Читать книгу Bride Of The Tower - Sharon Schulze - Страница 13

Will folded his arms and leaned his shoulders back against the wall, more to provoke Lady Julianna, truth be told, than because he needed the wall for support. “If I asked you most politely for my pack and the letters, would you give them to me and allow me to continue on my way?”

“You’re in no condition to go anywhere at the moment, save back to your pallet,” she said, her tart tone a perfect accompaniment to the fire in her eyes and the faint tinge of color mounting her cheeks. “So I see no reason to return any of your belongings to you just yet.” She stooped to pick up the leather pouch from the floor, her dark hair swinging like a cloak about her and shielding him from her view.

Will took advantage of the moment to reach for the dagger he kept tucked in the top of his boot, only to realize that his feet were bare—though even if they’d left his boots on, they weren’t likely to have left a weapon so easily at hand.

Not that he’d have used it against her, in any case. But as a threat, if necessary…

Lady Julianna rose, shook her hair out of the way and faced him before he could disguise the movement as anything but what it had been. She tucked the parchment into the bag, closed the flap and swung the strap over her shoulder, giving the pouch a final pat that made the bundle of messages crackle.

Reaching down to her own boot, she slipped a dagger free. “Were you looking for this?” she asked. She straightened, tossing the dagger and catching it by the hilt with the ease of long practice. “It seems a fine piece,” she mused as she inspected the design etched into the blade. “Well-balanced, and well-used, too, from the look of it.”