Sweet Boundless by Kristen Heitzmann Read Free Book Online

bed. She hadn’t thought to purchase a lamp, but Quillan had said he’d leave money for such things.
    Quillan. Where had he gone? If he intended to sleep here, he’d better come before she put the chair against the door. Once her head felt the softness of a real pillow and her body sank into a feather mattress, she was not moving again.
    The door opened behind her, and she spun. Quillan came inside and dropped a bedroll to the floor. “Svendsen will have a key for you tomorrow.”
    She nodded. Now that he was inside, the walls had shrunk and it was impossible to breathe normally. Would he take her in his arms as he had before, with no words? Would he kiss her, making the love she felt that much harder to bear? She stood frozen beside the bed.
    Quillan let the dog inside, and it made a quick circle of the room, then returned to him, tail wagging. Quillan rubbed its head briefly, then stooped and untied the bedroll. He spread it sideways before the door. No one could reach her without stepping on him. The dog circled three times, then lay down at the bedroll’s edge.
    “You’re sleeping there?”
    “That’s right.”
    So he wouldn’t practice his husbandly prerogative. Was she so undesirable? Her spirit sank, but she raised her chin, looking from him to the dog and back. “Good. Whatever lives down there can eat you first.”
    He glanced sideways, but she ignored him. Dropping to her knees beside the bed, she crossed herself, then laced her fingers together beneath her chin. “ Il Padre Eterno, thank you for giving me my house. Please bless Mamma and Papa, my brothers Angelo, Joseph, Vittorio, Lorenzo, and Tony. Bless my sister, Divina.” She hardly paused at all over this last. She had forgiven Divina and prayed now for her happiness.
    “Bless my uncles, my aunts, godparents, grandparents, and all my family. Please bless Guiseppe and his mules. And bless my stubborn husband. Amen.” She didn’t look his way, but she knew he’d heard every word. She hoped the order of blessing wasn’t lost on him.
    She crossed herself and climbed into the bed. She had resisted trying it even for a moment so that her first feel of it would not be diminished. She sank into its softness with a sigh of pure pleasure. If Quillan preferred the floor, fine.
    Quillan watched her make the hand motion and climb into the bed. Her form was hidden in the gown that hung loosely to the floor, and she pulled the covers to her chin and blew out the candle, but he knew well enough what he’d find beneath it all. She was every man’s dream, beautiful in face and body, sweet and passionate and deadly.
    He couldn’t afford to lose his heart. He wanted her too much. And he knew how that was—the wanting. His whole being ached. He could take care of the physical need. It was his right. But what of the rest? He settled onto the hard floor. Better to remember that and sleep alone.

FOUR
    Be my banner, O Lord, champion of my soul.
    —Carina
    FOG SHROUDED THE WINDOW when Carina opened her eyes. She had slept soundly in spite of Quillan’s presence, which had made it hard to succumb. No doubt it was the wonder of feathers and clean, warm bedding that at last won out. She nestled her head for a moment, then raised it. The dog raised his, too, and looked at her with expectant eyes, but the bedroll beside him was empty.
    She looked at the door. How had he risen and left without her hearing? She sent her gaze to the window. The fog was dense and swirling. Had he left without her, crept out through the fog and disappeared for months again? No, he wouldn’t leave his dog, Cain’s dog.
    Carina settled back into the comfort of the bed, stretching luxuriously. Then she thought of Quillan seeing her that way and sat up like a shot. She gripped the covers to her chin and searched the room as though he could be hidden somewhere in its bareness. He wasn’t there, but he could be at any moment.
    She slipped out of the bed, her feet jumping at the cold planks.