Page 4 of Snowed In With the Dragon Kings

"Lord Silas." I nod and keep walking. "Lovely day."

He steps directly into my path.

"Elara. What a pleasant surprise." His smile is warm. His eyes are not. "And where are you off to in such a hurry?"

"Home. It's cold."

"Is it?" He tilts his head, and his gaze moves over my face slowly. Too slowly. "You look flushed. Are you feeling unwell?"

Panic claws up my throat. Can he tell? Can men smell it? I know men can smell when a woman is in heat, but I don’t think this quickly. I think it builds the longer she’s in heat without being impregnated, until her heat passes. But nobody ever explained the details, and I never asked, because I hoped I’d never need to know.

"I'm fine," I say. "Just walked too fast. If you'll excuse me."

I step around him.

His hand closes on my arm.

It's not rough. Anyone watching would think it was gentle, even sweet. But he draws me back toward him, and I can't pull away without making a scene.

"I can't possibly let you wander off looking so distressed," he says, loud enough for the stable boy to hear. "What kind of gentleman would I be?"

The kind who lets go of my arm, I want to say.

"It's very kind of you to worry," I say instead, "but I'm perfectly capable of walking home."

"Nonsense. I'll escort you."

"That's really not necessary."

"I insist." His fingers tighten, just a little. "You're very fortunate, you know, to have someone who's willing to look after you. Not every woman does."

"I'll try to contain my gratitude."

He laughs like I've said something charming. Two women pass by with a basket of evergreen boughs, and Silas nods to them, all warmth and good manners. They smile at us like we're a sweet picture.

I want to scream.

He doesn't know yet. That's the only thing I've got going for me. Because when he finds out, when the elders tell him what's happening to me, he'll have the perfect excuse. She's in heat. She's not thinking clearly. She needs a man to make her decisions for her.

He'll be insufferable.

"You know," he says, "your life would be so much easier if you'd just accept my proposal. I've been more than patient, Elara. Years of patience."

"I've noticed."

"Then you've noticed how generous I'm being." He smooths his free hand down the front of his coat. "A woman in your position should appreciate having a man of my standing interested in her. You're not getting any younger. And you'd be quite pretty, really, if you'd do something about your hair."

My jaw aches from smiling. "That's very sweet of you to say."

Under my cloak, my skin is crawling right off my bones. Every instinct I have is screaming at me to yank my arm away and tell him exactly where he can put his standing. But I know Silas. I know that if I embarrass him in front of people, he'll make me pay for it later. And right now, I can't afford to have him angry and paying attention to me.

What I need is for him to get bored. Or distracted.

"I really do need to go," I tell him.

When I take a step back, his grip tightens on me, even harder.

"You really ought to learn to accept help when it's offered," he says quietly.