“Say one more word about her, and I’ll kill you where you stand human.” James voice was thick and inhuman, and fear flooded the man’s face.
He backed up slowly. “I meant no disrespect.”
James grunted loudly. “I know exactly what you meant human. Scurry back to your friends, and finish your business with my father before I lose my patience completely.”
The man nodded and backed away until he disappeared behind the house. Bree waited a few moments, her heart thumping loudly, and then looked upwards at James. His eyes were back to their normal brown and he was staring down at her. She sagged against him and he turned her around, keeping one arm around her waist.
“Did he hurt you little one?”
“No. He grabbed my arm but it’s fine.” Bree whispered.
“Let me see.” James tugged on the bottom of her sweater, and she raised her arms so he could pull it over her head. She stood in front of him, shivering lightly in her thin sleeveless shirt.
James studied Bree. Four weeks with a steady supply of food had done her a world of good. Her previous thin frame had filled out, and her cheeks glowed with health. He had been careful to touch her as little as possible in the last month, and today was the first time he had allowed himself to touch her on purpose. Even as he had been talking with the stranger his hand was registering the new fullness of her hip, and he raised the hem of her shirt to the bottom of her breasts and examined her belly.
She blushed and pushed his hands away. She tugged her shirt down nervously as he smiled to himself. Her ribs were no longer visible, and her hip bones didn’t jut out nearly as much as before. His eyes dropped to her breasts. They were still small, not more than a handful really, and he could see the outline of her nipples against her shirt as they hardened in the cold air.
A thread of lust went through him and he tamped it down. Skinny little Bree had gotten into his head in a way that no other woman ever had. The last four weeks his mind had constantly returned to the morning in the common room when she had kissed him. Her mouth had been so soft, and the way she had timidly kissed him had set his body on fire.
Each riding lesson he gave her was a lesson in torture for him. He had to force himself to touch her as little as possible. She was more comfortable around him then she used to be, although he would freely admit that had more to do with his mother than him, but he was afraid of doing anything that would frighten her again.
She had wanted him that morning in the common room. It had been obvious in the way she had kissed him and in the way she had responded to his touch, but the look of fear that had crossed her face when he spoke of joining her in his bed had been heartbreakingly real.
He frowned as his gaze fell on her arm. There was a red mark in the shape of the man’s fingers, and fresh anger filled his body.
He thought briefly of killing the man for touching her, but Bree’s face was tightening and she gave him a worried look. “My lord, have I done something wrong?”
He took a deep breath. “No Bree, of course you haven’t.” His fingers traced the red mark on her arm. “This will be a bruise by tomorrow.”
She glanced at her arm dismissively. “It’s fine.”
“Close your eyes.”
She gave him a nervous look but did what he asked. He leaned down and pressed his mouth against the red marks on her arm. She inhaled sharply, trembling against him as he placed a series of small, light kisses against her arm.
“James.” She moaned softly.
“Yes Bree?” His other hand slid up her back to cup her neck under her mass of blonde hair.
“What – what are you doing?”
“Healing you.” He whispered.
She moaned again as he let his mouth drift up her arm to her shoulder. He kissed the top of it, and then pressed his lips against her flesh where her neck became her shoulder. He knew he should stop. He had told himself he wouldn’t touch her this way again, but his mouth seemed to have a mind of his own.
He pulled gently on the back of her neck and she tipped her head to the side, giving him access to her throat. Her eyes were still closed and she was panting harshly as he traced her skin with his tongue.
She gripped his arms with her small hands and stepped closer to him. He kissed the curve of her jaw and then nuzzled his way to her ear. His tongue dipped into it and she shuddered, breathing his name lightly as he kissed her cheekbone and the tip of her nose.
She tilted her head up, her lips parting invitingly, and he groaned and dropped his mouth to hers. She parted her lips eagerly and he thrust his tongue deep into her mouth. Her soft moans were driving him crazy and he cupped her breast in his hand. Her nipple was hard against his palm and he pressed his pelvis experimentally against her. His cock was hard and throbbing, and he felt her tense as it brushed her stomach.