Page 11 of Captive Bride

WHEN CHRISTINA WAKEFIELD awoke the next morning, she had a smile on her lips, for she had been dreaming of running through a field at home in Halstead.

Her blue-green eyes widened in surprise when she saw the man lying in bed beside her.

Then she remembered where she was and how she had come to be in this predicament.

What audacity! she thought furiously. She never expected he would share the same bed with her. This was too much to bear; she had to escape from this man!

Easing herself from the bed, Christina turned to see if she had awakened him. Philip Caxton slept soundly, an innocent, self-satisfied expression on his face. Cursing him silently, she cautiously tiptoed around the bed and between the heavy curtains that hid the bedroom from the rest of the tent.

Smelling the aroma of food coming from somewhere in the camp, Christina realized how hungry she was. She had eaten nothing the night before. But she couldna??t think of food now. She had to get away while Philip was still asleep.

Christina pulled back the material covering the tent entrance and peered out. Luckily she could see no one about the camp. Well, it is now or never, she thought.

Gathering courage, Christina started walking out of the camp. As soon as she passed the last tent, she started running wildly, veering off the main path in case Philip came looking for her. The rocks cut her bare feet as she hurried through the wild olive trees.

She prayed silently that no one had seen her leaving the camp. If only she could reach the bottom of the mountain, she could hide herself and hope for a passing caravan to take her back to her brother.

Then Christina heard the sound of a horse trampling the brush behind her. All her hopes shattered when she turned to see Philip galloping his beautiful Arabian stallion up to her. His eyes were a dark, turbulent green, and his expression was full of black rage.

a??Damn you!a?? she screamed. a??How did you find me so fast?a??

a??You damn me! I was the one who was awakened from a sound sleep to be told by Ahmad that you were running down the mountainside. What do I have to do, woman? Must I tie you to my bed at night to ensure that youa??ll not escape me while I sleep? Is that what you want?a??

a??You wouldna??t dare!a??

a??I told you once, Christina, that I dare anything I damn well please.a?? Philip jumped off his horse with the ease of a mountain cat.

His face was hard, his eyes dangerous and cold as he grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her roughly.

a??I should beat you for running away from me!

Thata??s what any self-respecting Arab would do to his woman.a??

a??I am not your woman!a?? she said, her eyes flashing murderously at him. a??Nor will I ever be!a??

a??Thata??s where youa??re wrong, Christina, for you are and shall remain my woman until I tire of you.a??

a??No, I wona??t! And you have no right to keep me here. My God, cana??t you see how much I hate you? Youa??re everything that I despise in a man. Youa??re aa??a barbarian!a??

a??Yes, I suppose I am. But if I were a civilized gentleman, I wouldna??t have you here where I want you. And like it or not, I will keep you here, tied to my bed if necessary,a?? he replied coldly. He picked her up and deposited her roughly across the back of his horse.

a??Why must I ride this way?a?? Christina demanded indignantly.

a??Ia??d think that youa??d be happy with this light punishment,a?? he said. a??You deserve much worse.a??

Philip mounted the horse behind her, and when she started to struggle he brought his hand down hard across her buttocks. Christina stopped her kicking but fumed silently all the way back to camp.

Damn him, she thought vindictively. Someday she would take extreme pleasure in seeing Philip suffer.

Why was this happening to her? She had always been prouda??proud of her family, proud of their estate, proud of her own fiery beauty and independence.

It was doubly painful to be brought so low now.

It was degrading to be just a toy for this hateful man.

She didna??t deserve this. No one deserved this!

When they reached his tent, Philip dismounted, lifted Christina off the horse, and pushed her inside. She sat down on one of the couches to await whatever would happen next.

Philip spoke to someone outside the tent, came in, and sat down beside her. a??There is food coming. Are you hungry?a?? he asked, the harshness gone from his voice.

a??No,a?? she lied. But when a young girl brought in a platter of food, nothing could have stopped Christina from eating her fill.

Philip finished eating before she did, and leaned back on the couch behind her. She felt him gather her hair in his hands and play with it gently. Christina stopped eating and turned to look into his smiling green eyes.

a??Would you like to bathe, my sweet?a?? Philip asked her, rubbing a lock of her golden hair between his fingers.

Christina couldna??t deny that she would love a bath. While she finished eating, Philip left the tent and came back shortly with a skirt, a blouse, a pair of slippers, and what she assumed was a towel. She wondered who they belonged to, but she was not about to ask.

Philip led Christina from the tent and across the camp.

There was a young woman about Christinaa??s age playing with a small child in front of the tent to the left of Philipa??s.

Goats and sheep grazed on the hills above the camp, and a corral housed ten or twelve of the finest Arabian horses shea??d ever seen, including two new foals.

She wished that she could stop to look at the horses, but Philip led her out of the camp and up a path into the mountains.

Christina pulled away from him. a??Where are you taking me?a?? she demanded. But he grabbed her arm again and continued walking.

a??You wished to bathe, did you not?a?? he asked, leading her into a small clearing that was surrounded by tall juniper trees.

A large pond in the middle of the clearing had been formed by the mountain rains. It was a beautiful place, but Christina wondered why Philip had brought her here. He took the clothes from her and handed her a bar of sweet-smelling soap.

a??You dona??t expect me to bathe here, do you?a?? she asked haughtily.

a??Look, Tina, youa??re not in England anymore where you can have a nice hot bath sent up to your room. Youa??re here now, and if you wish to bathe, you will do as the rest of us do.a??

a??All right. I must wash after that horrible journey. If this is the only way that I will be able to bathe, then so be it. You may leave now, Mr. Caxton.a??

Philip grinned at her. a??No, my lady, I have no intention of leaving.a?? He sat down on a log and lazily crossed his legs. She noticed that the yellow flecks in his eyes brightened in the sunlight.

A slow blush crept into Christinaa??s face. a??You cana??t possibly mean that you are going to stay here anda??a??she paused, not wanting to finisha??a??and watch me!a??

a??Thata??s exactly what I intend to do. So you may proceed if you will.a?? He was staring at her intently with a wicked grin on his lips. Her blood boiled.

a??Well, turn around so I can disrobe!a??

a??Ah, Tina. You will have to learn that I will not be denied the pleasure of looking at your body, even if I havena??t possessed it yet,a?? he replied.

Christina glared at him with stormy blue eyes. This man left her no dignity.

a??I hate you,a?? she hissed. She turned around and untied her robe. The robe and torn nightdress slid down over her body and dropped to the ground. Christina stepped out of the clothes and walked into the water; deeper and deeper until it covered her breasts.

Shea??d give him no pleasure if she could help it.

She kept her back to Philip and washed herself under the deliciously cool water.

She submerged to wet her hair, but it took a long time to build up enough lather to give it a thorough scrubbing with the bar of soap.

When she finally succeeded, she heard a large splash.

Christina turned around quickly, but she couldna??t see Philip anywhere. Suddenly he was standing directly in front of her. She was all too aware that they were both naked underneath the cool water.

Philip shook the water from his thick black hair and reached to take Christina in his arms, but she was prepared and threw the bar of soap at him. She swam away quickly. She stopped when she heard him laughing, and turned around to see that he hadna??t moved, but was washing himself with the soap.

The relief showed openly on Christinaa??s face as she finished rinsing her hair and emerged from the water.

Quickly she toweled herself dry and wrapped the towel around her hair.

She wrapped the long, dark-brown skirt around her waist, tying it in front.

Next, she put on the dark-green sleeveless blouse with a low, rounded neckline.

The rough cotton material irritated her skin, but she would have to make do with whatever he gave her.

Christina sat down and was trying to comb the tangles from her hair with her fingers when Philip came up behind her.

a??Feel better now, my sweet?a?? he ventured softly.

She refused to answer him or look at him, and busied herself with braiding her hair while Philip dressed. Christina couldna??t keep quiet for long, however, because her curiosity was stronger than her unwillingness to talk to him.

a??Philip, what are you doing in this land, and how do these people know you so well?a?? she asked.

His laughter rang through the clearing. a??I was wondering when you would start asking questions,a?? he said. a??These are my fathera??s people.a??

Christina was stunned. a??Your father! But youa??re English!a??

a??Yes, Ia??m English through my mother, but my father is an Arab and these are his people.a??

a??Youa??re half-Arab, then?a?? Christina interrupted, finding it hard to believe.