‘Really, sir! How dare you manhandle me in such a way? And how dare you come in here? Toki assured me this shelter was for my personal use.’ Her voice did not tremble, the blind fear was entirely gone.
He towers over me, but then he would tower over most men. He cannot hurt me, I am the Princess.
Ashfirth Saxon was furious. It had been there in the hard grip of his fingers and it was still there in the set of those wide shoulders. Katerina put her chin up. It was most strange though, because even though she knew this man was angry her terror had quite gone. Men, yes, she remained wary of men in general, but not this particular one. It was incredible. Was it because she had finally met one who could control himself? She had begun to think no such man existed.
Don’t be a fool! The only reason this man will not harm you is because he believes you to be the Princess.
With an impatient noise, he turned away to close the tent-flaps. The shadows deepened, and Katerina was alone with a man as she had not been since the dark days of her slavery.
And the abject terror did not return, though her heart thudded like a drum.
‘My lady, explain yourself, if you please.’ His voice was strained, his fist clenched and unclenched on the parchment.
He is angry but he will not hurt me. He is not Vukan. He will not demand sexual submission as the price of his protection. If she repeated this to herself often enough, she would believe it. He will not hurt me, he is not Vukan …
‘What do you mean by sending this frivolous piece of nonsense—’ he waved the letter under her nose ‘—to the other ship?’
‘Frivolous nonsense? Sir, I do not care for your tone.’ A glint in his eyes warned her that she was testing his patience. She gave a careless shrug. ‘Some of my belongings were packed in the wrong coffer. I asked one of my women to bring them over.’
‘You were missing some belongings? Oh, dear, Lady Theodora, that will not do.’
His tone was blistering; she squirmed inside.
Unrolling the parchment, he started to read. Holy Virgin, the man could read Greek! ‘"To Katerina, my body servant. Greetings, “ it says. “I have discovered my favourite ivory comb is not with me, the one engraved with Celtic patterns. It is in the holly-wood box, along with my silver hairpins and tortoise-shell comb. I need those too. Anna says we will need them to dress my hair properly. Please be so good as to find them. I order you to bring them to my ship at once. I cannot sail without them. “’ His lip curled. ‘"A comb…hairpins…I cannot sail without them. ” Lord, my lady, I thought I made it plain. We cannot be seen to communicate with the other ship.’ His blue eyes burned like flame. ‘It was not a light request. This is no palace game. Your person—’ a long finger stabbed at her breastbone ‘—is at risk here, your person.’
Again his hand came towards her, but before he touched her a second time, his fingers curled and the hand was lowered. It came to her that he had not intended to touch her and that he had startled himself by so doing. He glared at her. ‘Do you understand, my lady?’
‘Thank you, sir, you have made your views plain. I shall not attempt a second communication with my woman.’
‘No, my lady, you will not. I have seen to that.’
At her puzzled expression, Ashfirth Saxon lifted an eyebrow. Opening the canvas door-flap, he pointed outside.
They were moving! Their ship was sliding slowly by the large vessel, indeed, it had almost reached the edge of the dock. She saw the bright flash of silk, a burst of female laughter, the flash of a silver bangle. Close to hand, a rope creaked; a sailor shouted an order. A deckhand ran past the entrance to the pavilion. Another shout. The ship gave a slight jolt.
‘We have cast off!’
‘Yes, we are underway. That should put paid to any further attempts to communicate with the other ship.’ He leaned towards her. ‘Tell my, my lady, do you usually ignore advice when it is offered? Or only when it suits you?’
‘Sir?’
He spoke through clenched teeth. ‘I am the Emperor’s right hand. His sword arm. When I command you, it is your Emperor who commands you. Is that clear?’
Katerina tried to look down her nose at him which, given his height, proved impossible. ‘Perfectly.’
‘Good. I am going to give you some more advice, and this time you are going to heed it.’
‘Oh?’
‘You are remain in this tent for the rest of the day. Sergeant Toki will be posted outside.’
She drew in a breath. ‘You would confine a princess?’
‘Until I know she will do as she is told, yes. As I said, this is no game. I have my orders. I shall send Lady Anna to join you, and you will both remain in here until all chances of bribing one of the sailors is past.’ He let the tent-flap fall back into place and the shadows closed in again, creating an illusion of intimacy. He sighed. ‘I am sorry if you consider that I have violated your privacy, my lady, but we could hardly have this conversation out on the deck. With the exception of the captain, the sailors of this ship believe you to be a Greek noblewoman returning to Constantinople. Only my men know the truth. My main concern, my only concern, is to ensure your safety. And to that end I am prepared to sacrifice anything.’ He tucked the parchment into his belt and made a sound of exasperation. ‘I thought you were intelligent, I thought you could be relied upon to understand the gravity of your situation. I seem to have misjudged you. Hairpins, indeed! I will not make that mistake again, I can assure you.’
So tall and assured. With every moment spent in his company, the conviction was growing that Ashfirth Saxon was a rarity in Katerina’s world, a dependable man. The Princess had insisted that such men existed and that Katerina was a fool if she let her experiences blind her to them.
He might confine me, but I really do not think he will hurt me.
Determination shone in those turquoise eyes. This man appeared to mean it when he said he was prepared to sacrifice anything for her. She was the Princess and he had been ordered to see to her safety. Many men would pay lip service to their orders, but if she could trust her instincts, this one was a rarity. He would carry out his orders with ruthless thoroughness, he would ensure her safety, he would die for her.
He thinks you are the Princess. If he knew your real identity, he would toss you overboard sooner than breathe.
Katerina thought quickly. Was Ashfirth Saxon dependable enough to be trusted with the truth? With matters as they stood, the real princess was in danger!
No, she could say nothing, it was not her truth to tell. She must remember her place—she was but a maidservant carrying out her mistress’s orders. It was not up to her to reveal Princess Theodora’s deception. I do not like lying to this man, but I have no choice. What an irony! The one time in her life she needed a man who was not dependable, and the Emperor sent this one! She could have done with someone like Commander Ashfirth years ago; God mocked her to send him now.
His eyes had darkened. He cleared his throat and shifted back a pace. ‘My lady, I will send Lady Anna to you.’
Katerina’s pulse quickened. Is he attracted to me? Yes, I think he is. He is watching my mouth, his fingers are digging into his palm, and …
The realisation that Ashfirth Saxon might be attracted to her sent panicky thoughts flying this way and that. Her stomach clenched; she could not cope with this!
Remain calm. Concentrate. This man is not driven by his baser instincts, he does not expect sexual favours from you, nor will he force compliance on you even if he desires you.
Indeed,