Dawn Of Desire by Phoebe Conn

Author:Phoebe Conn
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9781428504844
Publisher: Dorchester Publishing Co., Inc.
Published: 2008-01-21T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

It was far later than Egan had hoped when he finally escorted Oriana into his chamber. He angled her toward his bed, and once she was seated primly on the edge, he knelt at her feet and rested his hands lightly on her knees. “Ula floods the fortress with secrets and lies. I sought you out because I needed trustworthy advisers, but I never dreamed I would become king so soon.”

He paused to marvel at the extraordinary result of that quest. “You are far more valuable to me now for the woman you are rather than for your gift for prophecy, but,” he emphasized, “I won’t allow you to withhold what might be significant insights.

“You’ve begged me to trust you, Oriana, but it’s time you trusted me. Whatever you sought to learn tonight, or perhaps already know, confide in me now.”

His earnest expression prompted an equally serious response, and Oriana fought to separate her cascading suspicions from the one undeniable truth in her heart. She raised a fingertip to trace the gentle bow of his upper lip, and he pressed a tender kiss to her palm.

They were quite alone, but Oriana spoke in a concerned hush. “Your mighty fortress conceals more secrets than I could bring to light in a lifetime, but you’re all that truly matters to me.”

Egan caught her hands before she could caress him a second time and decimate his last hope of pursuing a significant discovery that night. “You’ll not distract me so easily.”

“No, I seek only to protect you,” she swore.

Egan laughed despite the darkness of his mood. “I can control an ambitious half brother, but you, my lady, are beginning to try my patience. I’ll protect you most willingly, but for you to even suggest that you might reciprocate is ludicrous. Tell me what danger you foresee, and I’ll gladly defeat it on my own.”

In the fire’s reflected light, Oriana glimpsed a wildness in his eyes that revealed the real danger. He possessed a warrior’s fierce heart, and though she may have tamed it for the present, the innate threat was barely contained. She had watched him temper his strength with Duncan O Floinn, but he obviously possessed the cunning savagery to slay any real opponent.

“I did not mean to insult your pride,” she apologized calmly, “but by whatever means necessary, I’ll endeavor to safeguard your life. For the moment, I’ve no more than a haunting sensation of sorrow and loss. It may be your mother’s spirit lingering near those she loved, or merely the trick of a chilly draft. I’d not mentioned it for fear of distracting you when you must focus your wits on Kieran’s challenge.”

Oriana hoped he would accept that partial truth, for it was all she cared to disclose without proof of a sinister plot that might have been set in motion years ago. “You’re the only one who confides in me, Egan. All the others here regard me as an unwelcome stranger.”

“Not Albyn, surely,” Egan posed.

Oriana escaped his grasp to caress his temple and wound a lazy curl around her finger.

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