Candace McCarthy by Fireheart

qualms about being naked. She’d been the first to take off her clothes at the bathing hole. She’d gone about with only a kilt, and she’d felt comfortable, happy, and free.
    Don’t allow him to hurt you still, an inner voice scolded. Take off your shift. There is no one here to see you. Swim naked like the Lenape and the fish as it was meant to be.
    Joanna grabbed her shift and pulled it over her head. The breeze caressed her naked breasts, waist, and hips, brushing against her thighs and legs, stirring sensations within her that stimulated all of her senses.
    “Yes,” she whispered, closing her eyes. “Yes.”
    She lifted her lashes as she waded into the lake.
    A head emerged from the water only a few feet away.
    “No!” she gasped.
    But it was too late. Fireheart had already seen her, and he approached her with a strange look in his eyes.

Chapter 7
    “Fireheart!” Joanna gasped. She dove under the surface to hide her nakedness, then came up choking on a mouthful of water. She wheezed, sputtering, and had difficulty catching her breath.
    Suddenly, Fireheart was there to help her, patting her on the back and soothing her.
    Once she could breathe again, she became conscious of her bare breasts above the water, and she hugged them with her arms. She tingled where he had touched her naked back.
    “You frightened me!” she scolded, backing away.
    “I did not know I would see you here,” he said softly. His dark eyes boldly eyed her breasts where the tops pushed up from her arms.
    She turned away. “Why are you here?” she asked, averting her glance. She was shocked when she felt the water swirl around her as he came closer.
    “I could not sleep.”
    Her skin tingled from his nearness. Her heart thumped hard in her breast. She bit her lip, then released it. “Are you worried about tomorrow?”
    He didn’t answer. The long moment of silence made her turn. She inhaled sharply as she felt the desire emanating from him. She swallowed hard. For me?
    “Fireheart,” she murmured.
    He seemed to snap out of a daze. She felt his demeanor change.
    “You should not be here,” he said. “It is not safe for you.”
    “Have I a reason to fear you?”
    “You might.”
    Joanna felt warmth in her stomach. She hadn’t expected such an answer. “Why?”
    “There are Iroquois about—”
    “No,” she said. “Why should I fear you?” Her breath slammed in her throat as he took a step closer. She could see his eyes clearly . . . the sudden gleam of desire.
    “You have to ask why you should run from this man?” he whispered, reaching to cup her chin.
    Warmth pulsed through her body. His fingers were gentle as they caressed her jaw, her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his palm.
    “You are the same,” he said huskily, “yet you have changed.”
    She opened her eyes to gaze at him. “You are different,” she said, “yet I see a gentleness that is Yellow Deer’s.” His features were anything but boyish; the gentleness had been in his eyes.
    He frowned and released her. “Yellow Deer is a boy. I am not.”
    She nodded. He seemed offended. “I didn’t mean—”
    “You should go back to the wigwam.”
    “I’ve come here to swim.” She needed this time to banish the memory of her uncle. Standing here with Fireheart certainly helped.
    “Since it is not safe, you must swim with me.”
    Her heart tripped. “I thought I had reason to fear you.”
    He stared at her hard. “No,” he said. “I will not harm you.”
    She had never thought he would, not even with the weight of responsibility on his shoulders, not even when he was angry.
    “Come,” he said. “Let us swim.”
    Joanna was reluctant to move. She was supremely conscious of him as a man. Her body pulsated with life at his nearness, and she was embarrassed. She wondered how she could swim without revealing more skin. “You go first,” she said.
    He lay back in the water, kicking out with his feet, stroking with his arms. He continued to