Bowstrings & Velvet (Spellbound #1)

Chapter 7: Surprise Attack

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. The word accentuated every step Shae took as she stomped through the forest, cursing herself and trying not to remember the sight of Felix naked under the waterfall. Why had she gone back so soon? She should have waited since she'd known he planned to wash off. Clutching the grip of her bow tighter, she closed her eyes for a moment, but it had the opposite effect, as she could imagine every glorious detail of Felix's wet body. The wide chest. The narrow waist. Rivulets of water following the curves of his muscles down his torso and flat stomach. His hand around his—

She kicked a stone angrily, then cursed under her breath as her toe ached dully. The leather boots she wore were not particularly sturdy. After she'd walked around long enough that Felix should have had more than enough time to get out of the water and dress, she finally walked back towards their makeshift camp. She kept a slow pace, not wanting to risk walking in on an undressed Felix. She'd had enough of that lately.

When she approached the river, an ominous prickle at the back of her neck made her hasten her steps. This feeling of foreboding had come over her before, and she had come to trust in it. As she neared their camp, the muffled sounds of a fight reached her and she took off at a run. Breaking through the trees, she found Felix fighting off a man while another rifled through their bags. They had obviously surprised him, as he was still wearing only a pair of unbuttoned breeches, his hair damp. His shield still lay on the ground and he was doing his best to defend himself using only the sword to parry the thief's attacks.

It was clear that Felix was not accustomed to fighting without a shield, since he would raise his left arm as if to block an attack before quickly remembering it was unshielded. His attacker, on the other hand, appeared comfortable fighting with a weapon alone, but had yet to gain the upper hand because of Felix's superior skill. It was a rather amazing sight, seeing Felix fight, wearing nothing but a pair of breeches.

The thief feinted an attack, making Felix raise his bare arm in defence, and before he could react, the man punched him in the face with his free hand. Felix backed away a few steps, shaking his head slightly, wincing from the blow.

Spurred into action, Shae brought her bow up and sent an arrow flying past the attacker's head. As it lodged in a tree trunk just behind him, he stopped in his tracks and turned his head to stare at her. Felix looked equally shocked by her arrival, his green eyes wide.

"The next one won't miss," she promised, and as the thief that had been rifling through their bags made a move to advance on her, she aimed the next arrow at him. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. You'd have an arrow in your chest before you took another step. Now, I want both of you to leave before I change my mind and put an arrow in you, anyway."

The two thieves looked at each other, unsure of their next step.

"I would suggest doing as the lady says," Felix recommended cheerfully as he gingerly touched his chin and grimaced.

"Fine," the man with the sword muttered, sheathing it and slowly moving away from Felix while staring at Shae. "We'll leave."

The two men disappeared quickly. They must not have liked their odds when they were more even. Two against one had been in their favour, but a fair fight was more than they had bargained for. Just in case, she kept her aim on them as they walked away while she slowly crept closer to Felix.

"Are you all right?" she asked him as the forest nearly enveloped the two men.

"Peachy." He rubbed his jaw with his free hand. "It's my fault. I was distracted and let my guard down. When they arrived, I was still getting dressed."

"I can tell." She failed to hold back a smile as she lowered her bow. "I think this may have been the first time I saw someone in a sword fight with no shirt or boots on."