A Warrior's Pledge by Emma Prince

Author:Emma Prince
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Highland
Published: 2016-12-14T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-One

Finn rose from the floorboards in front of the bed well before dawn. He wanted to ensure that the basin of blood-tinged water was removed before Rosamond had to see it again. His tunic was still faintly damp, since their little chamber didn’t have a brazier for a fire, but he donned it anyway. Rosamond shouldn’t have to see the crusted-over wounds on his back, either.

She didn’t stir as he’d moved quietly around their chamber, or when Mistress Connors silently brought oat cakes and a pitcher of fresh milk to break their fast.

He began to worry when the sun rose to the middle of the sky and she still slept soundly, but he reminded himself that she had been through much in the last two days.

Damn it all, but the lass was strong. And brave. And beautiful. And big-hearted. And all the things he would want in a woman—except that she was English.

Rosamond’s deep sleep left him too alone with his thoughts. His mind turned over and over like a spinning wheel. He contemplated who was behind the attacks, why Rosamond affected him so greatly, and his time in the Bruce’s army. But most of all, his thoughts tugged him back into memories from thirteen years past.

His father, whose strong back and gnarled hands testified to the grueling task of farming in the Highlands.

His mother, whose dark eyes always held kindness for her children, even when weary lines etched their edges.

His sister, so like Elaine, except that sweet Mora would never again fuss over ribbons or frolic in a May Day meadow at dawn.

And Finn himself, a hardworking, optimistic lad of seventeen whose greatest aspiration had been to run the farm alongside his father.

The English had changed all that. They’d shattered Finn’s world thirteen years ago, and the pieces had never fully come together again. Aye, he’d found some solace in the endless hours of combat training when he’d joined the Bruce’s army. He’d even found a family of sorts in the brotherhood of the Bodyguard Corps.

But some part of him was still broken—the part that could care again. The part that could love.

His gaze landed on Rosamond where she lay burrowed in the blankets. Her cheeks were softly flushed in sleep, her hair a wild splay of gold around her head. She looked like an angel fallen straight from heaven and into his bed.

Finn ripped his eyes away, for if he looked longer, he wouldn’t be able to resist the need to go to her side and wake her with a kiss on those full lips of hers. He strode to the chamber’s little window and cracked the shutters ever so slightly.

Beyond the low, thatched rooftops of the village, the lush green hills of the English countryside rolled gently beneath a blue sky dabbed with puffy white clouds.

This land was soft compared to the Highlands. Mayhap it was making him soft as well. Was that why he found himself longing for the English angel sleeping just a pace away?

Involuntarily, his gaze skittered to Rosamond once more.

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