My Heart Belongs to You (Medieval Romance Trilogy Book 3) (39 page)

Kerstin cringed as he held her in a gentle grip of steel, forcing herself not to struggle. He sighed with impatience. “No one can mend scars left upon the body, or upon the soul.”

“You’d be surprised what can be done. The heart, the mind ... close your eyes and you won’t see the scars upon the flesh. Look at them with your heart and there is no deformity.”

For several moments, they stared at one another. Their gazes clashed. She felt compelled by him and could not look away. Where were his scars? He seemed too solid, too strong, too godlike to have any flaws for her to heal. Perhaps the blemish was on his soul.

In his eyes, she saw raw pain. Then, it was gone, replaced once more by the savage warrior. “You want to heal me, little witch?”

“Yes, if it would bring peace.”

“There is only one way for peace between us.”

Pulling her close, he kissed her. His mouth covered hers and stole her breath and her senses. Time spun away until she felt numb to the world around her. Nothing mattered except him, his touch, the taste of him. Her reaction startled her. When he let her go and placed her on her feet, her breath caught with indignation.

He gave her a chilling smile. “There will be peace, once you are my wife.”

As Kerstin stood in shock, his gaze ranged over her. She opened her mouth to rebuke him but he gave her no opportunity.

“I treasure the thought of having a witch for my wife.” His tone filled with contempt. “It’ll be interesting to learn what talents you possess. I want to discover if you quail in terror as other women do when they see me without my shirt.”

“You seek to frighten me,” she accused.

If forced to wed him, would he brutalize her? Such a large, towering man could destroy her. He had no reason to be kind.

“You are a beast,” she whispered.

“And you are a witch.”

“I won’t marry you. You can speak with my father, but he won’t agree.”

“What, ho?” he crowed. “Just moments ago you pleaded with me to let you heal the Beast.”

“You’ve twisted my words,” she replied with mortification.

The fool. No doubt he would love to have power over her, to wield his strength to hurt her. “I will marry Elezer of Lade.”

He gave a scoff of disgust. “Lade is no longer a strong holding and Elezer has no great army to lend the king aid in battle. King Hakon has said you are mine.”

And what about Elezer? True, he had no great army like Jonas or her father, but he was young, strong and kind. He loved her, as she loved him. Since childhood, they had been great friends. After Bjorn’s murder, he had been one of her few allies, offering comfort when others stared at her with distrust and accused her of murder and practicing black magic. Their friendship had blossomed into love. She could never betray him this way. Alrik would not break the betrothal.

Alrik would not break her heart.

“I’ll never marry you, Beast.”

Jonas laughed and showed her a flashing smile. His blue eyes glinted with a steely edge. It reminded her of a wolfhound scenting prey in the forest.

“We shall see.”

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About the Author

Leigh Bale is an award-winning, multi-published author. She won the prestigious RWA Golden Heart in 2006. More recently, she was a finalist for the Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence and the Bookseller’s Best Award. She is the daughter of a retired U.S. forest ranger, holds a B.A. in History with honors and loves spending time with family and grandkids. Married in 1981 to the love of her life, Leigh and her professor husband have two wonderful children. You can reach Leigh at
www.LeighBale.com
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