If He's Daring by Hannah Howell Page A

them, aye? He has none. He is very scared, I am thinking, and it is only right that we men ride to help him.”
    “It might not be so simple. We have to find Morris first.”
    “Oh, my father can do that. Finding people and things is one thing he is very, very good at.”
    There was no point in arguing about that, so Catryn looked out the window. Her whole body was weary and ached right down to the bone. It was nice to have someone else driving the carriage, but she swore she would not allow herself to depend upon Sir Orion too much. She had depended on her husband, only to find out within months that there was little in the man anyone could depend upon. She had depended on her grandfather and father, and that had not turned out well, either, although her father had had the excuse of being lost in his own grief for a while. For now, however, she would savor the rest from driving the carriage and pray that they found her son soon.

Chapter Four
    The rapidly encroaching dark settled Orion’s uncertainty about stopping or continuing on just a little farther. He comforted himself with the knowledge that the man he was pursuing could not continue for much longer, either. There was no doubt in his mind that he would find the man, no matter where Morris tried to hide, but he would rather not have to leave the country to accomplish it.
    Yet again he wondered what would be the right thing to do when he found Morris. The man would have guards, servants, or some hired brutes with him. Orion had just himself, a little redheaded lady, and a boy of eight. That did not make for good odds.
    As the carriage crested a small rise, he saw lights and knew they were drawing close to a village. It had been a long time since he had traveled this way, but he was confident that this village had a comfortable inn. A good meal and a clean bed would be welcome. Sharing that bed with a lush little redhead would be even more so, but Orion pushed aside that temptation. Lady Catryn Gryffin de Warrenne was not some adventurous widow. Not only was she trying to get her stolen child back but she reeked of innocence and was most certainly a complete romantic at heart. Giving in to the temptation to bed her, even for one glorious night, could get him entangled in something he had long avoided: a relationship that was not the simple, enjoyable giving and taking of pleasure.
    No, Lady Catryn was not a woman a man got sweaty with, kissed on the cheek in the morning, and then walked away from. Since that was the way he planned to live his life, Orion knew he had to keep his hands off her. He just wished his body agreed with his decision. It might be time to reach out to a few of his kin. Not only could they help him find Morris and save the boy, but they would act as a bulwark between him and the woman his body craved so badly.
    The innyard was busy but not so busy that Orion feared he would find there was no room available for them. It was a large inn, rooms added as the traffic to and from London had increased over the years. The man who had built it had chosen his spot well, halfway between London and Portsmouth. He leapt from the box as soon as a tall, strapping young man wearing the inn’s colors grabbed control of the team. Orion quickly sent a small lad into the inn to make certain he could have two rooms for the night and a private place to enjoy a meal. He hoped he would not have to argue with Lady Catryn about stopping, and reached for the handle on the carriage door.
     
     
    Catryn blinked, slowly waking up when the carriage stopped. Giles grinned at her and then laughed softly when his stomach loudly protested its emptiness. She leaned toward the carriage door to open it, only to have it opened for her and find herself staring into Sir Orion’s face.
    He looked like a man who had just spent many an hour on a horse and then more time driving a carriage. Dust coated his fine clothes and his black hair was badly windblown. A few trickles of sweat had