wind was sending across a mist of rain under the platform to chill her.
With the Amazeen and other passengers staring out the windows at him, the
conductor paused on the steps with watch in hand waiting for him and Lea to come
onboard. With the engineer peering out of the engine window with an annoyed grimace
on his face, the engine hissing steam, Bevyn shot out his arm and grabbed Lea around
the waist, jerking her brutally to him. He lowered his head to capture her mouth with
his in a kiss that stunned every eye that saw it. He took his time and kissed her
thoroughly—with lips and tongue and a hard-on that pressed savagely against her.
When he was done, he let go of her, watched her stumble back slightly with wide eyes,
a dazed look and swollen lips, and then reached down for her hand.
108
Her Reaper’s Arms
“Come along, wench,” he said between clenched teeth. “We’re holding up the
train.”
Lea followed behind him, striving to catch her breath. Her Reaper had put
everything into that kiss and it left no doubt in her mind as to how he felt. Her toes had
actually curled with that hard kiss and her womb had done a funny little squeeze. With
her hand tucked firmly in his, he led her up the steps and didn’t relinquish his grip
even when he ushered her into a seat well away from the Amazeen, their back to her,
Lea sitting by the window. He put his free arm around her even though they were both
still wearing their coats.
“You’ve proved your point,” Lea said as the whistle blew and the train began to
roll.
“Did I?” he countered, not looking at her but staring straight ahead.
“Aye, you did,” she said softly.
He let go of her hand, removed his arm from her and stood up in the aisle,
shrugging out of his coat then tossing it to the seat across the way. He leaned down to
help her remove hers then laid it atop his before resuming his seat, stretching his long
legs out in front of him, wedging them partially under the seat in front and crossed his
legs.
The conductor came by and Bevyn stopped him to ask if their traveling companion
could go up to visit with the engineer.
“Well, we don’t normally do that, but for you, milord, we’ll make an exception,”
the conductor said. He bowed then went to speak to the Amazeen.
As soon as Penthe passed them on her way up to the engine car, Bevyn reached up
and tipped his hat down over his eyes, folding his arms over his chest and lowered his
head. “I’m going to take a nap now.”
Lea smiled to herself and turned her head to look out the window at the passing
scenery. The train was gathering speed, the rain streaking the windowpane. She’d never
been this far east and just knowing she was traveling to the very end of the country was
exciting.
From the corner of his eye, Bevyn was watching his lady. Her hands were on the
glass, her forehead pressed against it. She was like a child at a candy store window as
she stared at the bridges they passed, the farmhouses, the streams and lakes before they
began the steady climb up into the misty mountains. It didn’t appear as though she
were missing anything and didn’t even glance around when Penthe came back into the
car, the Blackwind’s hand trailing along Bevyn’s arm as she passed him.
Sighing deeply, unable to sleep but just needing the solitude, the Reaper knew he
was going to have to do something about the Amazeen. He didn’t like her touching
him. He didn’t want her touching him. He knew damned well Lea didn’t want it
happening.
“Lord Bevyn?”
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Charlotte Boyett-Compo
Bevyn flinched, the High Lord’s angry tone drilling into his mind. “Aye, Your
Grace?”
“One week, Reaper,” Lord Kheelan snapped.
“Aye, Your Grace,” Bevyn said, having known full well that would be his
punishment for what he’d done.
“You have severely disappointed us, Coure. Lord Arawn will be here to discuss your
behavior with you.”
There was nothing for Bevyn to say. He’d screwed up as far as the High Council
was concerned and he’d pay for it.
The Shadowlord said no more to him and the silence was a condemnation of its
own.
Bevyn wondered if the High Council knew about the Amazeen Blackwind and
decided since they knew everything else, they had to know about her. Obviously she
wasn’t as much a problem to them as Lea was.
Screw that, he thought. If they didn’t like his relationship with Lea, he’d resign and
take himself right back to Orson. To his way of thinking, he had more than earned a bit
of happiness in his life.
He must have dozed for when he heard his lady’s gasp, his eyes popped open and
he felt disoriented, aware of the faster movement of the train beneath him.
“Milord, look!” Lea said, reaching around to snag his arm and pull him toward her.
Bevyn pushed his hat back and leaned toward her, staring out the window where
she was pointing. A family of buffalo was grazing beyond a split-rail fence, two calves
staring at the train as it chugged by.
“I never thought to see such animals,” she breathed with awe in her voice.
“What are those, Coure?” Penthe asked and Bevyn realized she had moved so she
was sitting directly behind them.
“Bison,” he replied, uneasy that she was back there. “Buffalo.”
“Strange creatures,” Penthe remarked. “Like fuzzy oxen on Amazeen.”
“They were a staple for the Native Terrans many centuries before. The decline of
the animal signaled the decline of many tribes,” he told her.
Lea’s excitement was dimmed by her man and the Amazeen speaking to one
another, and Lea sat back in her seat, her hands in her lap, no longer watching the
scenery.
“Lunch is being served in the dining car,” the conductor said, coming up the aisle
from behind them. “Lunch in the dining car, milord, ladies and gentlemen.”
“Let’s go, sweeting,” Bevyn said, reaching for Lea’s hand. “I’m starved.”
“I am too,” Penthe announced.
“Imagine that,” Lea muttered under her breath. “I bet
