THE FOREST LORD By Susan Krinard

Determined not to show any hesitation, Eden stepped up to the cart. “Thank you, Shaw. Donal—”

Shaw moved so quickly she hardly had time to think. He jumped down from the driver’s seat, hoisted Donal onto his shoulders, and carried the boy to the rear-facing seat of the cart.

“Can you hold on here, very tight?” he asked.

Donal nodded enthusiastically and grabbed the rails surrounding the seat. Shaw came to Eden’s side, offered his hand, and gave the barest of nods. His meaning was plain: He proposed to drive.

“Perhaps my intent was not clear,” Eden said. “I shall be—”

The chestnut chose that moment to lunge in his traces, causing the cart to shudder from side to side. Eden blanched and hurried to make sure that Donal was safe.

He grinned—a full, dazzling grin—as if it were all a marvelous jest for his benefit.

“Copper has not been out in a week,” Shaw said in a mild voice. “I would not wish your ladyship or Master Donal to come to any harm.”

“Have you no more docile animal?”

“The stables are nearly empty. Juno is not a carriage horse, and Atlas…” His eyes actually sparked with amusement, at her expense.

Given the choice between driving out with Shaw and foregoing the excursion, Eden knew what she must do. Disappointing Donal was out of the question, and the tenants must be visited.

“Very well.” She avoided his gaze and made a pretense of tucking Donal’s scarf more securely about his neck. Only then did she allow Shaw to take her hand and help her to her seat.

The contact, brief as it was, set her senses reeling. Even through the protection of her riding glove, she felt the warmth of his hand, and something more. Something uncanny.

She tried to wrest free, but he didn’t let her go until she was well settled on the seat. She caught the look he gave her—speculative, almost puzzled—before he leaped into the driver’s position.

The chestnut stood absolutely still for Shaw, craning his head about with an expression of equine innocence. It is quite too late for apologies now, Eden told it crossly.

But of course the horse would not understand her. Though one might suppose that a man who could speak to animals could arrange to have his four-legged friend kick up a little trouble for his ulterior purposes…

She nearly laughed again but stopped herself. It was no matter for levity when Donal was involved. And she was all too aware that the seat she and Shaw occupied, while built for two, left not an inch of space between them. The heat of his body engulfed her. Worse, his hip rubbed hers, and several layers of cloth made a very poor barrier. The position was more suitable for lovers than lady and servant.

Far from taking advantage of the situation as she feared he might, Shaw chose to pretend as if he didn’t notice her proximity.

“If you’re ready, your ladyship,” he said. “Hold on tight, Donal.”

Without any visible sign of urging, the gelding began to move down the lane at a pleasant trot. Eden turned to watch Donal until she was sure that his seat was secure.

“Do not worry about the boy,” Shaw said. “He won’t be hurt.”

That was a strange way of phrasing it. “He is only five,” she said. “I will not have him put at risk.”

Shaw’s hands tightened on the ribbons. “He’ll never come to harm in my company.”

His expression revealed nothing, but his voice held the quiet passion of sincerity. He spoke as if Donal’s well-being were as personal for him as it was for her. How could that be, unless…

Insight burst upon her like sunshine. “You have children of your own.”

He looked at her sharply. Once more she felt as if she were being examined, turned inside out by those summer-green eyes. “How did you know?”

Eden was beginning to realize that reminding him of her rank and his place was a useless exercise. “I guessed,” she said. “It is clear that you have a way with children.”

He stared straight ahead again, guiding the cart through the park toward the gate. “My only child—my son—was taken from me.”

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169

Leave a Reply 0

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *