Startled, Anna pulled back, flinging a smile to her face. “Nay—I mean, I do. Forgive me, I…I simply haven’t had—I mean to say I haven’t…” The words slowed and dropped away as Anna retreated into her seat as far as it would allow, praying the darkness masked the sudden heat in her face. “I mean to say, I haven’t ever been so grateful for such a meal. Thank you.”
He chuckled lightly. “Such a meal, hmm? Well, I shall take that as a compliment. We soldiers have a lot of practice preparing ash cakes.”
“Soldiers?”
Instantly still, as if he’d been turned to stone, the man didn’t move. His high eyebrows and tight mouth masked a fleeting emotion before he shook his head and smiled brighter than before. He cleared his throat. “Forgive me. Every town has its own militia, and with the conflict with England at such dangerous heights, every worthy patriot considers himself a soldier now.”
“Oh, of course.” Anna turned the cake against the handkerchief. She was in a war-torn land now. How could she have forgotten?
He took another bite, swallowed, then pointed to the fire. “I really should have let you cook them for I have no doubt that in spite of my practice, your skills are superior to mine.”
Her blood stalled so quick it rendered her motionless.
He continued. “My mother could create a feast out of anything, even if we had but flour paste and fat. I fear I didn’t inherit her talent.” He pointed to her untouched cake. “I would repent and let you make the morning meal if we had flour remaining, but I fear we do not.”
She exhaled to ease the rise of panic in her lungs. Thank goodness for that, she thought, and took a large bite. The instant bitter palate melted into a bland taste of unsalted flour. Not unpleasant in the least. For her screaming belly, it was in fact far better than anything else she could have asked for. When she swallowed, she finished her reply. “You do not do yourself enough credit, sir. These are excellent. I hope you do not think me ungrateful.”
That familiar half-smile returned to his mouth. “I think you should eat your fill and prepare for the night.” He glanced to the window then the loft. “You may sleep there if you wish, though I fear there is no bed.”
No bed? She glanced to the tick-less bed frame, reminding herself she’d slept in worse conditions on her voyage across the sea. “Not to worry.” She tilted her head with a slanted grin. “I am tired enough to sleep on cobblestone.”
Just then, a boom of thunder rattled the rickety cabin. Anna turned in her seat and glanced to the window, taking a large bite of cake. Then another. And another.
“You were more hungry than you let on, hmm?”
Anna peeked up and halted. He stood, a flash of amusement in his face.
She jerked a hand to her mouth to cover any crumbs. That first bite had unleashed the hunger she’d tried to suppress, but now the mere scent of food, even a meal dusted in ash, made her abandon her primary manners.
Embarrassment heated her core. Anna dotted the cloth against her mouth as she finished the last morsel. She cleared her throat, praying her voice would reveal that she still was a lady, not an ill-mannered child. “I suppose I was.”
He peered sideways, his eyes darting to the empty cloth in her hands. Without asking if she wished for more, he bent over and plucked the last cake from its perch on the stone nearest the heat. “Here.”
Reaching across the warmth, Anna took the remaining piece. “Thank you—” Her words fumbled when the tips of her fingers brushed against his.
She pulled her hand away and stared at the small round cake, the sudden awkwardness drenching her skin in heat. She took another quick bite.
“Tomorrow I must finish my journey,” he said, the deep, masculine ring of his voice reminding Anna of both silk and stone.
She swallowed. “Your journey?” Perhaps some of the mystery behind her fearless rescuer would finally come to light. “Where…to where are you journeying?”
His mouth pinched then relaxed as he studied her, but he looked to the fire when he spoke. “I am on my way to…to a town twenty miles from here. Sandwich.”
“Ah.” Was that all he would share? Then again, why would he share with her anything more personal? She was just as much a stranger to him as he was to her.
His expression flashed with something she couldn’t name before his eyes clouded. “Where will you go?”
The question circled her like a ghost. She stared at the partially eaten cake nestled in the handkerchief. “I don’t know.” The words flung from her lips and she nearly covered them to be sure nothing else escaped, but she clasped her hands tighter around the last few bites of her dinner. She hadn’t expected to answer so truthfully, but she allowed the reply to rest in the air, heavy and dark as it was.
His eyebrows folded down and he glanced to the window. “You fear that man will seek you out again?” His stare pinned on her as he finished the question.
Once again, the thunder crashed.
Her stomach churned and suddenly she wished she hadn’t eaten. “I do.”
Lip between his teeth, he looked away, resting his elbows on his knees. “Is there anywhere you will be safe from him?”
Without warning, the emotions she’d suppressed since the moment her father had delivered the unthinkable news welled behind her eyes. Unable to answer in words, she gave a quick, sharp shake of the head.