'I'll take your knife upstairs and put it under your pillow,' Christina promised. 'And in the morning,
I'll sharpen it for you.'
'That's very kind of you,' Jade whispered. 'I didn't realize other ladies carried knives.'
'Most don't,' Christina replied with a dainty shrug. She handed Jade a pristine white nightgown and matching wrapper, then helped her dress. 'I don't sleep with a dagger under my pillow any longer.
Lyon protects me. In time, I think you'll give up your dagger, too. Yes, I do believe you will.'
'You do?' Jade asked. She was desperately trying to make sense out of the woman's remarks.
'Why is that?'
'Destiny,' Christina whispered. 'Of course, you'll have to learn to trust Caine first.'
'Impossible,' Jade blurted out. 'I don't trust anyone.'
From Christina's wide-eyed expression, Jade assumed she'd been too vehement in her reply. 'Lady Christina, I'm not at all certain I know what you're talking about. I barely know Caine. Why would
I have to learn to trust him?'
'Please, you needn't call me Lady Christina,' she countered. 'Now come and sit by the fire while I
brush the crinkles out of your hair.'
She dragged the chair across the room, then gently pushed Jade down into the seat. 'I don't have many friends in England.'
'You don't?'
'It's my fault,' Christina explained. 'I don't have enough patience: The ladies are very pretentious here. You're different, though.'
'How can you know that?' Jade asked.
'Because you carry a knife,' Christina explained. 'Will you be my friend?'
Jade hesitated a long minute before answering. 'For as long as you wish me to be your friend, Christina,' she whispered.
Christina stared down at the lovely woman. 'You believe that once I know all about you, I'll change my inclination, don't you?'
Her new friend shrugged. Christina noticed her hands were tightly clenched in her lap.
'I haven't had time for friends,' Jade blurted out.
'I noticed the scar on your back,' Christina whispered. 'I won't tell Caine about it, of course, but he'll notice when he takes you to his bed. You carry a mark of honor, Jade.'
Jade would have bounded out of the chair if Christina hadn't grabbed her shoulders and held her down.
'I meant no insult,' she rushed out. 'You shouldn't be ashamed of…'
'Caine isn't going to take me to his bed,' Jade countered. 'Christina, I don't even like the man.'
Christina smiled. 'We are friends now, aren't we?'
'Yes.'
'Then you cannot lie to me. You do like Caine. I could see it in your eyes when you looked at him. Oh, you were frowning, but it was all bluster, wasn't it? At least admit that you think he's handsome. All the ladies find him very appealing.'
'He is that,' Jade answered with a sigh. 'He's a womanizer, isn't he?'
'Lyon and I have never seen him with the same woman twice,' Christina admitted. 'So I do suppose
you could call him a womanizer. Aren't most until they're ready to settle down?'
'I don't know,' Jade replied. 'I haven't had many men friends either. There just wasn't time.'
Christina finally picked up the brush and began to give order to Jade's lustrous curls. 'I've never seen such beautiful hair before. There are threads of red fire shining through it.'
'Oh, you have beautiful hair, not me,' Jade protested. 'Men have a preference for golden-haired ladies, Christina.'
'Destiny,' Christina countered, completely changing the topic. 'I have a feeling you've just met yours, Jade.'
She didn't have the heart to argue with her. Christina sounded so sincere. 'If you say so,' she agreed.
Christina noticed the swelling on the side of her head then. Jade explained what had happened to her.
She felt guilty because she was deceiving the woman, for she was telling the same lie she'd told Caine earlier, but her motives were pure, she reminded herself. The truth would only upset her new friend.
'You've had to be a warrior, haven't you, Jade?' Christina asked, her voice filled with sympathy.
'A what?'
'A warrior,' Christina repeated. She was trying to braid Jade's hair, then decided it was still too damp. She put the brush down and waited for her friend to answer.
'You've been alone in this world for a long time, haven't you?' Christina asked. 'That's why you don't trust anyone.'
Jade lifted her shoulders in a shrug. 'Perhaps,' she whispered.
'We should go and find our men now.'
'Lyon is your man, but Caine isn't mine,' Jade protested. 'I'd rather just go to bed, if you please.'
