Chapter Six
The next day, Gwendolyn strolled into the queen’s private chambers with a note in hand. Her gaze darted to Elizabeth so she felt quite sure the summons was for her. After reading the note, the queen looked up. Besides the queen’s swollen belly, her arms and face were gaunt. She was a fragile but kind woman, and Elizabeth knew she truly loved the king.
The queen focused her attention on Elizabeth. “Edward commands you meet him in the garden. He wishes to speak with you.”
Elizabeth’s stomach knotted, but she managed to say, “Of course.” She’d not expected to be summoned by her godfather. She had thought her own father would be communicating the king’s commands to her. She rose and passed the queen, and the other ladies in waiting, catching the gaze of Grace, a particularly nosy lady, intently on her. Elizabeth clenched her teeth and started out the door, and as she did, Gwendolyn fell into step beside her. Elizabeth frowned. It was not that she did not like Gwendolyn, truly—she barely knew the woman.
“I thought ye might wish company on yer walk,” the woman said, settling her green gaze rather probingly on Elizabeth.
“How kind of you,” Elizabeth murmured, suspicious. It seemed everyone in this court had ulterior motives.
“I noticed ye dancing with Lord Carrick last night,” Gwendolyn said, her tone discernibly inquiring.
“Do you mean Lord Bruce?” Elizabeth asked, purposely obtuse.
Gwendolyn paused at the top of the stairs with her hand on the railing. She offered a knowing smile. “Have ye nae heard about his negotiations with the king this morning?”
Elizabeth frowned. “No, I have been in the queen’s chambers all morning.”
“It’s all the news, and my cousin Simon, who as ye ken is an advisor to the king, told me that Bruce negotiated the return of all his estates! So last night ye danced with a pauper, but today, dear Elizabeth”—Elizabeth startled as Gwendolyn grabbed her arm and entwined it with her own with a giggle—“ye may rejoice kenning ye have caught the eye of a wealthy lord!”
The news was like a boulder in Elizabeth’s stomach. If Robert did not care for the wealth and was simply here to aid his people, why then did he negotiate the return of his titles? Had he simply lied to her, and he was truly here for greed? She disentangled her arm from Gwendolyn and pressed her fingertips to her suddenly throbbing head.
Gwendolyn frowned at her. “Ye do nae look at all happy, Elizabeth. Are ye nae thrilled that Bruce is rich beyond measure once more? Mayhap ye will become his wife!”
Elizabeth flinched at Gwendolyn’s words. “I hardly know him,” she said, forming the response with cold lips. “If you will excuse me.”
She did not wait for a reply. She turned away and rushed down the stairs, nearly tripping in her haste to get away from Gwendolyn. Elizabeth rounded the corner from the stairs to the corridor that led to the garden and came to a shuddering halt. God’s teeth! She leaned against the cool wall, her mind spinning. A draft blew in from the open door at the end of the corridor, and she could see a slash of blue sky from where she stood. A hawk soared past, and she swallowed hard. She would never be free like that hawk. The thought filled her with complete desperation. Her father and the king controlled her now, and they would wed her to Robert if it suited them, and she did not truly know what sort of man he was. Was Gwendolyn right about his intentions or had Robert been telling her the truth?
She bit her lip, struggling to bring herself under control. Was he honorable or not? She stared down at her hands, which she had twined together. Would it be better if he was or wasn’t? If he was honorable and she told him all about Lillianna and he could not aid her, she would have to betray him by telling any secrets she had learned to save her cousin. And if he was not honorable, she would quite possibly end up wed to a man she despised.
“Lady Elizabeth?”
She blinked and was surprised to find Simon Fraser almost directly in front of her. She had not even heard his approach.
His green eyes, very much the shape and shade of his cousin Gwendolyn’s, stared at her with concern. “I’m sorry if I surprised ye. The king sent me to find ye. He grows impatient for yer presence.”
“Yes.” Elizabeth straightened herself and smoothed a hand over her hair and gown.
“Beg yer pardon, my lady, but ye seem fashed,” Fraser said, his voice seemingly caring and his eyes kind.
Her immediate instinct was that he was a good man, yet she thought bitterly of how she had misjudged the king, her father, and perhaps even Robert. “No.” She forced a smile that felt as if it would crack her face.
He eyed her with blatant skepticism. “Did my cousin whisper gossip to ye?”
His tone was probing and set a warning bell off in Elizabeth’s mind. She felt as if she were dancing on the edge of a cliff and one wrong move would send her falling over the edge. “If by gossip you mean news that Lord Bruce is once more to be Lord Carrick, then yes,” she said, seeing no reason to hide what his cousin had said and preferring the truth to more lies, which only complicated things further.
“And that upsets ye?” he asked, his gaze intense.
She thought of the conversation she had overheard between her father and Fraser, and she was certain the man was a turncoat to the Scottish cause and privy to her father’s plans for her. Was her father testing her in this moment? Testing to confirm she was pursuing Robert as directed? She thought of Lillianna and the threat of ravishment against her. The sooner she got her out of the dungeon, the better. “Of course not,” she lied, praying her voice did not betray her. “I’d much rather seduce a lord than a pauper.”
“A wise lady,” he replied, his voice smooth. He bowed. Then, to her surprise, he came up and stepped to the side so she could pass. “Ye do nae want to keep the king waiting.”
“No, of course not,” she said automatically and moved past Fraser, out the door, and into the garden. Her heart raced as she walked toward the king, whom she could already see in the distance. He rose from his seat as he motioned to her with a smile that appeared kind. But she knew the cruelness disguised by his upturned lips.
She laced her hands in front of her so she would not fidget, and she curtsied as she came before her godfather, her enemy. A lump lodged in her throat and she had to clear it. “Your Majesty, I’m told you wished to see me.”
“Yes,” King Edward replied, taking her by surprise by linking arms with her. As the king strolled with her, arm now tucked neatly in his, she discreetly turned her focus to the parapets surrounding the garden. To the north, standing in full view of her, was Robert with his man Angus by his side. She could not see his face from here, but she was certain the king had planned for Robert to observe her walking with her godfather. She did not know why, though she did not doubt she was to be told.
“You disappoint me, Elizabeth,” the king said casually, as if he were commenting on the weather. Yet as his snappy gaze came to her, she knew there was nothing nonchalant in his words.
Her stomach tightened. “I’m sorry, Your Majesty. How do I disappoint you?”
“I had thought you would be able to twine Bruce around your finger in one night, but it seems you are not as charming as I believed. Or perhaps it is that you do not care if your cousin lives or dies.”
Elizabeth sucked in a sharp breath. “I care very much,” she whispered, as the king strolled her down the path and turned to take her back the other way. She once again caught a glimpse of Robert and Angus. They stood in the same spot as before, but Gwendolyn was there now, laughing with Angus and clearly flirting. Robert’s attention seemed to lock on Elizabeth.
“Then you need to make progress with Bruce and bring your father a secret to prove that you are doing so, or I’ll be forced to allow the dungeon guard to have his way with your cousin. She is of no worth to me, especially as she does not have the powers of a seer as her mother once held, except, of course, I may use her to bend you to my will. Let us hope you don’t force me to break her.” Edward arched his eyebrows high. “Do you understand?”
Her heart hammered in her chest. She could not even make herself nod or stop her shudder of revulsion.
“Elizabeth?” he said sharply.
“Yes,” she forced out. “I understand.”
“Excellent.” He paused then and patted her hand. He looked down at her with a smile that almost made him appear fond of her.
“Bruce is clever,” he said, gazing suddenly up at Robert who now stood alone with Angus.
“How so, Your Majesty?” she asked, knowing that was what was expected of her, though hoping to glean some insight into Robert’s true character.
Edward studied her. “I offered him all his properties returned, as well as you as a bride if he bends the knee to me.”
“And he did not agree?” she asked, unable to quash the flutter of foolish hope in her chest.
“Apparently, he also is entertaining marrying the king of France’s goddaughter, Lady Eleanor. I cannot have that,” the king said with a scowl.
“Of course not,” she murmured, her thoughts racing. Was this a ruse on Robert’s part to buy himself time to plot against the king? Had Robert lied to her when he said he was truly there to pay homage for his people because he did not trust her? Or was greed his motivator? Or what’s more, was he simply trying to get the most coin in his pockets to aid his people?
She was unsure, and she needed to be certain before she dared to confide in him and beg his assistance. “Time is of the essence,” the king said. “If Bruce makes a match with Lady Eleanor, then he will gain a possible ally in the king of France. I cannot allow Bruce to gain any allies. So, my dear, I am presenting you the perfect opportunity to begin your seduction. You will join us this afternoon on a mounted hunt, so go prepare yourself.”
“A mounted hunt?” she repeated, eyes wide. She had loved to hunt when she was younger and had been quite good, but her father had expressly forbidden it after her disobedience in Scotland. It was one of the freedoms she had enjoyed that she knew other women did not, and he had stripped it away from her.
“Yes,” the king said, squinting at her ever so slightly. “You will be partnered with Bruce, which will give you time alone. The rest is upon your head. Do not fail me.”
It was Lillianna she could not fail. Elizabeth took a deep breath. “I’ll not, Your Majesty.”
The king waved her away, and she took her leave, turning and intending to flee. But coming down the path toward her was Robert. Despite all her misgivings about him, her breath caught at the sight he presented. His dark hair glistened in the sunlight, and his eyes shone with a sensuous flame that sent heat spiraling through her body. A predatory smile turned up the corner of his full lips when he stopped in front of her. He bowed low and then surprised her by taking her hand and pressing a kiss to the top of it.
His gaze raked boldly over her. “The green of yer gown reminds me of the bonny, lush hills of Scotland,” he said. “I have always loved to lie in that soft grass, close my eyes, and feel the heat of the sun upon my face.”
She didn’t know if it was the contact of his lips to her skin, the way his eyes seemed to convey the promise of sinful pleasure, or the deep velvet rumble of his voice and the words he had used, but intense attraction flared through her that she could neither stop nor deny. Behind her, the king cleared his throat, making her jerk at the reminder that he was there.
“Bruce, my boy!” the king thundered.
For a fraction of a breath, intense disgust swept across Robert’s face and his eyes seemed glacial with hatred. She sucked in a sharp breath, and then fear that the king might see what she had flowed through her. But when Robert looked past her toward the king, a mask had descended. He appeared wary, yet glad to see King Edward, and he appeared strained with tension in a way he had not seconds ago. Robert was a master at disguising his true feelings, she realized. It stood to reason that he was doing the same with her.
He was playing a game, and he was presenting different fronts. Which Robert was the real one? She had to discover the truth. Her cousin’s life, and possibly the fate of the Scottish rebellion, depended on it.
“Ye’re certain this is a wise plan?” Angus whispered from where he stood beside Robert.
“Nay,” Robert growled low under his breath as he watched King Edward, de Burgh, Elizabeth, and four of the king’s guards approach on horseback. “But I do nae have a better one.” He could feel the press of the paper that Gwendolyn had given him in his hand as if it were still there. The note had been from Fraser, telling Robert to meet him, and when he did, Fraser had told him of his encounter with Elizabeth before she had met with the king.
Robert studied her across the distance. Many nobles were gathered for the open-air meal before the hunters departed, tables cluttered the landscape, and a multitude of servants scampered about with platters laden with food, wine, and mead, but it seemed as though they were the only two present. In the green silk she wore, she truly did remind him of the rolling hills of his home, though his lands were now scorched. Edward could no longer use so much as a blade of grass to aid him in his campaigns against Scotland.
Elizabeth’s beauty set an ache in his chest and his body. She had openly admitted that she was trying to seduce him, and it seemed that the only way to learn exactly why was for him to seduce her. A dangerous and all too pleasing plan. His body strummed with yearning just glancing at her from afar. The party was almost upon them, and Robert was to sit to dine near the dais.
“Dunnae forget,” Angus said in near a whisper, “to think with yer brain. Dunnae let lust trip yer careful words or steps.”
Angus was right. Robert had to stay focused. He had no doubt she had been ordered to seduce him to learn any secrets he might let slip. He should not care why she would do it, yet he found he did. “I’ll nae,” Robert vowed, even as his gaze drifted to Elizabeth, whose laughter now filled the air.
“Robbie,” Angus huffed low, “dunnae forget our carefully laid plan and that we are starting to make progress. Dunnae forget Niall, yer brothers, and all the others who are counting upon ye.”
Robert drew his attention quickly back to Angus. “I’m nae so easily distracted as that, Angus. Do nae fash yerself.”
Angus gave him a doubtful look but nodded.
Anger flared within Robert, but it was directed at himself. He promised in one breath to stay focused and in the next his focus was snatched by the sound of her laugher. He had to do better. Angus was correct that Niall and many others counted on him and things seemed to be moving forward in their favor. One slip could change that.
“Have ye responded to Niall yet?” Angus asked.
Robert thought immediately of the note he’d received this morning from Niall. He was making good progress gathering troops to rise up against Edward when the temporary truce was over, but the best news was that William Wallace had received Robert’s note and was returning to Scotland immediately to join the fight. “Nay, but I will by dark.” Fraser had said his servant would take the note once night fell.
The king’s party dismounted, and Edward took Elizabeth by the elbow and led her, with her father and several nobles trailing, to where Robert stood.
“Bruce,” the king boomed, causing the twittering of conversation among the guests to cease. He held out Elizabeth’s hand as if for Robert to take. “I give you Lady Elizabeth.” He chuckled.
Robert’s gaze flew to Elizabeth. Color scorched her cheeks, and she pressed her lips together so hard that the color disappeared from them. She had been shamed. He recognized it instantly, and her embarrassment hitched his breath in his chest. He did not think her willing in this game, but it did not matter if she still played it. She flinched almost imperceptibly, yet she bowed low to Robert, lingering on the uptick, giving him a healthy view of her ample charms. Longing to touch her, to feel the warmth, heaviness, and silkiness of her bare skin against his, made his blood roar in his ears for a moment.
“Lord Bruce,” she said. An appropriate smile curved her lips, but her eyes… God’s teeth, did she not realize what she revealed with her eyes? They were twin pools of wariness. If she was being compelled to seduce him, she ran a very real risk of exposing her distaste for her task to the king. Robert was startled by his own thoughts, his overriding concern for her when so much was at stake. “It seems you and I are to be paired for the hunt,” she commented, interrupting his thoughts.
He frowned. “Ye’re surely mistaken, my lady.” A throbbing commenced in his right temple. “We hunt mounted today over treacherous ground, and we hunt an adult male boar with Alaunts to lead us. Those dogs are almost as dangerous as the boar! Today’s hunt is nae a place for a lady.”
He had seen her eyes widen as he described the hunt, which made him think she had been utterly unaware of what was in store for her, but now, with all eyes turned upon her and the king, her father, and other lords waiting for her to answer, Elizabeth squared her shoulders and a determined look swept her face. “I vow I can handle myself on a mount better than you can. I will leave you far behind!”
“Elizabeth!” her father barked so harshly she jumped.
A surge of protectiveness shot through Robert for the feisty lady before him. He grinned so all would see and think him amused. In honesty, he was awed by her courage. He did not know a woman who would take to a hunt such as the one that surely faced them today. Whether she had come to stand before him this morning willingly or by coercion, now that her fate was set, she was meeting it with the same bravery she had shown that day years before.
“I’ve a fondness for a lady who courts danger,” he said, realizing the utter truth of the words when it came to her.
Her eyebrows rose in what appeared to be real merriment. “Then, my lord, you will have a great fondness for me, I am certain.”
“Come, come,” the king said, “let us sup before we hunt.”
With a wave of the hand from King Edward, Robert was seated in short order with Elizabeth on his right and the king on his left. Angus had been directed to one of the coverings spread upon the ground under the trees a few feet away. His friend looked perfectly happy though, which no doubt he was as he was sitting with four of the queen’s ladies-in-waiting.
As Robert surveyed the chief huntsman and his assistants, who were handling the barking dogs, he reached blindly for his wine goblet. The brush of warmth and silk against his fingers sent a jolt through him and yanked his attention to Elizabeth.
“I beg your pardon,” she said, her voice husky and her eyes a more intense blue than he had ever seen.
“Nay, please,” he said, neatly grasping the goblet and pressing it toward her. “I would never take what a lady desired for herself.”
Her lips parted and a look of indecision swept her features. “No?” she said, her voice dropping to almost a whisper as the king and her father engaged in conversation. “What if a lady desires independence?” she murmured.
Her words had not been what he was expecting. He’d assumed she was conjuring some clever, flirtatious rebuttal. He leaned close to her. So near in fact, that he could hear the rhythmic intake of her breath and smell the scent of heather that surrounded her always. He inhaled a long appreciative breath, then turning toward her so that their faces were a hairsbreadth apart he said, “I know too well what it feels like to have my freedom stripped from me, Elizabeth. I would nae ever wish to do that to another.”
She offered a bleak, tight-lipped smile. “No?” she murmured low, gazing around them, but everyone was in conversation and music now joined the noise. She edged closer to him, her heat beckoning. Her gaze held his. “What if my dowry is greater than that of Lady Eleanor?” she whispered, staring at him intently. “Would you then take my freedom and make me your wife to fill your personal coffers and increase your coin?”
“I do nae do a thing for myself,” he said, choosing his words with care. “Can ye say the same?”
“Yes,” she said without hesitation.
“Elizabeth,” the king said, leaning forward to speak around Robert. “What are the two of you speaking of?”
Stark fear glittered in her eyes, and when she opened and closed her mouth several times, Robert knew she was frantically scrambling for an answer that would not bring her trouble. “Lady Elizabeth was explaining to me how she learned to hunt. Quite an uncommon and impressive matter for a lady.”
“Ah,” the king said. “I believe her father indulged her overly much, but I suppose it now proves to be a good thing. You can ride with her, Bruce, and see how she fares next to an expert huntsman such as yourself.”
Robert bowed his head slightly in acceptance. “I’d be honored.” If she was truly to attend the dangerous hunt, he was glad she would be paired with him, so he could keep her safe.
The king sat back in his chair, and Elizabeth turned to Robert, her expression soft. Thank you, she mouthed, her full lips so rosy and beckoning that his body tightened at the thought of claiming them.
He leaned close to her once more as the conversation around them grew loud and merry. “Ye owe me a debt. How do ye wish to repay me?”
Her eyes widened, but a genuine smile pulled at her lips. She cocked her head, a coy look gracing her face. “I’ll ensure you do not die during the hunt.”
“Ha!” He chuckled, feeling a moment of utter lightness. “Ye’re a bold lass, ye are, Elizabeth.”
He had meant it as praise, yet her smile vanished. She picked at her food for a moment or two before she said in a barely audible voice, “I cannot say that I am, but I do think I used to be. Now I’m compelled by necessity rather than boldness.”
“I think ye do nae have enough faith in yerself,” he said low. “I have seen many a man who necessity should have compelled, yet they did nae have the fortitude to rise to the challenge.”
Her lips drew together, and he could tell she was fighting smiling. “Do you compliment me, Robert?”
He did not know why his name from her lips was like a fist gripping his heart, but it was. “If the truth as I see it is a compliment, then aye.”
She bit her lip and looked as if she wished to say more. Instead, she fell into silence, which was only broken when the king announced he was finished with his meal and ready to hunt.
It did not take long for their horses to be brought to them, and once all the hunters were mounted—ten in all to make five pairs—squires came around bearing horns to be blown when a kill was made and cross spears with which to kill the boar. One of the squires approached them and handed the spear to Robert and the horn to Elizabeth. Robert noted Elizabeth’s frown, and as they weaved their mounts around the barking dogs that would lead the hunt for the boar, Robert drew his destrier close to hers.
“Why the frown?” he asked, genuinely curious as to how her mind worked.
She cast her gaze around them—he suspected to make certain neither her father nor the king were in listening distance. They were not, and her eyes met his, fiery with what appeared to be indignation. “Women have such an unfair lot!” she said, hushed. “I vow I’m just as good of a hunter and rider as you, but naturally, the squire handed me the horn and you the spear. I am defenseless while you get the weapon. I suppose if you fall under the boar, I’m to whack the beast on the head with the horn.” Sarcasm dripped from her words.
He burst out laughing, which earned him a reluctant smile that made his chest tighten. “I will protect ye from the boar,” he promised her.
“Yes, but who will protect me from you?” Her expression had turned earnest, her eyes searching.
“Do ye believe ye need protection from me?” he asked, feeling he was on the verge of some truth.
“I cannot say for certain,” she said in a low voice. “And that is my dilemma. I want to trust you, but should I?”
“I do nae wish to harm ye,” he said. “Do ye believe ye are on a path that is harmless to me?”
She bit her lip and stared at him for a long moment. “I’m on a course I did not set myself upon, as I told you.”
He frowned. “That is nae an answer to my question.”
She smirked. “Perhaps you should answer mine first… Should I trust you?”
“Likely, ye should nae,” he said honestly. “I mean ye no harm, but harm may come.”
She smiled. “Oddly, that statement makes me trust you more than anything else you could have said.”
Before he could respond, the hunt master blew the horn announcing the start of the hunt, and the barking dogs were let loose. Robert’s eyes met Elizabeth’s, and together, they took off at the head of the group.
He set them to a hard, fast pace, but not as fast or hard as he could have gone. As his horse thundered across the bumpy terrain, Robert worried for Elizabeth’s safety. What if her horse had a misstep and she was thrown? They left the open grounds and galloped into the thick woods, having to duck low-hanging branches and jump several fallen trees. Elizabeth kept pace with him, expertly flying over the obstacles while hunched low, her face set in determination.
They followed the thick pack of barking dogs through a stream, and freezing-cold water splashed high to soak Robert. Beside him, Elizabeth surprised him with delighted laughter. He stole a quick glance at her. She had a joyous smile on her face, and her blond hair streamed back behind her, making her look like a wild nymph. He grinned, utterly enchanted by her in that moment.
They came to the other side of the stream with the king, her father, and the other hunters close behind them. To the north was a steep climb, and to the south, even marshland. The pack of dogs split in two. Robert paused, his instincts telling him to take the climb, but he did not want to endanger Elizabeth.
“Robert!” she said impatiently from beside him. “What shall we do?” Her father and the king raced by them and started up the climb, while the rest of the hunters made for the marsh.
“Have ye ever climbed such a steep embankment on a horse?” He had to shout above the noise. A look of fear skittered across her face. “We’ll take the marsh,” he said instantly.
She bit her lip, her hands clenching her reins. “Will we likely lose, then?”
“Likely, aye,” he replied. “But yer safety is more important than victory.”
Her brow furrowed as she frowned. “No,” she said fiercely, “it’s not!” And with that, she urged her horse forward before Robert could stop her. She climbed at a pace that matched the best riders he’d known, and when they reached the top, she offered him a triumphant grin.
“Impressive!” he said, then glanced toward the thick woods into which the king and her father were disappearing. “Come,” he advised her. “Duck when I say so.”
She nodded, and he tapped his horse with his heels to get him to move faster.
The ride through the thick bramble was at once unnerving and exhilarating. The first couple of times he called for her to duck, he chanced glances behind him to ensure she was safe, but after a few minutes, he focused on the hunt, trusting now that she was skilled beyond most men he knew.
He could see her father and the king just ahead, and both men’s horses jumped over something, then followed one of the dogs to the right of a marsh. Another dog went to the left, and when Robert rode up to the spot, he saw the path to the left was treacherous, rocky, and narrow.
“We’ll go toward the marsh,” Robert said, his heart pounding and his breath coming hard from the ride. Alone, he would have taken the left, as the marsh would likely be slower and take longer to get around, but with Elizabeth…
“No, Robert, no!” She seemed desperate to prove something, whether to him, herself, or perhaps the king and her father, he could not say.
“If ye are injured—”
“I won’t be,” she interrupted, her eagerness to win written across her face. “I trust you to take care of me. Trust me to take care of you, as well. We are a team now, yes?”
“In this, aye, we can work together.” Unbidden, he wondered what else they might be able to accomplish if they could come to an understanding that aided them both. He set the thought aside to examine later and started down the path. Rocks slid under his horse’s hooves, and suddenly, his horse was sliding. He gritted his teeth and pulled slowly back on the reins as his horse neighed, and Robert got a glimpse of a drop-off from the hill to the rocks below.
“Tread carefully,” he cautioned, chancing a glance behind him. Elizabeth’s face was stark white. “What is it?”
“I’m fearful of heights,” she admitted through clenched teeth.
“Oh, aye? And ye waited to tell me until after I permitted ye to take this narrow strip of death!” He was unaccountably angry that she would hide such a thing and endanger herself.
“You did not permit me!” she said in an outraged tone. “I came on this path of my own accord!”
Her words were self-assured, but her white-knuckled grip on the reins of her horse combined with the worry glittering in her gaze told him just how frightened she was. Worry reared inside of him. Her horse began to neigh and flick her ear, and then the beast began to jerk her head.
“Saorsa, be still,” Elizabeth hissed, but the horse only grew more agitated, throwing her head up and down.
Robert’s shock that Elizabeth had named her horse the Gaelic word for freedom gave him a second of pause, but when the horse danced perilously close to the edge, Robert dismounted in one swift move and tapped his own horse on the flank to send him down the path. He turned toward Elizabeth and her mount once more.
“Shh, Saorsa.” His voice was soft and low as he lifted his hands in the air and held them up in front of her. The horse eyed him. “Saorsa, my beauty, settle now, ye wee beastie,” he said, making sure to keep his words soothing as he crept toward the horse.
“Robert?” Elizabeth’s tone was frightened, and the horse neighed in response to her fear.
“Shh, now, Elizabeth,” he said in the same soothing tone he’d used for the beast. When she glared at him, he had to stifle the urge to chuckle. Even in danger for her life, the lass was willful.
“Saorsa,” he said again, taking another step closer to her. “What a fine mount ye are.” He moved his hand ever so slowly toward the horse’s nose and allowed the destrier to sniff his fingers. She did, and then she nudged him. He patted her long nose. “Come now, lass,” he said, sweeping his gaze over the horse and Elizabeth, “I’ll guide ye down.”
He arched his eyebrows at Elizabeth, half expecting her to protest, but she bit her lip and nodded. Being very cautious, he reached for the reins, watching for signs of terror from the horse, and when he saw none, he took them firmly in his grip, turned on his heel, and led Elizabeth and her horse down the steep, narrow path to the thick woods at the bottom, where his own destrier waited for him.
When they were on level ground, he turned to Elizabeth. She sat stiffly on her destrier, his own mount trotting to her as if his beast sensed the other had need of him. His horse stopped beside Saorsa and snorted and her; she snorted back. He watched all this silently, glad for a moment to slow his own thundering heart. Little scared him anymore. He’d seen death and destruction. He’d experienced betrayal and degradation. Still, the idea of Elizabeth’s life being cut short left him cold.
“Ye’re either verra foolish or verra brave,” he said, hoping his own vexation did not come through in his tone. Yet when her eyebrows shot upward and her lips parted, he suspected it had.
She gazed down at her horse as she patted her neck. “I cannot claim to be very brave, and I refuse to agree that I am very foolish. I simply do not want to live in fear.”
The statement hung heavy in the air, and he guessed she was speaking of more than climbing a steep trail. “Why did ye name yer horse Saorsa?” he asked.
Slowly, she lifted her gaze, but she did not say anything. Stark fear blanketed her face. “Robert, do not move,” she ordered softly but firmly, her voice even.
His gut hollowed suddenly, and his blood rushed through his veins. Behind him, the boar they had been hunting made a sound somewhere between the roar of a bear and the snort of a pig. Black fright gripped him. For himself, yes, but more for Elizabeth. If the boar killed him, who would protect her?
“Throw me the spear!” he bellowed, lunging for her. She reacted without hesitation, grabbing the crossed spear that was sheathed in a holder of his saddle. The spear hissed through the air, her aim true, and he caught it a hairsbreadth before it gouged his eye out.
He turned toward the boar, who snorted wildly and charged him. Elizabeth screamed his name as he flipped the pointed blade of the spear over in his hand just in time to plunge it into the boar. The strength of the surging beast shoved him backward and onto the ground, its teeth still bared and the animal ready to serve the killing bite. With a grunt, Robert drove the spear further in, and the beast slowed almost instantly and fell heavily forward. They crashed backward as one, and Robert jerked to his right just before he hit the dirt and the boar landed on him.
The boar smacked into the ground with a thud, eyes wide open and body still. Robert stared in stunned disbelief at the dead animal. He still had a firm grip on the spear, and it took a force of will to uncurl his fingers. His blood rushed in his ears, and when he rolled to his back, Elizabeth was kneeling beside him, her extraordinary blue eyes filled with concern.
“Robert, my god!” Her voice shook as she spoke. “You could have died! My god!” she said again, her hand coming to his chest.
Perhaps she was in shock, but she touched him as if to ensure he was, indeed, breathing. Her palm pressed gently over his heart. The contact sent a jolt through him.
“What if you had died? Think of the loss!” Her eyes filled with tears, and the knowledge that she was crying for him broke the lock that he had put on his emotions the day he had decided to rise up against King Edward.
He’d sought to harden himself through the years since he’d first rebelled. He’d seen men cut down before his eyes, friends and family killed, and his homes devastated. He had grown hard-hearted. But heat flooded his chest now. This lass before him, so fragile yet so bold, foolish yet wise, had managed to make him feel something he had not allowed himself to feel in a long time. He wanted to trust her. It was foolish, but it was truth.
Without thought for the deception he was attempting to perpetrate, without thought for if she was a willing participant in the king and her father’s attempt to keep Scotland divided, Robert reached up, cupped her neck, and pulled her to him. He did not pause to think about the complications this kiss could bring. He claimed her mouth with a need that seared him. He crushed her to him, desperate to learn her as simply a woman and him but a man.