Chapter 2

"Just do it." She said it with conviction, then turned her back to him and tossed her hair over her shoulders. Squeezing her eyes tightly shut, she waited. His hands were gentle when they touched her hair, combing his fingers through her hair, gently pulling any tangles out. She relaxed into him, letting him do what needed to be done. The first sound of the knife slicing through her hair made her jump. She felt her head becoming lighter as he slowly made his way around.

"I'm so sorry, Kahlan." He was almost done, the majority of her hair scattered along the dirt, mingling with the fallen leaves and pine needles. After making the final cut, he sheathed his knife, then placed his palms over her ears, pulling her head back so he could place kisses along the top of her scalp. "I'm so very sorry."

She turned around and dove into his arms, which he immediately tightened around her. Her face pressed against him in the opening in his shirt, her nose rubbing back and forth across his skin. When she settled into his arms she couldn't hold back the sobs that began wracking her body. It was only hair, and it would grow back, but she'd had it as a symbol of who she was for her whole life. It felt like they had cut out a piece of her soul and thrown it onto the earth, where it would be trampled and covered with time and the elements.

Richard let her cry. He just held on tightly and rocked slowly, trying to soothe her, placing his lips against her head, kissing along the part of her hair. When her body was no longer shaking with the sobs he let go and reached down for a small chunk of her hair. He used his fingers to twist it and folded it onto itself, then loosened the thong around the bone of his necklace, slipping the hair under it before tightening it again.

"Now I'll have a piece of you close to my heart, always."

She smiled up at him through her tears, then placed her hand over the necklace, feeling the warmth of him under her palm, the soft piece of her hair and the hard, smooth bone piece. She didn't think that it was possible, but she felt more connected to him now. Just the gesture of putting her hair along side something that meant so much to him, made her heart swell with joy and love for this man. Being held as close to his heart as family; it had been so long since she felt like she really belonged in a family. How did Richard always know how to say and do the things that would calm her nerves and relax her mind?

"We should get back to Cara. I'm sure there's more we need to do in order to be ready." Contrary to his words, Richard's hand settled atop hers on his necklace, holding it in place as he took her lips in another kiss. His other hand swept easily through her shortened locks, tucking a wayward strand behind her ear as his lips sought entrance to her mouth.

She moaned his name against his lips, before pushing at his chest putting a halt to what was quickly becoming a heated moment. "Keep this up…" Kahlan whispered breathlessly, "…and we won't be getting back to Cara anytime soon."

Richard's laugh echoed around them, "If we keep this up, you won't be back to Cara before sunrise."

His words resounded through her, tempting her with thoughts of pleasure, reddening her cheeks in the process. Kahlan ached to beg him to stay, to give him this night before she had to begin the façade of loving another man. "That sounds just about perfect," was all that she could get past her lips.

Richard grinned at her, enveloping her in a bear hug. "It sounds perfect to me too." He agreed, "And we'll have that night…soon."

Their fingers twined together as he led the way back to their small camp, "'Soon' couldn't possibly be soon enough." Kahlan said, before they reached the fire and Cara's all-too-alert ears.

"You two took long enough." Cara remarked snidely, as they approached her. "Did he cause you trouble, Kahlan?"

"No more than usual." Kahlan replied, sharing a private smile with Richard, before turning her attention back to Cara. As she turned her head, she couldn't help but notice how light she felt without her hair. It was startling and made her more uncomfortable than she had felt in many years. She felt like a different person, which, she supposed, was exactly the point.

"It'll do." Cara said, giving Kahlan's hair a quick once-over. "Now for the rest."

"The rest?" Richard yelped, yanking Kahlan along behind him as he rounded on Cara. "What do you mean 'the rest'?"

"You didn't think just cutting her hair would truly be enough, did you, Lord Rahl?"

"Don't make light of what just happened, Cara." Richard snarled at her, unhappy with the situation that they were being placed in. "What else does she need to do?"

Cara rolled her eyes at him, "You know it doesn't just affect you two, this affects us all. If you could try to improve your mood, it would make this easier on everyone."

Richard let out a huff of air and pulled Kahlan's body against him. His arm wrapped around her shoulder as he nuzzled her hair with his nose, inhaling her scent. Closing his eyes, he breathed her in and tried to calm himself. He knew that his mood would set the tone for this adventure and he tried to even his temper and still his rage. When he felt the tension leave his muscles he looked up and nodded at Cara.

"We'll need to get her some new clothes, plain yet ones that accent her assets, if you catch my drift." She looked Kahlan up and down pausing on her chest and her behind.

Richard sucked in some air to try to hold his temper in check. "Okay, that shouldn't be difficult. What else?"

"She'll have to change her attitude and the way she carries herself."

"Can we stop talking about what I have to do, like I'm not here, please?" Kahlan was tired. She was frustrated and she didn't like being treated like she was a thing that was going to be passed around. "I'll have to stop acting like I rule the Midlands. I get that. What else?"

"It's possible that you might have to…" Cara knew that this wasn't going to go over well, "You might have to sleep with him."

"Yes, we'll share a bed…"

Cara cut her off, "I don't think that you're actually listening. Sex. You might have to have sex with him."

"Cara… I…" Kahlan walked a little ways off, moving out of Richard's embrace. She crossed her arms tightly in front of her, then turned back to face the two of them. His expression looked hurt, more than any other emotion, and Cara's held a challenging smirk, like she didn't think that she'd be able to complete this task. "I can't…"

"Just because you feel for Lord Rahl…"

"No, that's not why. I'll confess him. If that was what we needed, why don't I just do that now?"

"You'll only confess him if you actually find pleasure in the union, correct?"

"I…" This wasn't a conversation that she wanted to be having with anyone, especially not Richard. The topic of sharing her body with another man would tear his heart apart, just like it was doing to hers. "Yes, I can control my powers until I reach climax."

"You'll just have to fake it then." Cara snorted at the thought. "You ican/i do that, right?" She rolled her eyes at the other woman. "You know enough about your own… pleasure… to not actually come?"

Kahlan blushed furiously at the lack of discretion Cara displayed. "I'm sure I'll be fine."

"You didn't answer my question, Kahlan." Cara took a step towards Kahlan, eyeing her with an appraising glance. "Do I need to send Lord Rahl away to get an answer out of you?"

"No," Kahlan sighed, and resigned herself to giving Cara the clear-cut answer she desired. She knew she could take Cara's offer to ask Richard to leave, and he wouldn't think any less of her for it, but the part of her that wanted him near won out this time. She faced him, reaching out for his hand, and addressing him instead of giving orders as Cara would have done. "You should stay."

"Only if you want me to." Richard's fingers wove with hers, his thumb stroking the back of her hand reassuringly.

She gave his hand a little squeeze, and nodded at him with a nervous smile. She drew in a deep breath, knowing that while her next words would be in answer to Cara's question, they were truly meant for Richard's ears. "I know enough about my own pleasure." She began, holding his gaze with a bold gleam in her eyes. "While I am not iexperienced/i as you are Cara, I am not entirely unaware." Her eyes drifted away from his for a moment as she continued, "I've never had to worry about confessing myself."

Kahlan heard Cara's failed attempt to restrain her laughter, but Richard's thumb continued it's soothing strokes and his eyes drew her into a world in which only the two of them existed. His expression asked her all of the questions that he would never vocalize in Cara's presence.

"Later," she told him, her gaze never leaving his as she promised. "I'll tell you anything you want to know…later."

"And if I don't want to wait?"

She ducked her head and her cheeks darkened with her blush, just because she was willing to talk about that with him, didn't mean she wasn't going to die of embarrassment doing so.

"We'll see… after we finish this planning." His nod was slight but it was enough to let her know that he'd wait till she was truly ready to let him know. "Okay, Cara." She turned her attention back to the Mord'Sith, "I might have to consummate the sham of a marriage. It's a risk I'm willing to take. What's next?"

Cara smiled, she was impressed that the Mother Confessor was willing to go to such great lengths to get the glasses. She really served Lord Rahl and his quest above all else. Only a person of strong character could put aside her emotions, ones that ran as deeply as her love for the Seeker, and do something so unconscionable, to save others. The respect that she felt for this woman grew daily.

"We just need to put you in his line of sight." Cara walked over to her and placed her hand on her cheek. She moved Kahlan's chin up and around, inspecting her features. All her fingers except the pointer clenched to her palm. The one left standing made a trail down her neck, across her shoulder to the edges of her dress. She continued to follow the neckline of her dress and corset, caressing the tops and sides of her breasts. "You've got the assets to complete the task of grabbing his attention, you'll just have to use them to your advantage. We don't want him looking at another woman. We want this to be quick."

The Mord'Sith pulled her hand back. She was smiling about Kahlan's lack of even a flinch as she'd touched her body so intimately. She knew she could complete the task.

"He's got a deadline." Cara turned and walked back to her spot at the campsite. "We have to move swiftly. He needs a wife within the next three weeks, and it might as well be you, Kahlan."

Richard decided he needed to speak, "We'll go into town in the morning, to get her everything that she needs."

"We'll?" Cara mocked him with her question. "You'll be staying here." She watched his face change from surprised to hurt and then ending with anger. Before he could start raging about his dismissal to her, she went on. "You, Lord Rahl, are the Seeker. Everyone knows who you are. You will inot/i be accompanying us. There isn't any room to negotiate this point, so don't waste your breath."

He opened his mouth to protest despite her warnings. But he didn't get a sound out before she was speaking again.

"The mission won't be compromised because you can't bear to be parted with her. This is how it has to be, you know it in your head, despite what your emotions are telling you." Cara stared at them for a minute. Taking in the way their hands were connected, how he hadn't stopped rubbing her hand tenderly no matter what kind of feelings his face was conveying. "I'll let you two have privacy for tonight." Her gaze went to Kahlan, "You and I will head into town at first light. Now I'm going to sleep. One of you can take first watch after your… talk?" Cara smirked at the thought of the Confessor telling him about bringing herself pleasure. She might not go too far away; this conversation wouldn't be one to miss.