Shayn snapped the reins, propelling the wagon forward. The riders moved into position ahead of the wagon, as the way was too narrow to easily ride beside.
He sincerely doubted Simone would make good on her word about being a quiet traveler. Then again, if she really didn't want to talk to him, she might exert enough self control to keep conversation to a minimum.
He and Kyler traveled easily together in a long-practiced rhythm of comfortable silence and conversations ranging from reminiscent to philosophical.
Kyler. Shayn glared at his brother's back. Did he put Victoria up to arranging the positions this way? Even riding ahead was not the norm.
With the sound of the horses and the riders' backs to them, he and Simone could converse with almost total privacy, if they wanted to.
Which he didn't.
Once through the gate, they turned Northwest and left Klain behind them. Simone sat more rigidly than necessary next to him. She was going to be sore if she didn't relax a little bit.
He wondered if she ever relaxed.
He watched her from the corner of his eye as they left the nicely paved road leading into the city and moved to the dirt ruts that led towards the wilderness. The prim and pretty librarian with her braided golden hair.
Why did she go to so much effort with her hair when no one was going to see her? It was absurd. Was it a show for him? For Kyler?
Certainly not for Walter.
He wanted to prod her about it, but she'd vowed to be quiet and he didn't want to break the silence and invite conversation. The first sound out of either of them was several miles down the road, when Simone let out a soft, surprised "oh!" as the wagon hit a large bump.
Her attention had been wandering to the surrounding landscape and she was obviously caught off guard.
Shayn shot her an irritated look as if to accuse her of violating her promised silence. She gritted her teeth and glared at him, daring him to say so out loud.
He had to suppress a grin. Though she annoyed him to pieces, seeing her more annoyed than him was satisfying. As long as he could out-irritate her, he felt he was winning some undefinable competition.
Where the prize was being slightly less upset than the other person.
The group on horseback was having a merry time. Kyler was telling some story or other that left Walter and Victoria bubbling with laughter.
Another mile passed. Slowly. Things went so much faster when he could talk with his brother instead of being stuck next to this prissy, abrasive woman. Why couldn't she be a decent, enjoyable conversationalist?
If she were half as nice as she looked, it would be a lovely trip. Right now one wisp of her golden hair had pulled loose from her braid and curled delicately at her temple, inviting a hand to brush it back. He was momentarily tempted, no doubt lured into liking her better the longer she went without aggravating him.
She was gazing out ahead, wanderlust apparent in her eyes. The landscape itself was beautiful, and he was tempted to sketch it. Her longing made it seem all the more desirable.
Suddenly, Simone turned, sensing his stare. Her eyes narrowed, silently demanding an explanation while keeping her mouth shut as she promised.
He cleared his throat, ready to provoke her ire if it meant he could stop thinking about how pretty she was.
"You look like you've never set foot outside Klain before." He added a healthy dose of condescension into his tone.
"You're well aware that's not true," She replied, though her voice was quiet and a little scratchy.
He frowned. She'd been as quiet and still as one could be for–he looked at the sun–hours now. Had she not even been drinking water?
Shayn rolled his eyes and handed her his waterskin. One was attached to each saddlebag, with the main supply of drinking water in barrels strapped to the side of the wagon, but he'd not remembered to put an extra behind her side of the seat.
That could be remedied at midday.
She eyed the offering, and then took it from him, wiping the opening of the skin on her sleeve before taking a drink. As if he had some awful disease. She clearly didn't appreciate his sacrifice! He glared as she took several deep gulps of the cool water.
"Thank you," She said, wiping the opening again before restoring the cork and handing it back to him.
"You're welcome," He replied, a little perturbed that he couldn't find fault with her thanks. "You could have gotten your own out before we left."
It was actually his job to get the wagon and supplies completely ready for departure, but she needn't know that.
"I'll remember when we stop for midday," She promised, turning her gaze back towards the rolling hills. "I appreciate you sharing yours for now."
Blast. Why couldn't she say something upsetting? There wasn't even sarcasm in her tone for him to latch on to.
"As well you should," He taunted, but she turned to him in confusion instead of aggravation.
"I just told you that I do. Are you trying to pick a fight with me? Surely that would make the journey less enjoyable." She tilted her head so that the sunlight glinted off her hair. That had to be on purpose!
"You're right." He said, "Silence from you is far more enjoyable than chatter."
"Is that why you were staring at me? Enjoyment?" The corner of her mouth twitched, though she did not look at him.
He added vanity to his mental list of her undesirable traits.
"I'm sure you'd like to think so," He let his words nearly drip with derision, "you probably think every man is ready to fall all over himself for you."
"No, but a man rarely stares at a lady unless he likes looking at her, in my experience," She slid her sky blue eyes over to his as they sparkled with victory. She'd bested him and she knew it, the disdainful creature!
"Have you ever seen an animal slaughtered?" He asked, surprising her a great deal.
"What?" She exclaimed.
"Hunting, butchering, etc. Have you ever watched it?" Shayn pressed.
"I never particularly had the interest or opportunity," She hedged, clearly not sure where this conversation was going.
"Fairly gruesome sight, but one finds it hard to look away," He finished, lazily leaning back against the wagon seat as the horses continued forward.
"A rather strained explanation for your staring, unless you were imagining slaughtering me," Simone sniffed.
He didn't reply, but the thought amused him enough that he smiled slightly. Let her take from that what she would.
"There would be witnesses," She warned with mild amusement. "I don't care if you are tangentially related to the king, you'd face execution for the cold-blooded murder of a beloved librarian."
"Victoria wouldn't tell on me. Neither would Kyler. Walter… I have ways of making people be quiet." He replied thoughtfully, as if seriously considering the prospect.
"I was being perfectly quiet, and you ruined that," She eyed him. "Are you sure you have that ability?"
"Quite certain," He said, "Would you like a demonstration?"
Simone turned a calculating look on him, clearly attempting to evaluate what that might entail. After a few seconds of letting her think, he raised his eyebrows.
"See? You were quiet. Demonstration complete." He announced with triumph.
She blinked at him slowly, clearly unimpressed.
"So much talent in one man, how do you manage to keep it all contained?" She shook her head.
The sarcasm was unmistakable, but he decided to embrace it for the sake of annoying her further.
"It was why I had to remove myself from society for years. The ladies of the city would have been overcome by my presence there." He put his heart into the performance.
"Lucky for me that you mastered suppressing your charm in your time away. I do hope you haven't lost it completely! Perhaps I'll see a hint of it one day," She added hopefully.
He frowned and shifted to look at her better. She wore as innocent an expression as she could muster, but he saw how much she enjoyed provoking him. Rude woman that she was.
"I wouldn't want to overwhelm you," He warned.
"I have a strong stomach," She quipped, as if his charm would make her vomit!
"I'm glad. I would hate for it to have been upset by my gift yesterday." He turned back towards the road, letting guilt for her unthankfulness settle over her.
"... The meat pie? What was from you?" She blinked.
"Who else would it be from? You have that many people apologizing to you with food that you can't tell one from another?" He lifted an eyebrow.
"You didn't sign the note! I thought it might be Sally, another librarian. She accidentally ate food I had bought the other day, thinking it was communal in the dormitory! I…" She paused and took a deep breath, then looked at him fully.
"I accept your apology from your note, and offer my own. I'm not entirely sure why you provoke me so. I'll try to do better."