Moonstone Read Online Free PDF

so he went right ahead and stalled.

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Four
     
    Rhiannon kept her filched stallion down to a very slow walk all the way back to the castle , since it was the last place she wanted to be.
    When they reached the courtyard s he prepared to swing her leg off. Her shoulder was achy, and her face and hands stung from thorn scratches. Her lip had settled into a dull throb.
    William reached up to help her.
    “Do not touch me .” Rhiannon swung her leg over the saddle.
    A dizzy spell made her lose her balance, and she slipped off the horse. He caught her.
    William’s brown leather jerkin was smooth and warm beneath her fingers. He smelled of leather and spice. For a moment, the warmth and hardness of his chest felt almost . . .
    “Let go of me.” She wiggled and he released her.
    “ You are tired, and you’ve not had decent meals. You are in pain. Just let me help you.”
    S he longed to believe he really wanted to help her. But men could not be trusted. She knew what he would require from her in exchange for his aid, and she couldn’t bring herself to do that again. Never again.
    “Geoffrey is coming,” William warned, backing away.
    She looked up to see Geoffrey crossing the courtyard toward them. The very sight of him made her sick to her stomach. A hiccup erupted before she could stop it.
    “He willna hurt you,” William said. “Not anymore. ”
    Another hiccup. She tried holding her breath.
    “Dinna look so vulnerable, please.”
    She blew out her breath. “I am not vulnerable. And what is it to you?”
    “More than you think, now hush.”
    Geoffrey stopped before William. “Your man let her get away.”
    “He didna expect her to go out the window. And ’tis your lads on the wall who failed you.”
    Geoffrey waved a hand in dismissal. “They have been punished.”
    Rhiannon wondered what Geoffrey had done to them. Toss them in the prison tower? Torture and dismember them? Draw and quarter? She hadn’t meant to get anyone hurt.
    Geoffrey perused her , his dark eyes burning through her skin, promising her things that made her bleed from the inside.
    “She is bleeding,” Geoffrey said.
    Yes, she was . . .
    “She fell from the horse,” William supplied.
    Geoffrey walked a circle around her. She clenched her teeth, her hands balled at her sides. She wanted to make a run for it. But it was useless. He would only catch her and bring her back again.
    Or William would. Blast him.
    “Take her above,” Geoffrey said. “I have some things to see to. I dinna have time for her antics.”
    He backed away and Rhiannon sighed in relief.
    “And do be sure your man doesna let her escape,” Geoffrey said over his shoulder, his eyes lingering over her blood smeared on William’s shirt. Smiling, he walked away.
    She looked a t William as Geoffrey’s boots clipped on cobblestones.
    William shook his head. “Dinna worry.”
    “Did you see the way he smiled at you?”
    “Aye.”
    “He saw my blood on your shirt . You should never have touched me to begin with. What of your agreement with him?”
    “I have not forgotten. And all I did was warm you.”
    Rhiannon pressed her lips flat, then winced.
    “Can you walk?” He touched her arm.
    She pulled away. “As opposed to what?”
    “Nothing. ” His gaze lingered for a moment. “Help her,” he told Alice. “She is weak.”
    “I am not weak.”
    Alice wrapped her arm around Rhiannon.
    “Wait.” Rhiannon went back to the charcoal stallion, pulling her brush out of a pouch on the saddle. She clutched it close as Alice tucked her arm back around her.
    “Are you all right?” Alice asked.
    She rolled her eyes. “Aside from the bruises, a wrenched arm, and a split lip? Yes.”
    “I meant your condition ? You did fall off a horse. You should let me know if there’s any bleeding.”
    Rhiannon winced. “Can we talk about this later?”
    Alice was quiet for a moment. “What did William say to you earlier, in the