Druidess Found (Druidess Trilogy Book 1) Machelle Hanleigh (best ebook reader under 100 .TXT) 📖

Kaily didn't respond.

"There is so much you don't understand, and I don't know how to explain it to you." He patted her back and rocked her. "Please, don't cry."

Kaily still didn't respond. She was grateful when he stopped trying to comfort her with words and just held her while the tears fell unchecked. Only when the tears finally stopped, did Kaily speak. "Take me home."

He stopped rocking back and forth. His hand stilled on her back. "I can't."

Kaily turned a tear streaked face to him and looked him straight in the eyes without flinching. "Can't or won't?"

He had the decency not to say can't again. "Do you want to go home in truth?" He asked.

The question caught her off guard. She let out an exasperated breath. "You don't even acknowledge my existence in front of the others and now," she didn't finish. What could she say? He wanted her and then he didn't want her. She didn't understand and he wasn't providing answers.

He shook his head and rubbed his hand over his face. He opened his mouth several times as if he wanted to say something, but then didn't.

Kaily stood and he let her. "You're right." She said pacing by the edge of the lake. She didn't bother looking at him. "I don't understand and I'm not going to unless you explain it to me." She didn't notice that he stood up or that he came to stand behind her. She ran straight into him when she turned to pace the other way.

He wrapped his arms around her. "You're right, little one. I haven't explained anything to you and for that I apologize. But I am not going to apologize for bringing you to my village or for not wanting to take you back to your world."

Kaily looked up at him. She saw pain in her dark warrior's eyes. "Tell me what you want from me then." She kept her eyes locked with his. "Please."

He pressed her head against his bare chest. Kaily noticed he at least put his pants on. "I can't."

Kaily would have smacked him for that answer if he hadn't been holding her so tight.

"If you absolutely want to go home," he took a deep breath, "I'll take you." He said. Kaily could tell that giving her that option cost him. "But I am asking that you have patience with me and stay. Please, Kaily, stay." She could tell that asking her to stay cost him too. He spoke her name as if it were the first time, he said it aloud.

Kaily lifted her head and Moto let her. She shook her head and started to reply, but then remained silent. He stood before her, his arms loosely draped around her and waited in silence for her decision. She turned her head so she could look out over the lake and rested her head against his chest. "Tell me why you don't speak to me with others around." Kaily finally spoke and turned her head to again look him in the eyes. "At the very least, you owe me that much."

Moto closed his eyes. Kaily didn't think he was going to give her an answer. He opened his eyes and took a deep breath before he did. "I broke an unspoken law in bringing you to my village. The Queen was adamant that I keep my distance from you." He laid a finger across her lips when Kaily opened her mouth to reply. "I'll admit that I have taken it to an extreme, but I do it to protect you from scrutiny, and other consequences I'm not prepared to tell you about at this time. Please, trust that everything I do, I do for a reason and it is not to hurt you. The last thing I ever want to do is hurt you, Kaily."

She wanted to ask him so many questions about everything from why he stopped touching her to why he brought her there to why he wanted her to stay. Instead, she laid her head against his chest and stared out over the lake to the waterfall which feed it. A part of her still wanted to go home. Home was safe, and it was a known factor, but it also was not a place of happiness, not like it once was. "I'll stay." Kaily finally said.

"Thank you," Moto said. Kaily heard the relief in his tone. He kissed the top of her head and held her close to him. She let him. He rested his chin on the top of her head.

Kaily wanted to stay in his arms forever just like that. She let the peace of the lake, the meadow and Moto's presence comforted her as much as possible all things considered. She didn't know if staying was the right decision. She couldn't bring herself to leave him either, not yet. Despite, the wall which seemed to be between them now, she couldn't leave him. She owed it to herself to give him a chance. She needed to give herself time to see what this was between them. Moto lifted his head and gave her one last squeeze. "It's getting light out." He said. "We should head back." They both knew what he meant to say was they needed to get back before too many villagers woke up and saw them together. Neither said it and neither commented on it. He stepped away from her and retrieved his vest.

Kaily stared into the depths of the lake. She felt the loss of his touch. She didn't want to go back to the village. She watched the lapping of the water against the shore where the carpeted meadow met the sand of the short beach. She glanced in Moto's direction. He fastened his vest. She gave him a small smile. He returned it. When he finished with his vest, he turned to start back up the path. She started to follow, stopped and