I’d been too stunned to speak after he set his hand on my arse, mostly because Ilikedhow it felt there, and wished for the life of me he’d forget about dinner altogether and...
Then he set me down gracefully on the floor, sternly addressing me with a command in his voice that made my insides twist.
And then, he served me dinner, and I was speechless.
I rose from my seat to collect our plates, but he grabbed my wrist, his thumb brushing over the little veins there slowly, tenderly.
He didn’t look at me as he did so, and I felt my blood heat at his touch.
“Don’t,” he said softly, loosening his grip.
“It’s only fair, you cooked, I—”
His gaze flashed to mine, and I could see the pain in his eyes. I wanted to press, to ask what was wrong, but something told me that wasn’t the right thing to do.
“Let me take care of you,” he said.
“You have done more than enough to take care ofme,” he said as he rose from his seat, dropping my hand to collect the plates.
I watched as he physically washed them, dried them and set them back where he’d retrieved them in the first place.
“I hope you are satisfied?” he asked as he slid his hands in his pockets, approaching me.
I nodded as a yawn came over me.
“Quite,” I said as I looked up at him once more.
There were plenty of things I wanted to say, but all I could settle on was, “Would you walk me back to my dorm? I am still kind of lost with this place...” I said, even though it was only half true.
Whether he knew I was fibbing or not, he only nodded, the hint of a smile on his face.
“Of course,” he said as he led the way through the quiet chambers.
When we’d reached my dormitory, I was well aware that we’d come to the end of our date.
Don’t be ridiculous, Vi! It’s not a date. He saved you from some creepy vines, and you made out with him, and he made you dinner... but that doesn’t make it a date.
Right?
“Thank you,” I said as I stepped in front of my door. The light from the sconces on the nearby wall cast a glow on his face, making him look every bit the spark I saw in my vision.
Golden, warm, and beautiful.
“For what?” he said quietly, his gaze dipping to my lips before drawing up to my eyes once more.
“For taking care of me, silly bat.”
His lips turned up in a smile, and he let out a small laugh.
“Bat?” he asked curiously.
I shrugged. “Your wings remind me of a little bat I once saved.”
His eyes sparkled with longing at my words and he sighed, his breath shaky.
Almost as if he was... nervous.
But what did Bane have to be nervous about?
