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bank. “Think you can swim across on your own in your condition, milady?"
    She nodded, wondering why he would make this so easy for her to escape. However, she did not intend to argue with him. The forest and the river had always been her sanctuary.
    He walked in the direction of the camp. After barely half a dozen steps, he stopped and looked back at her. Aislan could not read his expression, but she feared he had changed his mind.
    The man named Nadan came into the clearing with his sword drawn.

Chapter 4
    The Exchange
    "You cannot be sadistic enough to want the lady to drown in her delicate condition.” Nadan smiled affably as he rested the point of his sword on the ground. “What games can you be playing, Lucien, my sorsvasus broth
    Two more men, Mason and Peyt, wandered into the clearing bare-chested as if to bathe. Armed with their swords, they each carried a blazing torch. They stopped behind Nadan and stood aside. The flames lit up the riverside.
    Lady Aislan remained in the water, an easy target. When Lucien took a step in her direction, Nadan also moved in the same direction. When Lucien stopped, Nadan also stopped, the same false and civil smile pasted on his mouth, but his eyes lit up in wicked anticipation of a fight.
    Lucien's hand rested casually on the hilt of his sword. “I'll come to the Sorsverein when I am ready. Until then, Nadan, I have no need of your tiresome company. Come, Aislan.” He felt pleased she made no ladylike protest of his familiarity. “We shall go further down the river for your privacy."
    "Now, now, stay! We will turn our backs modestly,” Nadan offered. Lucien shrugged as if they all bored him.
    "Milady, come.” He beckoned the stubborn woman. Could she not sense an imminent fight? He wanted Aislan behind him, and he hoped she would cooperate. However, she did not move, just standing there wide-eyed as if she were surveying her options. Playing to the audience, Lucien looked her over, up and down, focusing first on her luscious mouth, then her full breasts, and then her hips. He remembered all too well the image of her sitting on top of him, though the fragile woman of reality was a far cry from the wild, passionate siren in his dreams. His constant state of hard-on and the burning need to touch her soft skin had kept his senses heightened.
    She stared back at him with the same absorption she had had since she came to the river. He knew she feared him no longer, her awareness of him almost as intense as his own captivation with her. Her lovely dark gaze drifted downward to stare at his cock tenting painfully against the confinement of his clothes, obvious for everyone to see his intense desire for her under this most inauspicious circumstance. In the firelight, a becoming blush spread across her beautiful face.
    "Aislan,” he liked the sound of her name as he coaxed her, “step this way."
    "Oh, no, no.” Nadan lifted his sword and waved it at her in a beckoning motion. “Come this direction, milady."
    She did not budge for either of them.
    "Do not try my patience.” Nadan narrowed his eyes. “Obey, and I offer you my protection."
    "'Tis no way to charm the lady with your sword in her face.” Lucien sighed with great exaggeration. “I refuse to fight you, Nadan, or either of you.” He indicated the two companions. “Leave us be."
    Nadan burst out laughing. “Milord Demarcus, am I to obey you on command?” He laughed again, his eyes bright. “You have no choice. We shall fight for your lady."
    Like Lucien, Nadan also grew up immersed in cat-and-mouse politics. The Sorcery Circle, as well as the king's court, was full of game players. The more ambitious waited for the opportunity to pounce on their competition when opportunity arose. Defeating Lucien and taking Aislan's head in the name of the king's decree would elevate Nadan's status manyfold.
    However, as rules dictated, Nadan could not risk attacking Lucien first without justification. So far, Lucien had done