truth.
Perhaps the powers he claimed were more than a delusion. She gave up the struggle. In a whisper she said, âI came to you a virgin.â
âBut are you one now, or did I ravish you in that accursed dream? Did I defile you?â
âIâm still a virgin.â
âThanks be unto the gods. The work can still go on.â
He fell back against his pillow, the anger and energy fading from his voice. âHad I taken you, the fruit of years of labor would have been destroyed in an instant. As it is, the gods only know what purification Iâll have to undergo to rid myself of this pollution.â
Her gorge rose. Disgust. Pollution. That was all heâd felt in those moments when sheâd felt such ecstasy. An involuntary shudder wracked her, and her knife fell from her hand. It lay on the ground, glinting in the moonlight, its blade clearly outlined against the darkness of the floor.
âWhatâs that?â His voice cracked like a whip.
âA knife.â She gulped. âMrs. Endicott gave it to me. To defend myself.â
She hadnât thought his face could show more shock than it had when heâd awakened, but sheâd been wrong.
âSo that was your plan.â There was horror in his eyes. He drew his knees to his chest and pulled the bedclothes tight. âYou looked like such a sweet young girl,â he whispered. âBut you are Isabelleâs daughter. I shouldâve known what you were capable of.â
âI only meant to give myself to you. Not to kill you.â
âOh, not to kill me, eh? Merely to emasculate me? To rouse me in my sleep and rob me of my manhood?â
It took her a moment to grasp his meaning. Then she shrank back, though his iron grip on her shoulder made it impossible to flee. If heâd been angry at her before, what must be his emotion now?
âThat never occurred to me,â she protested. âAnd even if it had, I could never have done such a thing. I meant only to defend myself, if you turned out to be violentâin the sexual act.â She added weakly, âIâd heard of that happeningâfrom my motherâs friends. And you are a hot-tempered Scot. So I wished to be prepared. I didnât mean to harm you.â
Ramsay hauled himself up on one elbow and stared at her, unmoving, his eyes sweeping across her face as if he could read in her features the very secrets of her soul. He was prying into her most hidden thoughts and she felt terror knowing what he would learn when her soul was completely bared to him: not just the reason why sheâd come to his bed, or how sheâd lied to him about it, but of the shameful delight sheâd felt, locked within his armsâbefore heâd discovered who it was heâd been making love to and sprang away from her in horror.
She sat frozen, waiting, as the seconds ticked by, each one more agonizing than the one before it.
And then he laughed.
The sound of it echoed through the room. His shoulders shook, and what looked like tears sprang at the corner of his eyes. âWhat a strange girl you are,â he sputtered. âYouâve made me believe you, crazy as it sounds. If youâd meant to harm me, youâd be bragging about it now, not lying to me. Youâre too honest to do anything else.â
Her rigid muscles relaxed. He wasnât going to strike her.
But then his voice lost its edge of humor and once again took on its customary tone of command. âStill, Iâll keep your knife. Though youâve been so kind as to leave me with my manhood intact, your blade can still harm me. The Dark Lordâs heir must not touch iron. Not in the weeks before the Final Teaching. It destroys the ability to draw upon the powers of the earth.â He gestured toward where her knife lay on the floor. âIâll dispose of it later.â
He sank back onto the bed, exhausted. âNow leave me. And donât try any more of
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