Lair of the Lion

furs. "Stay there. You're so cold, I thought you were dead." He guided the horses along a rear wall and signaled to a guard. The conveyance was brought close to the palazzo, next to what appeared to be a seamless outer wall.

    But the wall swung open at the don's touch. Nicolai thrust her into the passageway and out of sight and waited to give the guard brisk orders to see to the horses immediately. Then he was whisking Isabella through a maze of corridors, holding her close, furs and all.
    "The wolves hurt you," she said. "I saw them. I want to help. If not, we must call Sarina.
    I want a healer to look at you. I have some knowledge of mixing plants, but not enough. I want Sarina or your castello's healer to look at you."
    The room he entered was hot, almost sultry. Steam rose from a pool of water lapping at the tiles. Isabella stopped talking to stare. She had heard of such things, but the palazzo of her famiglia had no such wonder.
    "You will get in immediately. I'll summon Sarina to attend you," Nicolai said, his voice harsh with emotion as he allowed her feet to touch the tiles.
    Isabella circled his neck with her arms, tipping her head back to look into his eyes as she leaned into me. "Nicolai, don't do this. Don't put me away from you. If I have the courage to stay with you and see this through, you must have the courage to believe it can be so."
    His hands caught her wrists with every intention of pulling her arms down, but instead he tightened his grip, nearly crushing her bones. His body trembled with the dark intensity of his emotions. "I could easily kill you, Isabella. Do you think mio padre did not love mia madre? He loved her more than anything. They started out just this way. Everything starts out with love and laughter, but in the end it's twisted into something ugly and wrong. This valley is cursed, and all within it are cursed. Do you think the people stay out of loyalty and love to me? They stay only because if they are away too long from the valley, they die."
    She relaxed into him. "Your padre did not tell your madre what she was facing. He didn't give her the choice. You told me she didn't even know or suspect until well after you were born. You gave me the choice. You told me the risks. I've accepted them. I know nothing of curses, but I do know people. I've been in many holdings, and none of them are like this one. Your people love you. Whatever else you think, believe that. If it is true that they are under a curse and that whatever affects you affects them, then you owe it to them to have the courage to follow this through."
    He caught her robe and dragged it from her shoulders. "Look at what I've done to you, Isabella. Look at the evidence of love gone wrong. I did this to you."
    Isabella caught at his bloody shirt and held up her smeared hand. "This is what I see, Nicolai. I see evidence of a man risking his life to save mine."
    She pulled away from him, dropped her robe to the ground, and walked down the few steps into the heated water until it covered her to her neck. The water was scalding on her cold skin, but she had only so much bravado, and she very much wanted Sarina's comfort.
    A lecture seemed a small thing to endure in exchange.

Chapter Ten
    Nicolai closed his eyes against the tempting sight of Isabella. The steam rising from the hot pool only managed to make her look more alluring, more ethereal. He wanted her with every fiber of his being. Not just her body—he wanted her allegiance, her heart. Her laughter. His fingers slowly curled into two tight fists. She was looking up at him with such trust, her enormous eyes soft and gentle.
    His fists knotted harder as his emotions darkened, sweeping through him with an intensity that shook him. He felt the sharp stab of needles in his palms.
    Isabella was watching the play of emotion in his eyes. She saw the exact moment the beast won, leaping with red-orange flames into his gaze and burning out of control. She wanted to weep, but she smiled instead. "We will need Sarina, Nicolai, to look at your wounds, as I lack the knowledge."
    "I will send her to you," he replied, his voice a mixture of gruffness and sensuality. "I have no need or want of aid."
    He forced himself to take two steps back. Away from heaven. Away from peace and comfort. He would not dishonor Isabella or himself when he had only a painful life and a horrifying death to offer her.
    When he closed his eyes at night, he saw the terrifying scene over and over again. His