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“Nevertheless,” he responds, “Iwillstay with you.”
I don’t even know what to say to that. I look at him silently. He gazes back at me and takes a breath. “Well, like I said, we should sleep. Unless you want to eat? We’ve been up since noon yesterday.”
Wordlessly, I reach out a hand and he passes me one of the meat pies that he is still carrying, before putting the others on the bedside table. I take a bite and almost moan at the meat and potatoes and spices that flood my tongue. It’s unbelievably better than my cooking in the forest. I polish it off in a few bites, even though eating so quickly might give me a stomachache later. Fine, we’ll play it his way. There’s plenty of time to revisit this topic later when I am not exhausted.
“I’ll sleep by the door,” I offer, heading over to the floor and licking the crumbs off my fingers.
He stands up off the bed and argues, “There’s no way I am letting a lady sleep on the floor.”
I raise a brow at him, “NowI’m a lady? Just give me a pillow and I’ll have more than I did in the cave.”
He blushes, an interesting expression to see on his normally impassive face. “Yes, well, I think it’s been established that I’ve been wrong about my treatment of you for the last month. I’ll sleep on the floor.”
I snort. “You are the one recovering from an injury. You take the bed. I’ll be fine.”
“I am well-recovered from my injury. You don’t even use your healing on me anymore.”
That is true, but it is also true that he pushed himself all night and he’s still not at his strongest.
I sigh in annoyance. “Well, what are we going to do? There’s only one bed.”
Marvik looks thoughtful, then says, “We’re both soldiers. I’m sure we’ve both had to sleep in close quarters before. We can share the bed. It looks roomy enough.”
My eyes dart to the bed. It’s a large four-poster that is pushed against the far wall. It does look big enough for two people, but again, this sounds like a trap. Like he’s merely telling me what he thinks I want to hear again. I surreptitiously sniff, but his scent isclean, straightforward, no bitter hint of deception. Still, I don’t trust it. Humans are good at half-truths and those are harder to smell. He says that he wants to stay with me, but before I was sure he had a plan to betray me. He doesn’t need to if he wants to leave now, and I don’t think he’s the type to betray me out of spite, but what if I’m wrong?
I am too weary for all these questions. I wish I had some bloodroot to chew to give me strength and clear my fatigue so that I can keep arguing. But I don’t and I can’t, even with my suspicion.
“Fine,” I snap. “But I sleep on the side closest to the door.” That way I’ll know if he tries to leave while I sleep.
He gives a small smile, the first I have ever seen on his lips. It makes his normally handsome face even more inviting, but I am merely more annoyed.I’m glad my wariness amuses him, I think sarcastically.
“Very well,” he agrees, still smiling. He moves to the window, drawing the curtains. They are not the thickest material and there’s still a fair bit of sunshine in the room, but I am too tired to care. Marvik kicks off his boots and starts pulling off his tunic.
“The tunic stays on,” I say sharply, alarm coursing through me. I don’t need my Mating Instinct to get the wrong idea.
Now his smile grows.Insufferable. But he lets the tunic fall back into place and shrugs. He climbs into the bed and then pats the space next to him invitingly.
“Stay on your side,” I half-growl. This is a bad idea, but again, I am too tired to think of another solution.
Marvik straightens, laying in a stiff line so that he is on the far side of the bed. Taking off my amulet, I place it on the windowsill so that it can recharge when the moon comes out. Then, cautiously, I take off my own boots and climb in after him. I stay as far from him as I can and lay down.Paradise. It’s been so long since I’ve slept anywhere but propped up on a stone wall. I close my eyes and almost soon as I have, I am asleep.
???
I am very warm, a tight embrace around me. I swim slowly to consciousness, still half-asleep. Entwined as I am, I feel safe. Relaxed. I don’t quite know where I am, but I want to stay here, asleep. I am falling back into deeper slumber, when I feel my head tilt back, a long languorous kiss settling on my lips.
It feels good and I whimper, pushing myself closer to the body around me. My mouth opens and a smooth tongue enters my parted lips, plundering my depths. A scent of masculine arousal blooms around me, spicy and delicious. Of their own accord, my claws sheathe and my fingers reach up, tangling in long hair. My core grows wet and I arch up instinctually, meeting a hardness that is reaching toward me. I grind up my hips, feeling a skitter of pleasure race through my veins. A firm grasp finds my breast and gently rubs my nipple. More pleasure. A mewl escapes my lips. Never has a dream felt so good. I grind again and hear a deep, low groan.
Instantly my eyes open, the sound making my mind more aware. Marvik’s face is next to mine, his eyes closed, his face relaxed as if he is also half asleep.
“Come back, huntress. I’m not through with you,” he murmurs, reaching toward me.
I rip away, rolling off the bed and land on my feet. Horror and embarrassment mix with my lingering arousal. Marvik sighs, his hand reaching to my empty spot. When it finds nothing, it relaxes and a soft snore exits his lips, falling back into a deeper sleep and whatever dream he was having. Who was he dreaming of, that he would treat me so passionately? Could it have been . . .me? Huntress sounds like a soft name that could fit me. But, no, I am being foolish. He has no soft feelings for me. He has spent theentire time we have been together trying to get away from me. Just because his sister is alive doesn’t mean that things have really changed between us. It must be someone else, some other past lover of his. Jealousy, ugly in its intensity, fills my heart, but I swiftly banish it. Though I have never had a lover, it is not unreasonable that he would have had one. Or many. And though he is myAsh’ka, he is not really mine. No words of love or fealty have been said between us. I have no hold over him, no Claim. I certainly cannot control his dreams.
The smell of his arousal still fills the air, making me wet and it’s hard to think. I turn to the bedside table and pour more water in the basin, taking the damp cloth and wiping my face and neck. The cold helps settle my feelings. We were both asleep. Dreaming. It was a mistake. He doesn’t even know that it happened. It’ll be alright; there’s no reason to be embarrassed.
Crossing the room, I peek out the curtains. The sun has just barely risen, and I would guess that it is going to be a few hours before the morning bell. We slept all the rest of yesterday and all night. Not surprising after the trek we were forced to walk. I pick up my necklace, the stone glittering in the weak light of early morning, and fasten it back around my neck. The shops will be open soon and we will go gather supplies, if Marvik doesn’t leave or betray me before then.
I glance toward the sleeping man, his hand still reaching out in his sleep as if searching for me.Not me, I remind myself.His lover. His “huntress.” I consider waking him, but he is human and the journey here was hard. He needs his rest.
