Bride of Ice (The Warrior Daughters of Rivenloch #2) - Glynnis Campbell Page 0,84

no one will ever know what passed between us.”

Hallie nodded, on the verge of tears. Gathering her skirts, she began to walk stiffly toward the door. But as she drew even with him, she hesitated.

Turning toward him, the fierce Valkyrie suddenly looked as vulnerable as a child. Her wet eyes were wide and full of heartache. Her lips trembled uncertainly. “Will you…will you give me one last kiss?” she entreated him. “A kiss of farewell?”

He wanted that more than anything. He wanted to bury his face in her fragrant hair. Taste her yielding, honey-sweet lips. Press his hungering body against hers.

It seemed cruel beyond measure to leave her like this. Empty. Aching. Heartbroken.

But though it tore him up inside to disappoint her, he had no choice.

If he kissed her again, he knew he’d never let her go.

“Nay.”

Chapter 29

Hallie gave a tiny gasp and then closed her lips so tightly that not even a breath could escape.

He was right. Of course he was right. It was futile to prolong their agony by indulging in a kiss.

But it didn’t keep her cheeks from flushing with shame at his rebuff. It didn’t keep his rejection from feeling like the slice of a blade across her soul.

“If ye’ll fetch Rauve,” Colban said hoarsely, “he can convey me to my new quarters.”

He stepped aside so she could pass without touching him.

Her heart was breaking as, with a stiff nod, she sidled past him. She didn’t trust herself to look at him. Or speak. Her eyes filled with unbearable loss. Words failed her. And then it was too late for farewells. The door closed behind her with a dull thud, like a coffin lid.

She moved soundlessly along the corridor. But in the privacy of the stairwell, she sagged against the cold stone wall. She couldn’t face the clan like this. Not now. Not when her soul was laid bare and her nerves were raw.

She needed to be strong. For her clan. For her parents. For her siblings.

Her siblings.

Her throat closed as she thought about Isabel and her matchmaking ways. How happy her little sister had been to learn that her predictions had come true. That Colban had turned out to be The One. That Hallie and Colban were going to be married. This would crush her.

She thought about Ian, who had taken such delight in teaching Colban to read and impressing him with his inventions. The lad would be crestfallen when the Highlander left.

She was certain Brand would be disappointed as well. Fascinated by Colban’s techniques with the claymore, he’d been so eager to learn from the clever warrior.

Even Gellir had lost his sullen distaste for the hostage. Though he’d never admit it, he now looked up to the Highlander, regarding him with respect and admiration.

Hallie realized she was not the only one losing Colban an Curaidh.

There was nothing she could do to change that. But perhaps she could help to soften the blow.

It took several moments to don the emotional armor she required. She had to push the dreams of the last few days to the back of her mind. Put them under lock and key. She had to forget about any personal connection to Colban. As far as her parents were concerned, he was a hostage, no more.

But despite that status, she had no intention of tossing him into the dovecot or the stables. She had another idea.

The instant Hallie walked out the door, Colban’s chest caved into the hollow abyss where his heart had been.

His legs buckled beneath him, and he slumped onto the bed. His eyes burned with the injustice of a cruel fate that would tempt him with Paradise one day, only to cast him into Purgatory the next.

When Rauve finally came for him, he had no strength left for even a vague greeting. Without a word and with no prodding, he followed the burly guard along the corridor.

They’d gone but a little way when Rauve stopped in front of a door and rubbed an anxious hand across his black beard.

“Listen to me, Highlander,” the man growled. “’Tis Hallie’s mercy that you’re staying here tonight. She refused to let you sleep in the stables, considering how you saved her and all. But I don’t want you thinking you can try anything. I’ll be making my bed outside this door, and if you so much as lift a finger to hurt anyone, I’ll chop that finger off.”

Colban didn’t understand completely until Rauve swung the door open onto the bedchamber of the Rivenloch