Page 27 of A Spinster's Guide to Landing a Lyon

Of course he had the most logical reason to find her. It wasn’t about her. This was about him needing to be the protector. He was a good person, but still not one of the good ones who might see her as a woman. A woman that could be his wife. Or the mother of his children.

Oh, those thoughts hurt her heart. Like someone had reached inside of her and ripped it in half. Her legs trembled and she sunk to the ground.

The sound alerted Benedict to her whereabouts and he instantly appeared at her side. On his knees, he took her hand-covered face in his.

His voice softened. “Amelia? What’s wrong?”

She just shook her head. Trying to fling off the compassion. The pain. The dreams. Everything.

“Just leave me alone,” she whispered. “Please.”

“I can’t do that, Amelia.”

“I’ll be fine in the rain.” She sniffled, mortified that he should see her like this. “There’s a small cabin just through the trees. I can go there.” She tried to drop her head to her knees, but instead, she felt strong arms wrap around her body and lift her up.

The man was a beast in strength and agility, rising to standing as if she weighed nothing.

“Wh-what are you—”

“Where’s this cabin?” His voice brooked no argument while his steely eyes surveyed the trees surrounding them.

“We can’t go there together—”

“We’re not going to make it home before the rain comes.”

“That’s ridicu—” a raindrop landed on her lips, stilting her words.

“You were saying?” She peeked up at him through her already damp lashes. Damn. That was a mistake. The fire in his eyes burned through her. A trail of molten lava crawling through her body. “Now. Where’s the cabin?”

Soft murmurs were all she could manage as she directed him to her sacred place.

Chapter Seventeen

“Ithought yousaid it was close,” Benedict grumbled as the raindrops sluiced down his face.

“I-I thought it was.” Her lip was already trembling. He needed to heat them up. And fast. “Maybe if you hadn’t insisted on carrying me it would be closer.” Considering her vulnerable position in his arms, he had to admire the way her chin jutted out in that small act of defiance.

But still, if she was already this cold, it wasn’t about to get better until they found shelter. His conscience wouldn’t survive if anything fatal happened to her on his watch.

“There it is.” Her teeth chattered as she pointed to a small cabin in the distance.

Not slowing down for a second, Benedict aimed his feet toward their refuge and forged ahead.

Only a second after they had crashed into the small place, he scanned the room, locating the fireplace and a few pieces of firewood.

“This place looks recently occupied,” he said more to himself than Amelia.

“I-I come here often. To think.”

He wanted to know more about that. What did she do here? Why did she like to be alone? But he couldn’t besiege her with questions right now. His priorities were exclusively focused on making a fire.

Without delay, he found the supplies he needed and perfectly placed the kindling then lit it. Soon, a small flame took to the wood.

“Y-you’ve done that before.”

“I also like to spend time alone in one of the cabins on my property. It clears my head to chop wood and be alone with nature.”

Her eyes went wide at that confession, but he couldn’t decipher the exact reasoning for why they rounded as much as they did. Like two small plates, they were so large.