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“Very pretty. Oh!” He looked at me closely. “Deer shifter?”
I laughed and shook my head, then went back to watching the doe and her fawn. We both marveled at the beauty of that wintery scene, then looked at each other and grinned.
And grinned…
Slowly, our smiles faded, but not because something was wrong. On the contrary, something was very, very right. His amber eyes locked on mine, sparking and swirling. My chest rose on a deep breath, and time slowed.
The wagon wheels rumbled over frozen ground, and my mind turned the sound into words.
Trust…destiny…love…
All concepts I thought I understood, except I hadn’t, at least not until now.
Which was crazy. I barely knew the man!
You can trust him. You must trust him, the wheels creaked to me next.
Can trust was one thing. But must? Why? What did fate have in store?
Rosie nickered, and we both looked up. Another wagon was coming our way.
Tuck gave himself a little shake. “Whoops. We’ve got company.” He smoothed a hand over my head, hiding a loose lock of hair, and tugged my hood lower. “Keep your head down.”
I did, hiding my face as the other wagon rolled by.
“Morning, Tuck,” someone called.
“Morning, Anthony,” Tuck echoed.
“Who was that?” I whispered once we were clear.
“The lay monk on firewood duty.”
For a while, neither of us spoke. Then I leaned in and whispered, “What about Willa?”
He pointed, and at first, I didn’t understand. No house, no village. Just a seemingly endless stretch of woods.
Then it hit me. The woods.
“She’s in Sherwood Forest?”
Tuck kept his lips pursed as if weighing up how much to trust me.
“Can we see her now? Is that where we’re going?”
He shook his head. “You don’t enter the forest without an invitation — not even me. But I’ve sent word. She knows my route. So, it’s up to her.”
Heat rose to my cheeks, and I nearly barked an angry reply. But then I caught myself. Tuck was simply protecting my friend — and himself.
I sat back, resolving to let the day bring what it would — such as evidence that I could trust Tuck, and vice versa. And hopefully, a chance to see Willa.
My mind went over his words. You don’t enter the forest without an invitation. Not even me.
Did he know the outlaws of Sherwood Forest? Did he have some kind of agreement with them?
I glanced at the goods in the wagon, worried that I’d misjudged Tuck. What if he planned to sell the goods intended for the poor and pocket the profits? Worse, what if he was in cahoots with the bandits?
Months earlier, I’d sent Willa — my best friend and, technically, one of my ladies-in-waiting — on a secret mission to bring my family treasures to the outlaws of Sherwood Forest for safekeeping from Prince John. But what if my trust in them had been misplaced?
