“I think I may be well enough to go on my own,” she said and stepped toward him, a slight sway to her gait.
“Not yet,” he said abruptly and took hold of her arm.
She did not bother to argue. She had learned he could be stubborn at times and those times she chose to let it be.
They entered the woods and after she almost stumbled twice, he swung her up into his arms. “I will not have you suffer another injury and delay your departure.”
Strangely enough she had gotten used to being in his arms and even stranger was that she found herself comfortable there. He held her firmly but with a gentleness that did not threaten. And each time he did, she became more and more familiar with his face. She saw that his beard hid a small scar near his chin and that he had more flecks of green in his right eye than his left. His scar revealed something as well. It was thin and straight which made Bliss think it was a quick slash to his face possibly from the tip of a dagger. It had healed fairly well, and while permanent, did not distract from his fine features. If anything, it added to them, giving him the distinction of a seasoned warrior.
Another thing she learned about him was that he did not talk much, but she was determined to change that—she needed to. She needed him to come to know her and maybe even like her at least a little bit. If he did, when he learned of her deceit, he would understand that she had kept the truth from him out of love for her sisters.
He placed her by a tree and walked a few steps away, turning his back to her.
She smiled as she watched a couple of squirrels. “It will be a cold winter. The squirrels are busy burying food.”
“Aye, which is why you need to rest, heal, and leave here soon.”
Bliss thought to speak up and tell him she had decided to remain for the winter with him, but now was not the right time.
She finished and took careful steps toward him. He turned before she reached him, he always did, but then her footfalls were not quiet in the woods. She was not surprised when he once again lifted her gently in his arms.
He said nothing until they were near the cottage. “You will rest. I will see about catching us fish for tonight.”
“I could make a fish stew,” she offered.
He turned his face to hers and for a moment she thought he looked startled, but it was so fast she could not be sure.
“Rest is all you will do,” he ordered sternly and deposited her at the open doorway.
Without a word, he grabbed his shirt off the pile of stacked logs and disappeared around the corner of the cottage.
That he avoided her when possible was obvious. That he didn’t want her here was also obvious, which was why she had no choice but to accept his offer of spending the winter with him. Otherwise, she feared he might physically send her on her way. But what if he had changed his mind about her remaining there?
She shook her head. She could not let that happen. She entered the cottage thinking that the sooner she informed him that she would accept his offer to spend the winter with him, the better. She also decided that it might help if he tasted her cooking. Her sisters would never speak about what a good cook Bliss was, for fear the chieftain would make her a cook in the keep.
She also needed to see if she could mend her shift that Rannick had been forced to cut off her. At least she had her tunic which she could wear over his shirt if necessary. She would get busy, glad to have a task or two to do, though she would stop if she grew tired. The sear that had closed her wound was healing nicely, and though she would be left with a scar, it was better than the alternative—death.
The thought faltered her steps as she entered the cottage and she leaned against the door once closed. When the branch had speared her side, she had thought the curse had struck her and she would die. She had been surprised that she had found her way back to Rannick at night in the storm. She had wondered if fate had somehow intervened, sending her the stark squawk of a raven that had seemed to guide her way. Then when the fever had struck her, she had worried the curse had reached out again to claim her and when it didn’t, she continued to wonder if fate and the curse battled.
There was another possibility that poked at her. Her sister Annis had been determined to find out how the curse could be broken and when she got an idea in her head, there was no stopping her. She wondered if Annis had set off on such a mission and had found a way to at least disrupt the curse.