Chapter 4

He knew he should turn away the very second his gaze accidentally landed on a naked woman

but he couldn't seem to take his eyes off her. A gentleman is not supposed to do such lowly things like peeping at naked women, but hell, he is no gentleman. He is a lowly scoundrel. He is supposed to do worse than this. Come to think about it, why not? He stared unblinking, feasting on the enticing curves of her body.

He is a thief, after all. He'd stolen her from his gang. Now they are alone in the middle of nowhere and nobody could stop him, why don't he take the chance to enjoy his loot? He can drag her to the bank and take her there.

His gaze followed her as she lowered herself  and sat at the edge of the stream, dipping her feet into the water. Her arms raised as she pulled her hair back into a loose bun atop her head, the sideways view of her uplifted breast almost made him lose control.

Just then his conscience returned with a vengeance. What was he thinking?! His dear mother would turn in her grave had she known her only son had stooped so low to even have that kind of thoughts.

Tearing his gaze off her, Matthew spun around and moved away. He'd gone only a few steps when suddenly he heard a violent splash. He rushed back to the waterfall and found her gasping in panic in the middle of the stream a moment before she drowned. Without thinking, he leaped out of the woods and plunged into the water.

After struggling in a vain effort to move her cramped leg, Arabella felt her body sink helplessly to the bottom of the river without her being able to stop it. But just when she thought she'd met her doom, suddenly she felt a strong arm wrapped around her breasts, and her body was being pulled up to the surface.

She took a desperate gulp of air once her head popped out of the water, coughing up water until her chest ached. She regained her normal breathing afterwards, floating limply as he dragged her to the shallow end of the river.

He carried her out of the water and lay her down on the rocky ground. It wasn't until her skin touched the cold, hard surface that she realized she was naked. Automatically she curled her body to hide her nakedness, but a sharp pain shot up her leg and she cried out.

"Where are you hurt?" He asked, his grip on her body tightened.

"My right leg." She winced. "It hurt so bad."

Releasing her, Matthew began to shed his clothes. For a terrifying moment, her heart stopped, her mind racing in chaos. He could just spread her beneath him and force himself on her without her being able to stop it.

"Here," He used the shirt to cover her body. Flooded with both relief and shame, she used the fabric to cover her breasts, grateful that the material was long enough to conceal her body from her breasts to her upper thigh.

Putting his hand carefully on her leg, he started massaging her calf. That felt so incredibly good, she had to repress a moan. She bit her underlip, watching his hand running up and down her leg. She felt a bit disappointed when he stopped and drew his hand away.

"Do you feel better?"

She nodded, and suddenly a thought floated into her head. She threw a suspicious glance at him.

"How come you arrived here just in time to save me? How long have you been there?"

The fleeting expression that crossed his face reminded her of a child who was caught stealing candy. A crimsoned heat crept into her face.

"Have you been watching me for long?"

"I... I just arrived when you started drowning."

"Liar! You must have been peeping me!"

Without warning, she grabbed a rock nearby and swung it at his head. Matthew caught her hand right before the jagged stone smashed into his skull.

"Jesus!!! Are you trying to kill me?!!!"

"That's for peeping at me while I'm taking a bath, you pervert! How dare you!" She fumed, clutching the shirt to her breasts as she struggled to get on her feet.

"I saw nothing!" He lied, retreating a few steps when she moved threateningly toward him, but suddenly she halted, clutching her thigh with a pained groan.

"Are you alright?" Matthew took a tentative step closer. He took her discarded clothes on the rock and, careful to keep a safe distance, he handed out the rumpled dress to her. She snatched the fabric from him and he quickly pulled his hand and leapt back, as if afraid of being caught.

"Turn your back while I get dressed!" She snarled,

"If you dare move your head, even for just a second, I'll dig your eyes out."

Obediently Matthew did as bidden, turning around and waiting patiently as she struggled to slip into her gown.

Once she was fully dressed, Arabella left without bothering to tell him. She had already reached the edge of the woods when Matthew stole a glance over his shoulder. Hurriedly he picked up his shirt that she tossed nearby and shrugged into it as he followed her. He maintained a close yet safe distance and refrained from offering her some help, knowing that it wouldn't be wise to come near a wounded lioness. However, as he watched her struggle to drag her feet along the way, he was wrecked by guilt and shame. He genuinely regretted his ignoble act of peeping her, but on the other hand, if he did the right thing from the first time and left at once, he might not be there to save her.

Later in the afternoon, they stopped by a small stream and quenched their thirst. Deliberately putting some distance between them, Arabella took a seat on a solid rock and rested her pained leg on a fallen trunk across her. Matthew decided to look for something to eat. Since yesterday, they hadn't eaten anything yet. The girl completely ignored him when he told her he was going to get some food. He was a bit worried she would disappear like before, but she was still there when he returned with some wild berries half an hour later.

"Here you are." He handed it out to her. She threw a disdainful glance at the fruit. Matthew had expected her to complain, had even welcomed it, but to his great dismay, she slapped his hand aside, causing the berries to scatter on the ground.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?!!" Matthew snapped.

"It's not easy to find edible fruits here. You shouldn't let them go to waste."

"I don't need your help!"

She stood and walked off in a huff, ignoring him when he hurried after her and called,

"Wait, stop."

She kept walking until she heard him say,

"You're going the wrong way."

Cursing inwardly, Arabella stopped and turned toward him.

"This way," He directed her to another path. Grudgingly she followed his lead. For long minutes, they walked in complete silence, until suddenly a gurgling sound from her stomach shattered the quiet. Matthew stopped and turned toward her.

"Are you hungry?"

"No!" She snapped, averting her head to avoid meeting his gaze and to conceal her crimsoned face. With a shrug, Matthew continued walking. Before long, a fresh, earthy scent permeated the air. When he looked up at the sky, cool drops fell on his face.

"It's going to rain. We must find a place to shelter. Come on."

They ran through the light drizzle and just when it began to pour, Arabella caught a treehouse up among the branches, just a short distance away.

"Look! There's a treehouse up there!"

She called, turning toward him with a bright smile as she momentarily forgot her resentment.

"Wait! Be careful!" Matthew hurried after her when she climbed up the rope ladder. "The ladder may not be safe!"

But in seconds she was already up there in the treehouse, looking down on the forest below.

"This is awesome." She remarked, her eyes sparkling with excitement, then paused when a thought occurred to her.

"But, who would build a treehouse in the middle of the woods?"

"That means we're close to the edge of the forest. It appears there's a village not so far from here. We'll continue when the rain stops."

Arabella nearly leapt for joy upon hearing the good news, but suddenly she remembered the previous incident, and the chilly expression returned to her face.

"Stay away from me."

He retreated to the far side of the treeshed, settled himself in the corner and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep to escape the hostile situation. Exhausted from the night before, soon he drifted into a restful doze.

Distracted by the gentle snores, Arabella turned to see that the thug had just fallen asleep in the corner. His arms crossed over his chest, his head lolling to one side. He looked almost innocent while sleeping, and, she reluctantly admitted, even more handsome. His long lashes nearly brushed his cheeks, and his lips slightly parted.

She bit her underlip, frustrated with the fact that she found herself helplessly being drawn to him. She recalled her unfortunate entanglement with Jeremy, the stable boy. Blame it on her rebellious streak, to always get attracted to men beneath her.

Her thought was disrupted by the loud snarl from her stomach. She put her hand on her belly as if to muffle the sound. Inwardly she regretted her foolishness to refuse the berries he had offered. But she would die before she let him know that. The rain slowly tapered off into a light drizzle, and an idea entered her head. She stole a glance at him. What better time to sneak out for some food than now when he is fast asleep?

Sometime later, Matthew woke up with a jolt as he found the girl had once again vanished. He looked around in panic.

Can't he close his eyes for just a minute? The girl has a habit of disappearing whenever he's asleep. What's in her head? Does she think she is just walking around in Hyde Park? This forest is one bloody maze where hidden traps and unknown danger abounds.

Rushing to the edge of the shed, he looked down and sighed in relief when he found her some distance away, picking some fruits from a mass of roots.

"Oh, no!" He whispered the minute he recognized the venomous plant. Quick as a flash, he was at her side. Arabella gasped in surprise when the fruits were suddenly snatched from her hand.

"Hey!!! What are you doing?"

She reached out to grab them back but he drew away.

"You shouldn't eat berries unless they grow on a woody shrub!"

He lifted the shiny, black berries to eye level and scrutinized them. His face turned pale.

"Dear God. How much did you eat?"

Arabella turned a nonchalant glance toward him.

"Relax, they're just berries. Eating too much of it never kills anyone. Give them back..."

Her voice trailed off when suddenly she felt her head spinning. Her vision went blurry and the world moved and swayed around her. Vaguely she heard his distant voice calling her before darkness rushed up to claim her.

To be continued