“Then I will buy clothes for you. And makeup, and whatever else you think is necessary.” There was no impatience in his voice, rather a mild male amusement as if mundane things like clothes and makeup were of no consequence to him.
Corinne struggled to open her eyes to pin him with a smoldering gaze. “I do not need you to buy me clothes. At least I’m willing to take you with me when I go back to the house. Think of it as a concession.”
He paused for a moment, studying her delicate features. “You do not really want to return to the house.” He made it a statement. His voice was a soft lure.
She made a supreme effort and caught at the nape of his neck. “You can stop with the voice, Dayan, because I am going. It’s important. If you want to come with me, you may, but you aren’t going to use your voice to persuade me otherwise. In any case, I know you’ll protect me.”
“You sound very stern,” he commented with great admiration. “I am certain I am very impressed.” He couldn’t stop the warmth her words produced. She did trust him whether she knew it or not.
“Kissing you is enough to make a woman weak, Dayan,” she said, exasperated with herself. “It’s bad enough to lie here like a sixteenth century heroine without you teasing me about how I sound.”
He kissed her forehead again. “You do sound impressive. It was a compliment.”
They had arrived at the house, and without conscious thought, Corinne waved her hand to open the door. He laughed softly in her ear. “Now that was very impressive. I do not think you do that in front of many people. You are becoming very comfortable in my presence.”
“Well, don’t flatter yourself. It isn’t you at all. It’s your voice. I like to hear you talk even if you spout a lot of nonsense and macho male rhetoric.”
He bent his head and found her mouth with his, easily, unerringly, as if it were the most natural, necessary thing in the world. And he made time stop for that brief moment. “It is me,” he said complacently as he carried her through the door. “And I never spout macho male rhetoric.”
Lisa and Cullen sprang hastily apart as they entered. They glanced at one another with small, guilty grins, Lisa’s beautiful face crimson. She looked alarmed to see Corinne lying so limply in Dayan’s arms. “Is she all right?” she asked quickly.
“Absolutely,” Dayan assured her. “I would never allow anything to harm her.” He was looking directly into Lisa’s eyes, and, as always, she subsided. “Corinne insists the two of you need clothes and makeup from your house.”
Lisa nodded solemnly. “I was just telling Cullen I will need quite a few things. We should go there tonight before those men come back.”
“I do not think it is safe, Lisa,” Dayan replied gently, still holding her gaze captive. “I think you should stay here with Cullen while I go and retrieve whatever you need.”
“With me,” Corinne roused herself enough to say. “You can give the list to me, Lisa.” She pushed at the wealth of hair tumbling around her face. “I’m going too, so whatever you need, I can get for you.”
“Is it safe?” Cullen asked anxiously, looking at Dayan.
“Of course it is not safe,” Dayan answered, his words a clear reprimand. “I am certain the house is being watched. Going there is a sure form of lunacy. And we should be on the road already. It is imperative we meet the healers as soon as possible. It is the only way to ensure that Corinne’s heart becomes strong again.”
“What healer?” Lisa asked, a note of fear in her voice. “I don’t want Corinne anywhere near a quack. I mean it, Dayan. She’s had enough crazy people in her life to last us both a lifetime.”
Dayan’s eyes remained steady on Lisa’s face. “She did not bring those people into her life, Lisa,” he said quietly.
At once Lisa’s eyes filled with tears. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
Corinne shoved at Dayan’s chest hard, furious all at once. “Of course you didn’t mean anything, Lisa, no one thought you did. What do you want us to do, honey? Tell me and we’ll do it.”