If You Were Mine by Rebecca King

and quickly,”
the warmth of his breath against her cheek did little to ward off
the chill sweeping through her.
    She was
unable to hide the shiver that wracked her. Although she silently
nodded in acquiescence, she felt sure that her acceptance wasn’t
expected. She would be taken to Havistock anyway, whether she
wanted to go or not.
    Suddenly, she was very glad for the warmth of his presence,
even if he could never be hers. Wearily she rested her head meekly
against his shoulder, fighting with the knowledge that even if she
did have the energy to argue against his arrogant command of her,
she wasn’t sure she would object.
    Several
moments later, Isobel saw the origin of the strange whistle as they
cleared the protection of the small copse of trees. A stocky man
sat atop a very large bay, waiting in the encroaching gloom for
them to approach. Isobel shuddered at the menacing shadow of horse
and rider, so starkly outlined in the night skies that she could
only be very grateful she hadn’t seen such a ghostly sight while
she had been alone.
    She was
only vaguely aware of hushed murmuring before she was lifted
upward. Within moments she was held tightly against Dominic’s chest
again, as both horses cantered through open fields toward
Havistock. Save in Dominic’s tender embrace, exhaustion soon
claimed her and despite the jolting of the horse beneath her,
Isobel succumbed to the swirling blackness sucking her
under.
    Dominic
took a few precious moments to slow down and carefully enfold her
in his long wool cloak. The bone-chilling cold of her skin
disturbed him greatly, and he knew she was in serious danger from
the cold wind that howled menacingly around them. She needed
sustained warmth, and fast.
    Enfolding her slender form in the clock, he pulled her
against him tightly and tugged the edges of his cloak around her as
much as he could, before he nudged his horse toward
home.
    “ Not long until we get there now, darling. We will soon have
you safe and warm. Everything will be alright. You’ll see,” Dominic
wasn’t sure she had heard him, but it gave him some measure of
reassurance to assume she had. The alternative was too much to
contemplate.
    Isobel
was vaguely aware of Dominic’s hushed whisper, but couldn’t summon
the energy to respond. It sounded as though his voice was coming
from a long way off, and she couldn’t quite reach him. No matter
how hard she tried, she just couldn’t get her eyes to open. The
battle to open her eyes was just too great for her dwindling
strength, and within seconds the meagre supply of energy she did
have suddenly evaporated, leaving Isobel at the mercy of the
pervading darkness once more.
    “ Isobel?” Dominic was worried. His voice held a more
commanding edge when she didn’t respond.
    “ Isobel?” he twitched his shoulder lightly in an attempt to
wake her, and cursed fluidly when her head lolled back, her eyes
firmly closed. Whether it was starvation, cold, exhaustion or fear
that had caused her to faint, Dominic couldn’t tell but the urge to
get her to Havistock nipped at his heels. Without further ado, he
pulled her tight against him, dug his heels into the horse beneath
them, and cursed the distance to the house. Having dispatched his
groom to summon the doctor several miles back, Dominic cursed
fluidly when rain began to pelt down on them, adding to her already
perilous predicament.
    “ Cursed weather,” Dominic muttered starkly, eventually drawing
to a halt in front of Havistock Hall’s heavy oak doors. It took
little effort for him to juggle Isobel enough to kick the front
door open, and within mere seconds, Dominic had them both inside
the warmth of the Main Hall.
    “ Manvers!” Dominic bellowed, mounting the main staircase, two
steps at a time. He was oblivious to the puddles his booted feet
left behind. “Manvers, where are you? Quickly man!”
    Within
seconds, his trusted butler, Manvers was running down the hallway
from the kitchens, Mrs Holcombe,