“Well, first I need to pee. I don't need your help for that.” He grinned and Lori pulled a face playfully. “But once I return, I'm going to need you to get some supplies out of my pack. I'll tell you which ones you'll need.”
“Aye, Captain.” Lori mock saluted him, shooting him a wide smile.
Lephas just shook his head and turned to traipse a little way into the undergrowth to relieve himself. The faerie turned and crawled back into the log for his belongings.
When he returned, the demon found her sat on an old, rotten tree stump that she had scraped the snow off.Lori had his pack open in front of her between her knees and the bottle of whisky in her hands, eyeing it curiously.
“Trust you to find that first.” Lephas laughed, wincing as pain shot through his side once more.
“Why have you got booze in here? Were you expecting a party?” She tugged the stopper free and leant in to sniff the contents.
Lephas carefully began unbuckling his leather chest armour. “I found it back at the farmhouse. I thought it might be useful as a bit of a pick-me-up when we got too cold.”
“It's strong, whatever it is. Whisky?”
“Do you know much about whisky?” Lephas cocked a brow.
“I've tried a dram or two in my time. This one smells good, it's old.”
Lephas shrugged out of his armour and threw the heavy material down onto the snow. The crisp morning air was refreshing after being in the same clothes for three days. He rolled the hem of his thin undershirt up and looked down at the source of pain in his side.
A dark, angry looking bruise had formed with significant swelling beneath the skin. He cursed under his breath. Definitely at least one broken rib, though thankfully it was probably only a hairline fracture. He supposed he should be grateful there were no bones poking out through his skin or anything more serious.
“Maybe when we rest up this evening we can give this a try.” Lori continued, still appraising the whisky bottle. “We haven't got any glasses, but I–”
The girl cut herself off abruptly. Lephas raised his head questioningly, alarmed when he found Lori eyeing him with great interest.
“...What?!” he exclaimed, dropping the hem of his shirt and turning to face her.
“Don't let me disturb you. I'm just... Enjoying the view.” Lori pressed her lips together.
“Shut up!” Lephas grimaced with embarrassment.
“What? This is the first time I've seen you without all that extra padding on.” She looked him up and down heatedly.
“Just... Find me the long, wide bandage in there will you?” The commander gestured to his travel bag, turning his back on the faerie to hide his undoubtedly pink cheeks. He ran a hand through his hair.
“Alright, alright – you need to learn to take a compliment” Lori chuckled softly, turning her attention to the bag.
Lephas grabbed the hem of his shirt again but hesitated. It would make the task easier if he took the shirt off completely but he felt uncomfortable and bashful now the princess had referred to 'enjoying the view'. He didn't have much time to consider it. Lori appeared by his side with a large, folded bandage.
“This one?” she asked.
“Yeah, that's it.” Lephas nodded, taking it from her and unfurling it. “If you hold it still, I'll pull it tight and wrap it around my chest. The tighter the better. I need to try to stabilise the fracture.”
Lori's blue eyes were already pinned to his torso, sparkling with curiosity. Lephas felt a fresh blush rising in his cheeks. Biting the bullet, Lephas lifted his shirt once again and attempted to awkwardly pull it up over his head without disturbing his rib.
“Wow, that's nice.” Lori sighed longingly.
“Will you bloody quit it?” Lephas dropped the shirt back down, fixing the princess with an incredulous look.
Lori reached out and lifted the material up to expose his abs. “Sorry, I just– I honestly didn't realise men couldactuallylook like that in real life.”
“What are you talking about?” Lephas snapped, wondering just how much more embarrassed he could get before the snow would start to thaw around him from the heat in his face.
“My sisters and I found an old, dog-eared romance book in the library back at home once. We weren't sure how it had got there, but we read the damn thing over and over. We spent a silly amount of time looking at the shirtless hero on the front cover, heartbroken that real-life men didn't look like he did...”
Lori smiled seductively and her eyes dropped to his chest again.
