He took her elbow and led her inside where it wasn’t much warmer. While he built a fire in the big hall, she sipped her coffee. The strong, rich brew invigorated her, the caffeine giving her a boost of energy, but it didn’t placate her bruised ego, for which she only had herself to blame.
When the flames were high, he made her sit on a chair and disinfected the scrapes, which were mostly the old cuts that had torn open.
“You need tights,” he said when he’d finished. “We’ll pick some up in town.”
“You said you’d take me to the cottage.”
He dumped the cotton swab in the trashcan. “We can stop on the way.”
After pulling a parka jacket on over his hoodie, he held out his hand. “Come. I don’t want to get caught in the rain. If it rains hard, the car will get stuck in the mud.”
“Maybe you should have the road fixed,” she said, ignoring his proffered hand.
He folded his fingers around hers and pulled her toward the hallway. “What’s the point?”
Because he wasn’t planning on sticking around. “You said you were going back to New York.”
“We,” he said, fixing her with a look from over his shoulder. “We’re going back together.”
“When?”
He led her to the car and helped her inside before taking the wheel. Rubbing his hands together, he asked, “Anything you need from town?”
“You can’t keep it from me indefinitely.”
He started the engine and turned up the heater. “Keep what from you?”
“Your plans.”
“Already told you, you’ll know what you need to know.”
“Right.” She looked from her window. “What you think I need to know.”
“Exactly.”
“We’re not going to town for tights,” she said when he turned into the dirt road that would take them to the national road. “We’re going for people to see me. You want to broadcast that I’m here.”
He glanced sideways at her, his hand tightening on the wheel.
Bingo. She’d been right. She was the bait.
For the rest of the way to Larmor-Baden, she said nothing. Even as the tension in the car mounted, excitement at the prospect of seeing her animals grew in her chest. They stopped at a general store in Larmor to pick up supplies, which included more candles, tights, and baguette.
Joss conversed a few words with the owner, telling him they were back for a short honeymoon. She could tell the old man was dying to ask when and where they got married, but he only congratulated them as he not so discreetly looked at the wedding bands on their fingers. She bet he was going to tell everyone, something Joss was probably bargaining on. He needed to get the word out, and what better way to do it than via the grapevine?
From Larmor they took the bridge to the Island of Berder. The nearer they got to the cottage, the more her excitement mixed with anxiety. She couldn’t wait to see her animals. Would they be fine? She didn’t know what she’d do if one of them was lost or hurt. There were many dangers in the woods but the biggest threat to the wolfdogs were the villagers. She had no hope of finding Erwan at home. Erwan wasn’t stupid. If he hadn’t guessed Joss had the cottage watched, his loyal friends in town would’ve gotten word to him.
Joss startled her by taking her hand when he steered the car down the dirt track over the hill. She pulled away.
“If I hadn’t chased you,” he said, “you wouldn’t have had to give all of this up.”
It was tempting to let him carry all the blame, but it wasn’t true. “I had to run either way.”
“Did you hate me?”
The question surprised her. Why would he care? “Not then.”
His expression hardened. “Only after.”
“What do you want me to say?”
He contemplated that for a moment before replying, “The truth is good.”
In that case, silence would be better.
Thankfully, the cottage came into view and he didn’t push the issue. He stopped the car and booted up his tablet. After studying it, he said, “I’ve connected to our satellite tracking. It’s safe.”
Wow. Satellite. Just as she’d thought. The property was being watched. Barely able to wait, she moved to the edge of the seat as he steered the car down the road again. A white canine stood in the distance.
“Snow!”
The wolfdog lifted his head and twitched his ears. Even before Joss had parked the car, he was at the house, standing guard with Thunder, Cloud, and Rain.
What used to be her normal life now felt like a dream. Snow approached with a wagging tail when she got out, his bark loud. The big animal jumped and almost knocked her off her feet. Going down on her haunches, she laughed as he licked her face. He nudged her with his snout as she scratched his ears.
Tears mixed with her laughter as she hugged one after the other of her dogs. Aware of Joss watching them and reluctant to show him more weakness than she already had, she blinked her tears away. Still, this moment merited gratitude.
“Thank you for bringing me here, Joss.”
He looked toward the distance, avoiding her eyes. “I’m going to check around. Don’t go inside until I tell you it’s clear.”
She stared after him when he walked off toward the cottage. Why was he blaming himself for how she’d left as if he actually gave a damn about her feelings? Instead of dissecting the thought, she turned her attention back to the dogs. Tomorrow was another day. Right now, she was here, and their time together was short.
Joss put his head around the frame of the front door. “You can come in now, Mrs. de Arradon.”
The title jarred her. Brushing off her dress, she straightened. “Come on, Snow.”
Joss waited in the door, tracking her steps with his eyes.
When she slipped past him, he brushed a hand over her hip. Memories of last night when his hands had been on her naked skin flooded her mind. Her body
