Dusk had come early in Óraid as the sun disappeared behind the snow-clad mountains. A blanket of darkness fell upon the pine and aspen forest that surrounded the village. What little heat it brought with it, left quickly.
As tears rolled through her eyes, she avoided the hard gazes of the onlookers. 'Stay discreet.' He had warned. She wiped her tears but they wouldn't stop. Why did he warn her? Did he care for her? Feeling cheated, she shoved the thought out of her mind. Lights had started flickering inside homes promising warm hearth to those who lived here, but outside temperature continued to drop. Anastasia shivered uncomfortably, but her physical unease was nothing compared to her heart's anguish. She remembered her banter with him, his kisses, his touch and the way her body heated up with him. He did all that to come close to her? So that she would lower her guard?
