept what she might've said to herself and walked into the tent.

It appeared empty at first glance. The table had an assortment of food,  enough to feed Shea's entire squad for days. Warm biscuits, sweet  pastries, wild berries, thinly cut ham and several types of cheeses gave  off a tantalizing aroma that set Shea's mouth to watering. That biscuit  she had gobbled down was a faint memory in the face of this feast.

The one thing missing was Fallon. Shea moved further into the room, not  seeing him anywhere. He couldn't still be at last night's campsite.  Though dawn was barely gone, Fallon didn't strike Shea as the type to  sleep in.

The guard had indicated he was here as well.

Slowly, her eyes were drawn to the partition that hid his sleeping quarters.

She rolled her eyes up at the ceiling, questioning her luck.  Procrastinating wouldn't help and would only delay the inevitable. Might  as well get it over with.

Shea moved closer to the partition and called out softly, "Fallon?"

She tilted her head slightly, listening for an answer. All she heard was the faint splash of water.

Louder, she called, "Fallon?"

"I'm back here."

Shea glared at the partition. Of course he was. She didn't want to go  back there. For her continued peace of mind, not to mention her new vow  to treat him as an enemy and not a man she found attractive, she wanted  to stay on this side of the partition.         

     



 

"Did you need anything?" She cringed as the words left her mouth. Just what he needed, a perfect opening.

"A plate of food."

Thankful for the temporary reprieve, Shea busied herself selecting a few  pieces of the meat, two biscuits and a handful of the berries. Once the  plate was complete, she faced the same prospect as earlier.

Holding the plate of food, she hesitated at the entrance to Fallon's  sleeping chamber. "Are you sure you don't want to eat at the table?"

"Get in here already," came the forceful reply.

Shea grimaced at the slight edge to his voice even while she stepped  past the partition. Her eyes were drawn immediately to where Fallon  reclined in the water. His head was propped back on a folded towel and  both arms were resting on either side of the bath.

She stopped several feet from him and held up the plate of food. "I didn't know what you wanted, so I just guessed."

Her eyes kept wanting to stray to where the water distorted the view of  his hard body. Even distracted as she was, she braced for the  interrogation she knew was coming. She'd already thought up a dozen  excuses as to why she left his arms before dawn. She had no doubt he  would think their previous intimacy was a reason to continue in the same  vein.

"Bring it here. You'll have to feed it to me. As you can see, my hands  are a bit wet." He lifted his hands out of the water as if to prove his  words true.

The slight smile and the challenge in his eyes dared her to argue.

Shea fought back a growl. She'd be damned if she'd react the way he  expected her to. If he thought she was too shy to function around a  naked man, he was wrong. She'd beat him at his game and show him his  body held no appeal.

Her chin jutted bullishly, she stepped forward and knelt. Water soaked into the knees of her pants.

"What would you like to start with?" Shea asked.

"The meat."

Shea picked up a strip of the ham and held it out to him. He jerked his head back.

"Bite size pieces. I don't want any of it dropping into my water."

Her promise to herself that she would keep her patience and her mouth  shut already seemed impossible. Quickly, she tore the meat into smaller  pieces and then shoved a piece toward Fallon's face. Anything to get  this experience over faster. He caught her wrist before she could knock  him in the face and then held it as he slowly pulled the meat from her  fingers, swiping them with his tongue to clean off any of the juices.

Shea felt an answering tug deep inside as tingles raced outwards from  the skin he'd licked. Not allowing herself to dwell on the feeling, she  tugged her hand free making a point of wiping her fingers on her sleeve  before picking up the next piece.

He smiled at her, not offended at her actions.

"Tell me, what duties have you been given?" Fallon asked.

Shea repeated what she had been told that morning, finishing by saying,  "So basically, I'm supposed to stick by your side to fulfill whatever  needs you may have."

As soon as the last words left her mouth, she wanted to pull them back.  The wicked glint in his eyes told her all she needed to know about what  he was thinking.

Instead of clarifying what she had said, knowing that would only make  things worse, she pinched off a chunk of biscuit and shoved it into his  mouth.

Once he swallowed, he informed her wryly, "I think that's enough food for now."

Shea nodded, glad this particular torture was over and stood.

"If you could grab the towel for me."

Shea stiffened and forced herself to set the plate gently on a stool  before making her way over to the bed to grab the carefully folded  towel. The towel was plush and soft under her fingers and smelled clean  and fresh.

Even caught up with the urge to rub her face back and forth against its  softness, she heard the slosh of water as Fallon stood. Once again she  turned her eyes to the ceiling as her hands tightened on the towel in a  death grip. Why, oh why.

Her willpower could only take so much.

"I'd like the towel while there is still something to dry off."

He was just a man and if his previous actions were to go by, he wasn't  going to jump on top of her to have his wicked way. No, he was going to  seduce her and given her heightened awareness of him, that wouldn't be  too hard.

He was just a man, Shea told herself. She'd seen plenty of naked ones  during her time as both a pathfinder and a scout. He had the same  equipment. It was just arranged a little nicer than most.

This body, unlike those she'd seen on the trail, belonged to Fallon. She had intimate knowledge of its attributes.

Not letting her thoughts progress any further down that path, Shea  turned. Her face burned as she glared in the vicinity of his face. She  crossed the few steps she needed and tossed the towel towards him.         

     



 

He caught it one handed and wrapped it around his waist as he stepped out of the bath.

"Will that be all?" Shea asked, clinging to her dignity.

"For now, but don't leave the tent. I will have need of you soon."

Shea sketched a half bow as she'd seen others in his guard do and retreated to the other side of the partition.

Shea fidgeted as she waited for Fallon to finish dressing. She walked from one end of the chamber to the other.

She had finished one circuit when a man ducked past the tent flap from outside.

"Witt." Shea still couldn't quite believe it.

Her eyes went past him, remembering that Paul had been with him last time, but he was alone.