Nibbling on my lower lip, I peeked over my shoulder. Casteel strode across the barn to where an older woman had appeared. She held something dark in her hands. Setti nudged my fingers again, demanding my attention.
“All right. All right.” I resumed petting him. “Sorry.”
Stroking the long, graceful neck, I saw that Delano and Naill were already mounted. Kieran walked toward his horse, but it didn’t appear as if Elijah was coming with us.
A moment later, Casteel returned. “Here,” he said. “You’re going to need this until we reach Spessa’s End.”
This turned out to be a cloak, a black one lined with soft fur. I turned to take it, but Casteel moved behind me, draping it over my shoulders.
“I had one of the seamstresses make it since salvaging the old one was out of the question,” he continued as he reached around me.
I didn’t dare breathe too deeply as his fingers worked the buttons under my throat. I tried not to focus on how close he was or how—I swallowed a gasp as the backs of his fingers brushed my breasts, reminding me of last night. I really didn’t need to think about that.
His arms grazed my chest. How many buttons were there? I looked down and almost groaned. The line of shiny black discs ended just below the chest.
“Just so you know, I burned it along with the Craven,” he went on, and my pulse thrummed as his chin grazed my cheek. “We lucked out that one of the seamstresses already had this mostly finished. There. Now, you’ll be less likely to spend the entire trip begging for my body heat. Though, I’d be more than happy to appease such a request.”
I was sure he would be. “Thank you,” I murmured.
His hands slipped away from the buttons to my shoulders and then down my arms, leaving shivers in their wake. Shivers that spread down my front. Looking up, I saw Elijah heading our way, and I almost waved at him in relief.
“One moment,” Casteel called out, and Elijah stopped. A moment later, he turned me in his arms so that I was facing him. “Are you all right?”
Lifting my gaze to his, I briefly wondered how he could have such incredibly thick lashes. “Yes.”
His gaze searched mine. “You’re being very quiet.”
I was, but how did I explain that it was because I had no idea how I was supposed to behave? I was sure that he’d probably find that silly, my lack of knowledge so great that I had no idea how to even pretend.
“Is it what you did in the cell?” he asked.
“No,” I answered quickly.
“Is it the people here?”
I shook my head.
His features tensed. “Then is it about last night?”
“No,” I said without hesitation. Probably too quickly based on the sudden flare of light in his eyes. “I’m just a little tired.”
He watched me intently. “I’m not sure it’s that.”
“It is,” I told him. “It’s not what happened last night or anything else. You know I didn’t get a lot of sleep.”
He eyed me in a way that said he wasn’t quite sure he believed my response, but after a moment, he nodded. Stepping back, he motioned for Elijah to join us.
“I still think you’ll make good time,” Elijah said as he grasped Setti’s reins.
“Let’s hope so.” Casteel’s hands settled on my hips.
I froze.
“Put one foot in the stirrup,” he reminded me gently. “And then grab the horn. I’ll lift you.”
Feeling about seven different kinds of inadequate, I reached up and gripped the horn. Most people learned to ride by the time they hit their teens.
“You’re not familiar with horses, eh?” Elijah asked.
I shook my head, expecting to hear mockery in his tone, or at the very least, disbelief. I didn’t hear any of that.
“Never would’ve guessed that, seeing you over here all comfy with this temperamental ass.”
“Hey,” Casteel said. “You saying things like that is why he’s a temperamental ass towards you.”
Elijah laughed as Setti’s ears lowered. “Make sure he teaches you how to ride,” he said as Casteel lifted me with ease. “You seem like a natural.”
“That’s on an exceedingly long to-do list of things I plan to teach her,” Casteel replied as I settled in the saddle.
Did he really plan to do that? Excitement sparked. If I could ride and control a horse, I’d be able to travel easily once I was free. It would be a necessary skill, to be honest.
Wait.