Emberwood [m] I am just a fool, 'cause I could be in love if I really tried

Her. The thought which had strayed so close to temptation suddenly turned bitter in her mouth. Disgust welled in her dark eyes — for him, for herself, for this moment. The man might have been handsome in the eyes of another, or even her own in her youth.

Now she could only see the ways he wasn't at all what she wanted. There'd been a man she'd loved enough to take to her bed, once, but he was gone now. And this stranger — what could he give her?

Marina smirked wordlessly and turned away, half-taunting, to continue digging her den. Easier to pretend contempt, she thought, than admit that she'd entertained the idea of him even for a moment. She hoped the silent rejection would sting enough to send him packing.

Another man was the last thing she needed.