A Wager Of The Heart

20. A devilish encounter

:::Charity:::

I made myself easy to find, choosing the mermaid fountain so I would not be missed. I was determined to make this the last nightly encounter with my stalker. I eased onto the seat of the fountain and leaned gingerly backwards. Upon my return this afternoon, Mr. Rivers had made good on his unspoken threat and I spent the rest of the day polishing every utensil and cutlery that had ever existed. 

My hands ached and my back creaked. I sighed around my annoyance and fidgeted until my body was comfortable enough to relax. I looked up at the stars and recited Geri's silly story from this afternoon. I could feel sleep pulling at me, making my eyes dry and heavy and my body feel as if I were full of wet dirt.

I shook myself trying to restore life into my tired and abused body. I sighed and laid back only to be lulled into an even greater sense of rested bliss. I struggled in vain to keep my eyes open and gave up the fight after a moment. Of all nights to keep me waiting, I thought with a smile as my mind succumbed to the consciousness of a dream.

Seconds, minutes, hours passed and I felt something draped over me. I sat up in a fright only to discover a warm blanket laying across my lap. Startled I looked over to find Kent sitting next to me, seemingly lost in his own thoughts. He was stretched out on the bench much as I had been, watching the stars intently. Unconsciously I pulled the blanket up to cover my now cold body. "Thank you." I said quietly, vaguely wondering how long he'd sat there while I slept.

Kent remained silent as his dark eyes surveyed the night sky. "Once again I come upon my angel asleep and shivering in the unseasonable cold. Since I knew she would protest being saved by my devilish warmth I have fetched a blanket from my own bed to drape over her prone form so that she might be preserved for another day." He spoke as if chronicling his day in a journal.

I scowled at him and promptly folded the blanket into a neat square, missing its warmth almost instantly. With the cold I regained an acute awareness of the aching muscles that comprised my body. I got to my feet and stretched experimentally to each side. The ache was like a sickness that plagued my body and I frowned. Days of back breaking work would not be enough to break my spirit but it might be enough to break my body. I looked quizzically at the stone bench and wondered how it could offer greater comfort than a bed, lumpy as it may be. Half a smile broke across my face at my own absurdness. 

"I assumed that after out parting last night and the challenge issued you might be more difficult to find." I felt the smile fall from my face as Kent finally turned toward me, a wicked grin transforming his handsome face. Kent rose slowly to his feet and I was rendered momentarily speechless in the enormity of his presence. The spacious fountain suddenly seemed no bigger than a wash basin. When my eyes finally wandered back to his face, he had a knowing smile gracing his features. "Am I to attribute this to the surrender of your heart?"

I jumped when he stepped closer to me and glared up at him in the now small space. "No!" I said angrily as I stepped around him. "I made myself easy to find because I have something to say."

"Does it have something to do with the book that fell from the sky at my feet this afternoon?" Kent laughed and maneuvered himself back to perch on the edge of the fountain. His eyes danced with mirth as he regarded me. That more than anything else unnerved me. "Scold away, my angel."

I snarled at the nickname and the closed my eyes to find my courage. It was so much easier to yell at him when he was being combative rather than sitting like a prize pupil with his hands clasped in his lap and his face upturned eagerly. As this image flashed in my mind, I laughed and felt the little bit of anger I had gathered fade away. I rubbed my eyes and ignored the burble of laughter that threatened to burst forth and ruin my composure.