Page 33 of Lord of Misrule

“My guess is that she is the beautiful new baker of Blake Castle, named Kit.” He lowered the hood from his face, staring directly into her eyes. With their gazes interlocked, time seemed to stand still. He had never wanted a woman as badly as he did right now.

“You win again, Lord of Misrule,” said Jarvis, slapping him on the back. When he said his title aloud, Kit’s eyes lowered and she pouted slightly. “Do you want to go again, or should someone else try?” asked Jarvis.

“Neither,” he answered, his gaze still locked on the beautiful woman standing before him. “Musicians, play a song,” he called out. “It is time for everyone to dance.”

“I’m sorry. I need to get back to the kitchen.” Kit turned to go, but Tolin’s hand clamped over her arm to keep her there. Slowly, she turned back to look at him.

“There is nowhere you need to be right now but here,” he said in a soft voice.

“I—I don’t dance. Not really.”

“It’s the command of the Lord of Misrule to dance with him.” Jarvis walked up with a smile on his face and a tankard of ale in his hand. “You can’t say no. That’s not the way the game works.”

The musicians started playing a lively tune. Before she could object again, Tolin took her hand and bowed. She, in turn, curtseyed to him. He could see now that she knew how to dance but just hadn’t wanted to do so with him.

“I didn’t think you were coming,” he said, trying to make small talk which was something he wasn’t very good at.

“I didn’t want to, but as we both know, I didn’t have a choice.”

“What does that mean?” He spun her around, and when she turned he put his hand on her shoulder.

“You are the Lord of Misrule. You can demand anything of me and I would have to do it.”

“Now, now,” he said, shaking his head. “I am a noble and right now lord of the castle. I could do that anyway.”

By the look on her face he could tell this wasn’t going well.

“I mean...what I meant was that I never ordered you to dance with me. As Lord of Misrule.”

“But as Lord of Blake Castle you did?”

Why did she always have to answer him with another question?

“Kit, I am trying my best for us to get along.” He twirled her around again, followed by a promenade.

“I don’t believe that.”

“Why not?” he asked.

“Because, if you were sincere, you’d never have commanded me to leave my home and work in your kitchen until Twelfth Night. You realize that I’ll lose my business now. And my sister will be with a new baby and nowhere to live.”

“Oh, is that what you think?” They continued to dance.

“That is what I know.”

“Well, you’re wrong. I’d never let that happen,” he assured her, but she didn’t seem to believe him. They stopped dancing and happened to be standing right under the mistletoe. “Oh, look.” He motioned upward with his eyes. “We’re under the kissing bough again, it seems.”

“Are you going to command me to kiss you?”

“Nay,” he said, pulling her into his arms. “I’m not going to command, I’m not going to ask. This time, I’m just going to kiss you before you have a chance to run away.”

Kit was caught by surprise when Tolin’s lips came down and covered her mouth. Without meaning to, her eyes closed and she was wrapped in the magic of Tolin Blake’s intimate move. He held her gently but protectively in his arms. His kiss was passionate but not forceful. With her eyes closed she got lost in the moment. Music filled the room and when her eyes opened, the light from the candles atop the kissing boughs lit up the place in a romantic, soft glow.

“There now,” he whispered, his finger tapping her on the nose. “That wasn’t so horrible, was it?”

Being this close to Tolin made her feel weak. And vulnerable. Her nerves started to shake because anxiety coursed through her. Damn, this always happened to her when she was with a man she really liked. Double damn, because although her mind told her she despised Tolin, her body was telling her otherwise. Kit felt as if she couldn’t breathe. She needed to get away from him quickly.

Turning, she darted out of his arms and ran for her room that adjoined to the kitchen. She didn’t stop until she’d entered the small living area and slammed the door behind her. Kit dove to the blankets on the floor that served as her bed, wanting to hide away from the world.