Keira's Fire

Chapter 12

I woke feeling more well-rested than I remembered being in a long time. And I was warmer, waking up, than I'd been since the fall weather set in two months ago.

With a yawn, I stretched, relishing the loose feeling in my limbs. At least until I realized that I wasn't alone. Owen sat near my feet, watching me with a smile pulling at the corners of his mouth.

I sat up and instinctively pulled the covers up to my chin.

"What are you doing in here?" I asked, wide-eyed. Living with so many men, I had to take particular care to be able to have privacy. My brothers were downright neurotic about it. Jeremy's small tent was right in front of the door to mine. Stephen's wasn't too far either. None of the men would ever attempt anything, but I knew my brothers would skin anyone alive for setting foot in my tent. Or at least that's what I thought.

"Oh, stop pretending that you're a prim and proper lady." He laughed. "Your clothing isn't exactly provocative."

He had a good point. I didn't have any night clothes. In the event that I needed to be ready in a hurry, I wore my normal everyday clothes, which were altered items I'd stolen from my brothers. I relaxed and allowed the covers to fall in my lap.

"Besides, I'm not generally given to allowing lust and passion to drive me. I have much better self-control than that." I knew he was teasing, but his words had me blushing.

"You'd better!" Jeremy growled from the other side of the tent door.

Knowing my brothers hadn't completely lost their minds, I relaxed even more and felt like laughing at the startled and nervous expression that briefly crossed Owen's face. But my focus was still on what he was doing in here at all. It was unusual for them to let anyone but our younger brothers in.

"But what are you-"

"I could hear your teeth chattering all the way down by the brook," he said. "You need a better blanket than that flimsy little scrap."

Only when I looked down did I realize that I was covered with more than my usual blanket. Across my legs lay Owen's thick green cloak. That must have been why I was so warm, which would explain why I slept so well.

"You covered me?" I said in awe. Of all the winters I spent here, not once did my brothers or anyone else seem concerned that I was warm enough at night. They just figured if I wanted to be here, I would deal with the cold the same way they did. I never minded very much. I would survive and that was the important thing, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't wish for a way to stay warmer on those really cold nights. Owen's gesture was incredibly sweet. Especially considering that he was probably freezing without his cloak.

"Yeah, well..." He suddenly seemed embarrassed. "Like I said, all that racket you were making was keeping me awake."

"Right." I smiled. "Sorry about that."

We shared one of those looks that had my insides feeling warm and quivery lately.

Once I stopped focusing on how terrible I believed Owen to be, I realized how foolish that was. He really was a decent man. He got along with just about everyone in our camp and it wasn't hard to tell that his own men had a high level of respect for him. When I rejoined everyone for raids, I got to see first hand how beneficial he was to have along. We actually made a really good team. He was modest about his ability with a bow and arrow, so I was surprised when I noticed him hitting some of the more difficult targets before I could get to them. And as my brothers had pointed out, with our group nearly doubled, we could do much more than before. Owen and his men seemed interested in riding the world of the king's soldiers, just as much as we were.