Free Medieval Master Warlords by Kathryn Le Veque Page B

takes several dozen men.”
    He did not react to what he could have interpreted as a rebuke. “There is a village to the south.”
    “Aye; Hadden is six miles to the south. What about it?”
    “I will recruit your labor force from there.”
    She eyed him warily. “Perhaps you should let me do it.  You will only terrify people if you go there demanding workers.”
    “And?”
    “And, they will run from you.  I need them to run to Pelinom, not run away from it.”
    The corner of his mouth twitched.  Kellington could see that he was struggling not to smile.
    “It is not funny,” she said frankly.
    He let his smile break through, reluctantly. “Nay, it is not, but it is the way you say it.  Do you want my help or not?”
    “I do not.”
    “Then what did you need to meet with me about?”
    “To ask your thoughts on the matter. Now that I have them, I would ask permission to travel to the village of Hadden and hire some workers.”
    His smile faded. “Not without escort, lady.”
    She shook her head at him vehemently. “Not you. Send me with someone else. One look at you and you’ll have everyone running for their lives.”
    He should have agreed with her. The less bothered he was with her, the better. But eight days of attempting to separate himself from her and the conflicts she created within him had been destroyed by two minutes in her presence. She made him smile.  She wasn’t afraid to tell him what she thought of him. She made him feel as no one had ever made him feel. Never being one to show emotion, he had no idea how to control them once they surfaced.  Ajax de Velt always took what he wanted. That did not change.
    Reaching out, he grasped her around the head and kissed her so hard that Kellington nearly fainted with the force of it.  At first she tried to pull away. But it only took a few seconds for her to feel his heat, the soft strength of his lips, and surrender completely. It was the third time he had kissed her so she should have known what to expect; complete, utter dominance. What she gave him was complete, utter submission. 
    In little time, she was limp in his arms as his mouth worked her lips furiously. His tongue, a wicked heated thing, invaded her sweet mouth and licked her senseless.  He was so enormous that being held by him was the most overwhelming sensation she could imagine; she should very well have been terrified. Ajax de Velt was a man of terror and death.  But he also had the sweetest kiss she could have possibly experienced.  With all of the force and lust behind it, there was something innately passionate and inviting about his touch.   The man could easily crush her, but all she could feel was tender power.  It was a heady and bizarre combination.
    This time when he released her, he did not abruptly let her go as he had in the past.  He continued to hold her in his consuming embrace, gazing at her with his dual colored eyes as if attempting to figure out why he had suddenly kissed her.
    “I will indeed escort you,” he whispered huskily. “And I will hear no argument from you.”
    Kellington gazed back into his amazing eyes, feeling the heat but not the fear she usually associated with him.  She swallowed hard.
    “I told you not to do that again.”
    “Do what? Kiss you?” his arms tightened. “You’ll not give me orders, lady.”
    “I told you I would not be your whore.”
    “And so you are not.”
    It was a definitive reply.  He had a point, but she still had to protest the liberties he was taking.  If she didn’t take a stand now, there was no telling what he would do in the future.  She was proving to be a rather compliant partner and the mere thought embarrassed her to death. She eyed him, still struggling with her composure. 
    “As long as we understand one another, then,” she said softly. “And I will allow you to accompany me to town on one condition.”
    He lifted a dark eyebrow. “More demands from you?”
    “One condition, my