by Vicky Savage
On our arrival back at Sequoyah Hall, we’re met by Makoda and another Unicoi warrior. They’ve been waiting for us to return.
“Ryder, peace,” Makoda says. Ryder slides off of his horse, and they clasp each other’s forearm.
“There was a skirmish at the east entrance this evening,” Makoda tells him. “A band of intruders attempted to break in. Two men were killed.”
“Two of our men?” Ryder asks in alarm.
“No, two of theirs. We think they may have been Outlanders, but it was impossible to tell. We have no idea what they were after.”
“Thank you, Makoda. Have reinforcements been sent to the east entrance?”
“Yes. Alexander went down to inspect it himself. He says to tell you not to worry. He has everything under control.”
Ryder nods. “I am certain he does. I’ll need to speak with him upon his return.” He turns to Drew and me. “Let us take your horses. Makoda and I will see that they are cared for tonight.”
“Ryder, is everything all right?” I ask. “Could this have something to do with our visit?” It occurs to me that Mother may have discovered where we are and sent a rescue team for us.
“This happens on occasion. I do not believe it relates to your visit. If your Mother knew you were here, I’m certain she would have sent the entire Domerican army to Unicoi,” he says reading my thoughts.
Drew turns over Glacier’s reins to Ryder and Makoda takes Gabriel.
“May I come up and say goodnight, later?” Ryder asks me.
“Yes. I’ll be disappointed if you don’t.”
He kisses my cheek, and Drew and I trudge off to our rooms.
I peel off my dirty, sticky riding clothes and run a hot bath. I soak for a few minutes, relaxing both body and mind. It’s been another extraordinary day for a high-school girl from Connecticut.
I slip into one of my silky underdresses and pull a soft white sweater over the top. The outfit is a little unconventional, but comfort is the main goal tonight, and nobody but Ryder is going to see me anyway.
When he arrives at my door, Ryder has changed into a light blue shirt and doeskin jeans. In one hand he holds a small black box with buttons on the face.
“What’s that?” I ask.
“A surprise!” He sets the black box on a table and pushes one of the buttons.
To my amazement music begins to play. “Wow! What is that thing?”
“It’s a music machine. Only a few are currently in existence, but we are building more. Isn’t it remarkable?”
“It is. I like this music. It’s a lot like rock ‘n roll.” The music is full of energy with a driving beat, due mostly to the Cherokee tom-toms which can be heard above all the other instruments. I laugh and perform a little dance for him, my body moving rhythmically to the music.
“Is that a traditional Domerican dance?” he asks when the music ends.
“It’s more like the funky chicken meets Jade Beckett,” I tell him.
“Very nice. Rock and roll you call it?”
“Yes, very popular where I come from. But do you have anything slow in there that you and I can dance to? We never did get our dance.”
He pushes another button, and a soft sexy song wafts from the tiny box. He holds out his arms for me, and I melt into him, dancing slowly, coaxing his body to respond to mine. I close my eyes, clearing my mind and allowing all my senses to be focused only on Ryder—his scent, his strength, the gentle current that connects us whenever we touch.
I reach up and pull the leather tie out of his hair, letting it fall loosely across his shoulders. I run my fingers through his silken mane.
“What are you doing?” He smiles down at me.
“I love the feel of your hair. I like the way it tumbles around our faces when you kiss me.”
He leans down and places a whisper-soft kiss on my lips. I feel its effects all the way down to my toes. Hot blood floods through me. I tug off my sweater and toss it on a chair—one less layer of fabric between us. Our bodies sway sensuously together, in time to the music. I move my hand to the front of his shirt, and begin to unfasten his buttons one by one.
“Now what are you doing?”
“I want to feel your skin against mine.” He doesn’t stop me. When I finish with the buttons, I pull his shirt open and wrap my bare arms around him, caressing the smooth skin of his back. Pressing my cheek against his chest, I find his heart pounding as wildly as my own.
I reach up and circle his neck with my arms. “Lift me up,” I say softly. He lifts me into a kiss, and my legs twine around him. My breath is ragged now, and I’m feeling lightheaded.
“Jade,” he whispers hoarsely. “I have never desired anyone the way I desire you. You are my obsession.”
“And you are mine,” I say. I run my tongue lightly along his lower lip.
He moans softly.
“Ryder, I want you now,” I say, placing my mouth near his ear. “Don’t tell me no. You promised yourself to me. I need you now.”
His heavy-lidded eyes stare steadfastly into mine. “I am powerless to refuse you.”
He carries me to the bed, gently laying me on top of the coverlet. He slides languidly out of his shirt, and I tremble at the sight of him. The air between us quivers with magnetic tension. We reach for one another, crashing together in unrestrained passion.
I drown in the intensity of him. His taste, his strength, and the urgency of his touch. Yes. This is what I’ve waited for. “Yes,” I whisper softly.
A loud, insistent pounding erupts at my door.
“Ryder, open up! It’s Catherine.”
Ryder pulls his lips from mine. “Not now, Catherine. Go away!” he shouts.
“Open this door now! Father wants to see you,” she calls.
Ryder looks up at the ceiling and shakes his head. “I don’t believe it,” he says.
The pounding resumes.
He climbs slowly from the bed, cursing under his breath. He rakes a hand through his hair. “I am so sorry,” he says. “I’ll be right back.”
I slide off the bed and follow him.
He flings open the door. “What do you want, Catherine?”
She stares at him in his shirtless, disheveled state. Glancing into the room, she sees me standing barefoot in my slip.
“Well,” she says folding her arms over her chest. “It looks as if you two have been busy cultivating diplomatic relations. Sorry to interrupt your little tryst, but Father wants to see you, now.”
“Why? What’s this about?” Ryder asks.
“Claire Wallace is in Father’s quarters. She is positively apoplectic, ranting about you and Olivia. You’d better hurry; things were turning rather ugly when I left.”
“Oh, all right,” he sighs.
“And for God’s sake put on a shirt,” she calls over her shoulder.
He turns to me, anxiety marring his handsome features.
“Go,” I tell him. “You don’t want to upset your father.”
“I’m so sorry Jade.” He takes my hands in his. “I promise I will come back as soon as I can.”
“I’ll be waiting.”
I help him into his shirt. He buttons it and tucks it into his jeans.
“Here, you might need this,” I say, holding out the tie for his hair.
“Thanks.” He smoothes his hair back and skillfully ties it in place. “I’ll return soon.”
“Good luck,” I call after him.
FORTY
After more than an hour, there’s still no sign of Ryder. I’ve seen Clair Wallace in action, so I know she can create quite a scene. When he finally walks through my door at midnight, though, he’s smiling.
“I’m sorry I had to leave you, love. The timing couldn’t have been worse. Are you all right?” he says.
“Yes, I’ve been anxious about you though. What happened?”
We sit in the chairs next to the fireplace. “Claire went to see my father. She demanded that I declare my intentions regarding Olivia immediately. Sh
e claims I have led Olivia to believe we have a future together, and I have trifled with her affections to use her words.”
“Have you?”
“No, Jade! I’ve never discussed a future with her. I’ve never even kissed the girl. I treat her with the same polite courtesy with which I treat all the other girls in Unicoi.”
“So, what did you tell your father?”
“I told him I would be happy to declare my intentions toward Olivia. I have no intention of marrying her—ever.” He reaches for my hand. “I told him I love you, and I have promised myself to you. I said that I’ve asked you to be my wife, and that if you will not have me, I shall never wed.”
“You told him that?” I ask, crawling over to join him in his chair. “What did he say?”
“He asked whether you feel the same about me and whether we have plans to marry. I said that I believe you feel the same, but that you do not intend to marry for another decade or two.” A smile plays at his lips.
“You did not! Did you really say that?”
“Yes. That is what you told me, isn’t it?”
“Oh, hell. I might have said something like that. So how did he react?”
Ryder smiles and smoothes my hair with his hand. “Father said he respects my decision, and will happily welcome you to our family when you feel the time is right. He also said he will pray to the gods and the spirits of our ancestors that your mother will not have me executed before we can be together… or something to that effect.”
I bury my face in his shirt. “Your father must think I’m an idiot. Is he really all right with this—you and me together?”
He holds me tightly. “Yes. I told you, they all fell in love with you last night.”
“Not all,” I correct him. “Catherine still hates me.”
“She doesn’t hate you, Jade. She just doesn’t know you, that’s all. She’s afraid you are going to hurt me.”
“Hurt you? How?” I look up at him, concerned.
His eyes are gentle. “She thinks you will make me fall helplessly in love with you, and then you will leave me.”
My heart drops into my stomach at his words. Catherine is right. That’s exactly what I’m doing. I cover my face with my hands and silent tears leak through my fingers.
“Jade, what is it?”
I keep my face hidden from him and continue to cry.
He strokes my hair. “Shh, Catherine will come around. Don’t worry about what she thinks.” He rocks me gently in his arms.
After a moment I’m able to look at him again. “Ryder, you know I love you?”
“Yes. I know.”
“You know I would never deliberately hurt you?”
“Yes. Of course.” He softly brushes the tears from my cheeks. “What is this all about?”
“Tomorrow is our last day together,” I sniffle, knowing that it may be the last time I’ll ever see him.
“Is that what is making you so unhappy?” he asks, relief in his voice. “It’s only for a short time, love. I have to be back here for the Council meeting tomorrow night, but we will be together again soon, at the lake, or the Enclave, or I will come to the palace. I’ll find a way to be with you, I promise.”
“I just hate to be away from you, even for a short time.” I touch his face, my fingertips tracing the outline of his lips. He bends to kiss me, and my heart is instantly flooded with longing and desire. “Ryder, stay with me tonight. In my bed. Stay with me all night.”
He holds me to him. “Oh God, Jade, it’s what I want more than anything on earth. But, I cannot.”
“Why not?” I ask, searching his eyes. “You were prepared to stay before Catherine came for you.”
“It’s my father. As I was leaving him this evening, he cautioned me not to make you pregnant in order to persuade you to marry me sooner, or as a means to get your mother to consent to our union.”
“But—”
“He’s right, Jade. That would not be the right way for us to begin our life together.”
I stare up at the ceiling and sigh. “All right, I agree. I don’t want to get pregnant. But don’t the Unicoi have any form of birth control?”
“Of course,” he smiles. “I don’t happen to have any with me, however. I did not expect to have a need for it.”
“Oh hell,” I say, defeated. “In that case, will you just stay with me for awhile, here in the chair? I promise I will not try to seduce you. Please?”
“Yes, I’ll stay as long as you like.” He kicks off his moccasins and pulls my shawl from the back of the chair, wrapping it around me. “Try to rest, love. We have another early morning tomorrow.”
I snuggle into his chest, allowing his comforting warmth and familiar scent to seep deeply into every pore of my body, to be stored and remembered in the months and years ahead. I wonder if there will ever be a time when I stop thinking of him, longing for him. I push the overwhelming sorrow into a small corner of my heart, knowing I will have to confront it sometime very soon.
* * *
I don’t know how long Ryder holds me before I fall asleep. I awake in my bed in the light of early dawn, covers pulled closely around me. A note from Ryder is propped against my pillow. Sleep peacefully, love. Though I had to leave, my heart is here with you. Always, Ryder.
With a heavy sadness I pack my clothes and other belongings back into my trunk. Thankful I’ve witnessed first-hand the plight of the Unicoi, I’m determined to convince my mother to help them. It’s a matter of life and death for the Unicoi people, a matter of honor for me.
I bathe quickly and change into my traveling clothes, tucking Ryder’s note into my pocket. The dining hall is already alive with activity. Drew and his men are noisily eating breakfast. Ryder is not in the hall with the others, so I grab a pommera and quietly duck outside to find him.
I spot him in the courtyard helping with preparations for our departure. Watching him from the top of the steps, I memorize his every move. His hair is laced back and the fabric of his shirt strains over his powerful shoulders as he works to saddle Tenasi, his efficient hands fastening cinches, straightening stirrups, and patting the great beast on the head. All vibrancy and laughter, he banters with the men as they pack saddlebags and ready the other horses. For the thousandth time I marvel at how amazing it is that he loves me.
He smiles up at me and waves, striding to the stairs. “We’re nearly ready to go. Did you sleep well?”
“Yes. Thank you for tucking me into bed.”
“At your service, lady.” He bows. “Shall I send someone up for your trunk?”
“Yes, I’m packed.”
Drew and his men clatter onto the veranda. “There you are Jade,” Drew says. “We need to be on our way soon. Father will be waiting for us.”
“I’ll get your things,” Ryder says to me and disappears through the doorway.
Drew takes my arm, pulling me to one side of the veranda. He leans against the railing, arms folded over his chest. “Jade, I want to thank you for bringing me here. I am ashamed that I did not possess the intestinal fortitude to have come before now. My eyes have been opened to a number of things. Mother must be told the truth, and she must accept the fact that we cannot escape the truth by simply ignoring it. Forgive me for being such a pig-headed ass.”
“Hey, I’m used to it big brother,” I say. Drew rolls his eyes.
“No really, thanks for coming with me, Drew. It’ll help to have you as my witness when I have to speak with Mother about all of this. I don’t know what she’ll do to us. We may be spending some quality time together in the Warrington dungeons when we get home.”
He lays a gloved hand on my shoulder. “I’m not only your witness, but your ally, Jade. She’ll have to listen to us.”
Ryder appears on the veranda with my trunk. He carries it down to the courtyard and stows it in the back of the wagon where Ralston is busy organizing our things. I turn to join them, but Drew catches my arm.
“One more thing, Sister, about Bla
ckthorn,” he cuts his eyes to Ryder loading my trunk in the wagon. “I guess he’s not the scoundrel I once thought he was. I still don’t excuse him for kidnapping you, but I believe he is essentially a decent man.” He smiles at me, eyes twinkling. “And fairly sane, except for the fact that he appears to like you a great deal.”
I shrug his hand off my shoulder. “You never change, do you?”
“Then I wouldn’t be me!” he chortles.
