His mouth watered as he eyed the beef and vegetables swimming in thick brown gravy on the platter, and his hunger took over. Lotherin, his and Donnic’s fathers and the strange sensations he couldn’t seem to shake were forgotten for now. He knew it might be some time before any of them had such a hearty meal again, especially the soldiers. They’d all need their strength, even him. You never knew when a raid would come.
“I hope this winter isn’t as bad as last year,” Chelsey said.
Kelwin knew what she was really saying. She wasn’t talking about the weather, although it could get bitterly cold here. Last winter had been hard on Rosemont. It seemed that each week another estate attacked their food stores.
“We’ll be prepared, Chelsey,” he said.
His mother caught his eye, her brows drawn together. They’d tried to keep Chelsey sheltered from the reality of what came after reaping season, but she was getting older. He supposed it was better to focus on the food shortage than the resulting danger of violence.
“Donnic and I will go hunting and bring back a fat boar,” he said with a smile.
“Boar steaks?” Chelsey asked. “Oh, Cook is wonderful with boar steaks.”
Kelwin just nodded. Rosemont’s kitchen was very good at stretching the food left after reaping, not to mention handling the game they hunted and the wild roots and berries they gathered.
He felt a sharp prickle of awareness, a sudden echo of what he’d felt at the festival. His breath caught in his lungs. He swallowed and turned, running his eyes carefully over the hall. His gaze was drawn to the kitchen.
Among the few servants there he saw a girl he didn’t recognize. She had reddish-brown hair, and the braid down her back looked bright and shining against her rough tunic. He stared at her face, the curve of her cheek, the large brown eyes that held his for a second. Recognition struck like lightning. His heart raced as he sucked in a breath. Who was she?
He turned to his mother. “Mother, did you hire a new maid?”
“Cook took on a girl yesterday,” she answered. “Why?”
Because she’s the one. He couldn’t say that ridiculous thought out loud. How could she be the one causing his strange feelings? He’d never seen her before.
It didn’t matter. That hum of awareness, that rumble of a storm, shot through his body when their eyes met. Was she gifted, too?
Something was happening. To him or to the realm, he didn’t know. This girl was at the center of it, somehow. He couldn’t shake that feeling. He would find out everything about her. Hell, he’d touch her if he had to.
It was worth the sting of a thousand nettles to get to the bottom of this.
***
Alyssa leaned against a wall in the kitchen, her body flushing hot and cold. She’d never seen a boy like the blond one sitting at the family table. Those eyes, bright blue and so intense as they stared at her, seemed familiar somehow. That was ridiculous. There was no way she’d ever seen him before. She could never forget that face. Who was he?
When his eyes met hers, the floor tilted beneath her feet. She must still be exhausted from their trip from Merrickwood. That choking sensation of being chased, never completely gone since she’d run from home, had eased in the heart-stopping moment he’d looked at her. For a second she’d wanted to run to him, as silly as that was. Even now, she couldn’t look away.
Oh, he was even better looking than the big dark-haired boy sitting across from him. His thick blond hair fell over his forehead and his face was almost pretty. He wasn’t as muscular as the boy with dark hair, but he looked strong in his gray woven shirt. She wanted to fold herself into his arms and close her eyes. To rub her cheek against his chest and forget everything that happened since her father died. To feel that calm she’d sensed when their eyes first met.
“Who is he?” she asked the nearest maid.
“Lord Kelwin,” she said. “The late Baron Rosemont’s son.”
She looked back at the family table. She supposed that made sense. Except for his eyes, he had the same coloring as Lady Rosemont and her daughter.
“He’s so…” Alyssa began.
The maid laughed. “I know. Shame he’s the way he is.”
Alyssa shook her head. What way could he be? Perfect? The sounds of the bustling kitchen faded as she stared at the boy in the hall. She licked her lips as an unfamiliar warmth tickled her stomach. Oh, he was more than beautiful.
Another servant nudged her gently from behind. “The platter, Lisa.”
It took her a second to realize that was her name, for right now anyway. She looked out at the family table and saw the empty platter. She had to go out there. Just as she’d wanted to for those crazy few seconds when she’d first seen him, she longed to fold herself into his arms and imagine she was back at Merrickwood. That she and Thomas were safe.
She swallowed thickly. If she went out there she’d actually be near that beautiful boy who made her feel such strange things. Be careful what you wish for.
She adjusted her rough brown tunic and ran her fingers over her braid. Hair escaped to curl around her face, but she couldn’t worry about her appearance now. It was funny, but wearing the too-big simple clothes and a fake name felt more natural than the fancy Lotherin dresses Dalton insisted she wear at Merrickwood. Taking a deep breath, she picked up a full platter of stew and walked toward the table.
He nodded as she approached, apparently listening to something the dark-haired boy said. That boy saw her first. He stopped in mid-sentence as his brows rose.
“Hey,” he said.
The blond boy turned to look at her, then froze as his mouth dropped open. Her pulse kicked as they stared at each other. Did she know him? No, she couldn’t know him. She’d never left Merrickwood in her life and he’d certainly never come there.
She managed a smile and held the platter tighter. “More stew?”
The dark-haired boy grinned, his blue eyes sparkling. “I could always eat more stew. What about you, Kelwin?”
The blond boy, Kelwin, moved his mouth but she couldn’t make out what he was saying. Keeping her hands as steady as she could, she placed the platter on the table then stood there like an idiot. He was even prettier up close, with thick golden lashes framing his incredible eyes. She saw that Lady Rosemont and her daughter looked at her now, probably wondering why the cook had hired a fool, so she dropped a curtsey and turned to go.
“Wait!” Kelwin came to his feet, his hands reaching out to her.
For a second she thought he was going to grab her arm. He stood there, clenching and unclenching his hand. She couldn’t stop staring at his fingers. They were so long and graceful.
“Y-yes, my lord?” she asked, her voice a whisper.
“I wanted to…” He didn’t finish his thought.
She stared up at him, taking every breath he took as thunder rumbled through her. A chuckle from the dark-haired boy broke the spell and she blinked rapidly.
“What’s your name, maid?” he asked, laughter in his voice.
“L-lisa,” she said.
Kelwin moved his lips again. “Ah…lisa.”
It was so close to her real name she gasped. Before she could make herself look even sillier, she curtseyed again and hurried back to the kitchen.
What was wrong with her? Yes, she was still tired from their long journey through the wilderness. Yes, she still feared that Dalton would somehow track them down here. She couldn’t figure out why she reacted to Kelwin the way she did, though.
She risked another peek and saw that Kelwin still stared after her. The other boy, the dark-haired one, seemed to find it all very funny. With his blue eyes so like Kelwin’s, she guessed he must be a relative as well. Oh, why had she gone out there?
“Idiot!” she said to herself. “You’ll get yourself kicked out of here, you and Thomas. And then where will you be?”
Once more at Dalton’s mercy, that’s where. The flutter in her stomach turned to cold dread. She couldn’t let that happen.
***
Kelwin splayed his hands on the table, breathing through his nose as he tried to compose himself. He’d nearly grabbed the maid.
“Kelwin, are you all right?” he heard his mother ask.
He nodded. “Yeah, I just… I swear I know her.”
“Well, I don’t,” Donnic said. “I would have remembered her. Cute piece of fluff.”
Kelwin shook his head, then looked at his mother. “Did you know her before she came here?”
His mother blinked. “No.”
“She’s very pretty,” Chelsey said.
Kelwin rubbed at the damp skin at the back of his neck, then waved away Chelsey’s words. A part of his mind knew she was pretty, but that wasn’t why he reacted the way he did. He felt such a strong connection to her, like they’d met and talked before. Like they knew each other. Her eyes, those wide amber eyes of hers, had stared at him like she felt it too. She felt…familiar.
“God,” he gasped, falling back into his chair.
He stared down at his empty plate, glad now that there was only gravy left there. He couldn’t stand to look at that stew she brought, not with his stomach in knots.
“Are you all right?” his mother asked again.
He forced himself to meet her eyes and saw worry there. She didn’t need more to worry about, not with winter coming. “I’m fine, Mother.”
“Michal trained him hard today, Aunt Jayne,” Donnic said.
Kelwin took the lifeline his cousin gave him. “I’m just tired.” He came to his feet. “I think I’ll go to bed.”
His mother and sister stared hard at him and he was grateful neither of them had his gift. He was sure that even without touching him his father would have known what Kelwin felt for that girl. Once again he wished he could go to him. He’d help him figure out what was going on. It was beyond strange, but he still had to fight the urge to run into the kitchen and find her.
Donnic nodded slowly, his lips parted. Kelwin could guess what his cousin thought. That Kelwin was infatuated with a pretty girl for the first time. Well, infatuation had nothing to do with it. He was tied to that particular girl and had no idea why.
“Good eve,” he said, standing once more.
His family murmured their good night wishes and he left the family table. He ignored the pull he felt as he passed the entrance to the kitchen. She was in there, probably watching him to make sure he didn’t attack her or something. Who knew what the other maids would tell her if she asked. That’s Kelwin Rosemont. Don’t touch him. He’ll read your thoughts or tell your future.
He could do all that and more. That wasn’t why he wanted to touch Lisa. No. That prickly feeling, that rumbling was back and beating at the back of his head. But when she’d stood close to him?
When she’d stood close and looked him in the eyes, he’d felt nothing but peace.
***
The kitchen was quiet at this time of the morning, at least in Alyssa’s part of it. She took comfort in that, since she’d been unable to sleep last night. After her run-in with Kelwin her mind had raced along with her heartbeat. So he was a cute boy. That wasn’t it. She’d seen cute soldiers at Merrickwood since she’d started noticing them a couple of years ago. There was something different with him.
The cooks were baking bread and preparing the meat for the midday meal. Now and then another kitchen maid gave her a strange look. They must have noticed how she made a cake of herself over Kelwin. Terrific. She’d hoped for anonymity here, and she was drawing more attention to herself every minute.
As she prepared a serving dish, trying to keep her movements even and efficient enough so that the others left her in peace, Dalton flashed into her mind. Worry bit at her. Would he recover from the burns that surely must cover his body? He’d been a pillar of flames, but maybe she wasn’t remembering that quite right. How could so little candle wax cause such destruction?
It didn’t matter. He would be beyond pissed at her. She didn’t know much about his life before he’d become such good friends with her father, but she did know he grew angry very quickly. He was stronger than he appeared too. She’d seen him smack a soldier clear across the yard once. She could take his anger if she had to but what about Thomas? He wasn’t a very big child for his age. What would happen when Dalton found them? He had Merrickwood’s men under his control. Would he send them in search of her and Thomas? A shiver of fear ran down her spine. There was no question.
He must never find them.
Chapter 4
Kelwin watched the maid from the family table until she was out of sight. He chewed on his morning meal of cheese and bread, his mind humming. What was it about her? She was pretty, but that wasn’t it. She was delicate, her movements graceful and refined. She hadn’t said much but her way of speaking was fine, too. He straightened in his chair. Could she really be a noblewoman? Then why would she work at Rosemont?
He ate a few more pieces of cheese as he tried to make sense of it. He had to touch her, that was all. Phantom pain struck him at the prospect, but he really had no choice. He hadn’t forgotten the pull he’d felt toward her last night.
“What is it about her?” Donnic asked.
Kelwin forced his attention to his cousin. “Who?”
Donnic smirked. “The new maid, Kelwin. You’re practically panting after her.”
He quickly saw his mother and Chelsey must have left the table earlier, and let out a breath of relief that they wouldn’t hear Donnic’s words. “I’m not.”
Donnic leaned closer. “She’s a distraction you don’t need.”
Kelwin felt a flicker of anger. “What do you mean?”
“You have to train and train hard. If you spend your energies chasing a bit of tail, you can’t devote your time to Michal’s regimen.”
“Don’t worry about me. Didn’t I show you I can fight? Even Michal said—”
Donnic snorted, waving a hand through the air. “For someone of your size and strength, Kelwin. What if the other estates have more boys like me than like you?”
“Like me?” Kelwin frowned. “What, worthless?”
Donnic’s brows shot up. “I never said you were worthless.”
Kelwin stood. “Look. I’ll be as ready as anyone when the raids come. Don’t worry.”
Donnic stood and for a second Kelwin thought he was going to grab his arm to hold him there. Instead, he raked his fingers through his hair. “Leave her be. She might be pretty but believe me she’s not worth it.”
Kelwin looked from his cousin to the kitchen, then shrugged. “I’ll see you in the training yard, Donnic.”
He heard his cousin mutter something about tails and rods and chose to ignore him. He wasn’t panting after Lisa, not really. He had to be near her, though. He’d figure out why later.
He walked into the kitchen and quickly saw she wasn’t in there. A slight shiver of awareness passed through him and he jerked his head toward the back of the kitchen, toward his mother’s garden. He caught a glimpse of the maid’s hair and smiled. He stepped closer and watched her for a minute.
She was apparently gathering herbs and things for the cooks, but stilled as she came to the lavender. The impractical plant was one of his mother’s favorites, and apparently Lisa liked it too. It must be a girl thing.
Smiling to herself, she gathered a small bouquet of short sprigs of lavender and tied them with a strip of cloth torn from the ragged edge of her tunic. Holding the bouquet to her nose, she closed her eyes and breathed in.
“Mother,” he heard her whisper.
Mother? Most servants who came to work at a new estate had no family.
“Lisa,” he said.
He watched as panic apparently struck, her eyes going round and her pulse kicking. He felt her fear. What was she afraid of?
“Excuse me, my lord,” she said, bowing her head as she started to walk past him.
There was no way he was letting her go. “Wait.” He grabbed hold of her wrist and she froze.
/>
He jerked against her as if struck by lightning. His grip tightened and he squeezed his eyes shut. He felt the blood drain from his head.
Fear screamed through his brain at the stark terror that poured through Lisa’s body. Where will we be safe? he heard her mind cry. How will I keep him from finding us? Clouds of smoke swirled around her, dark and heavy. Kelwin could hear the rumble of thunder, could see flames rise as she ran from unseen danger. Her heart pounded and he felt every beat thrum inside him.
The impressions stopped when Lisa pulled her wrist out of his hand. They left behind a pain in his head the likes of which he had never experienced. His stomach threatened to bring up his breakfast and he wrapped his arms around his waist as he sank down to sit on the low stone wall. It was like the night of the festival but so much worse. What had he been thinking? Why had he touched her?
“Lord Kelwin?” he heard her ask as if from far away.
He couldn’t speak, couldn’t do anything but take in big gulps of air as he prayed for his head to stop its pounding. She was frightened, he still sensed. She’d escaped some unknown danger and was still afraid of it.
“My lord?” came her soft voice again.
Kelwin kept his eyes closed, spending a few moments to take in his surroundings. He was in the herb garden at Rosemont, with several plants crushed beneath him as he sat on the wall. Their fragrance seeped into his consciousness as he came to. Lavender. Lisa smelling the lavender in his mother’s garden.
He opened his eyes to find her kneeling next to him, her brow wrinkled in obvious confusion. She reached out to touch him and he braced himself for an impression that, thankfully, didn’t come. Instead, her feather-light touch caressed his hand. He was filled with that peace from last night again.
“Are you all right, Kelwin?” she asked him, her voice low. “I mean, Lord Kelwin. Sorry.”
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