Page 11

The sight of her gave him pause and he froze by the door, his hand gripping the doorknob so tightly that he almost tore it from the wood.

Through the thin cloth, he could see the curves of her body outlined in the light of the fire and the candles—the narrow waist, the swell of her hips and breasts, the hardened nipples that peeked through the fabric.

His breath caught in his throat, all the blood in his body redirected to one place, and it certainly wasn’t his head.

In the few seconds it took Torrin to observe her body, Valora shrieked in terror and pressed the denying cloth tightly against her body in an attempt to hide her nude form.

At the same time, she ran, trying to find some cover, only for her to slip on the wet stone on the floor and fall, with a terrified scream, against the mantel.

Over her scream, Torrin heard the dull thud of her head hitting the stone. Within moments, he crossed the room with a few, long strides and caught her, kneeling next to her as she fell to the floor.

"Are ye alright?" Torrin asked her, his hand hovering over her forehead as he tried to figure out what to do. Nodding, Valora took his hand and pressed it against a spot on the side of her forehead, moaning softly in pain.

"There," she said. "Is it bleedin’?"

"Nay," said Torrin. "But it daes feel swollen."

"That’s normal," she said. "It will only swell more."

Suddenly, Torrin was terribly aware of the fact that Valora was naked in his arms, covered by nothing but a thin sheet that clung to her form with water—water that had now drenched him too, making his shirt stick to his chest.

He didn’t want to let go of her, though, not when he didn’t know if she was truly alright.

"I will take ye tae the healer," he said, but Valora was quick to shake her head.

"I’m a healer meself," she said, much to Torrin’s surprise. "I’m fine. If I feel worse, I’ll see the healer."

She’s a healer? I wonder just what more I will discover about this lass.

He hardly knew her, of course. They had only just met, so he supposed there was still plenty for him to discover, but this new information impressed him.

For a noble woman to put in all the necessary effort to become a healer could only mean that it truly interested her—and that she cared about those around her.

For a moment, their gazes met and neither of them seemed capable of forming a single word.

A furious blush colored Valora’s cheeks, spreading all the way up to her forehead and heating the skin under Torrin’s fingers.

he could feel his heartbeat, loud and frantic and as fast as if he was fighting a battle.

That one moment seemed to stretch into eternity.

Torrin couldn’t take his gaze off Valora—or his hand, which was still pressing gently against her forehead.

But when his gaze roamed over the rest of her body, down to her breasts where her cloth was saturated with water and did nothing to hide her form, he was quick to snap his eyes back up to her face and then to the ceiling, embarrassment flooding through him.

"Well… I shall call the maids then," he said as he pulled back from Valora and stood, turning his back to her. "They… they should have brought ye some clothes."

"They said they’re lookin’," said Valora quietly, clearing her throat. "Thank ye. I’m sure they’ll bring me somethin’."

"Right," said Torrin with a sharp nod. "Well, I’ll wait right outside until they come. Call me if there is anythin’ ye need."

With that, Torrin left the room, not waiting for Valora’s response, if there was going to be any.

Only when he closed the door behind him did he manage to catch his breath.

He felt as though Valora had taken all the air in the room, her presence so overpowering that he could hardly breathe or speak.

It was a weakness he couldn’t afford. The last thing he needed was a distraction, but Ness had been right when he pointed out that Valora and her clan could be very useful to them. If she decided to marry him, then no one, not Clan Keith nor any of their allies, would be able to stand against them.

But it wasn’t the strategic importance of this alliance which lingered in his mind. Rather, it was the thought that Valora may come to trust him enough to accept him as her husband, and Torrin was overwhelmed by emotions he couldn’t even name at the thought.

Only a day prior, he had had no plans of finding a wife. Now, there was a chance he was only a few days away from having one.

Ten days felt like such a short amount of time for such a decision, and yet that was all he could afford.

The longer they waited, the more likely it was that Laird Keith would make a move that would put the entirety of Clan Gunn in danger.

Even those ten days seemed like an eternity to Torrin when it came to this threat, and the fear of an attack crept closer and closer by the minute.

But he had promised Valora this; he couldn’t take it back now.

In ten days he would make sure that Valora would become his wife.