“We should leave shortly after sunrise if we wish to reach the inn by the day after tomorrow.”
My inner thighs winced at the thought of that much travel. “I forgot we were that far away. Do you think the others made it there already?”
“Undoubtedly,” Cassian mused as we slipped into our room, with him firmly closing the door behind us. “Titus is very familiar with this area, having been raised by his maternal grandfather, and did quite a bit of hunting.”
I plopped myself on the bed and clasped my hands in my lap. “Of nethral?”
“Those, and wild game,” Cassian replied as he knelt in front of the cold hearth. He took up the bits and pieces needed to build a fire and put them together on the soot-dusted stones. “He once took me on quite an adventure.”
My ears perked up. “What kind of adventure?”
“A stream runs through the woods a half mile off the main road,” he explained as he built the fire. “We were only lads at the time, visiting his grandfather on the farm. Titus promised me an abundance of fish if we went to that stream, but after several hours of fishing, we hadn’t caught anything. We decided to travel upstream to find a better spot.” He paused in his story to smile at the memory. “Much was our surprise when we discovered the reason for the lack of fish.”
I leaned toward him. “What was it?”
“A huge bear. It stood in the middle of the stream, catching every fish that tried to swim past and gobbling them down in one bite.”
My eyes widened. “What’d you do?”
“We ran.”
I snorted. “And I’m sure the bear ran the other way, right?”
“No. It chased us.”
My face drooped, and a little color left my cheeks. “It chased you?”
“Through the woods and a mile down the road until we reached the gate to his grandfather’s farm. He heard our shouts and met us at the road. It was only through the use of a pitchfork and some magic dust that we were able to fend it off. The creature slunk off into the woods with a cold look at us for disturbing its lunch.”
I wrapped my arms around myself and shivered. “I hope not all the bears around here are that ‘friendly.’”
“Only those filled with gluttony,” he assured me as he tossed a log on the fire. The crackling flames swallowed the fresh food, and a gentle warmth filled the room. He turned to me with a hint of pride in his smile. “There. Now we shall sleep well without the need for those extra blankets at the foot.”
Something in his words caught my attention. “You won’t need the blankets? At all?”
His eyes twinkled. “Should I? The bed should be comfortable enough without them.”
My mouth dropped open. “You and me? In the same bed?”
He grasped his lower back and winced. “I would gladly choose the floor, my beloved wife, but we have had a hard journey. Must I plead for a share of the large feather-down bed?”
My own aching, bowed legs could confirm the hard journey. A heavy sigh escaped me as my shoulders slumped. “Alright, but wear socks.”
Cassian blinked at me. “Socks?”
I wiggled a finger at his feet. “I don’t want to find out if kings have feet as cold as mine.”
A smile crept onto his lips, and he bowed his head. “As you wish, my lady. And you may have my shirt.”
I blinked at him. “Pardon?”
He gestured at me. “You have no nightshirt. I offer mine.”
A faint blush warmed my cheeks as I looked at the article of clothing he offered. “You’re sure you won’t need it? You might catch a cold.”
“I will find a way to stay warm,” he assured me as he removed his shirt.
The king didn’t wear any armor underneath the clothing. Why would he, when he could grow scales? That meant I was graced with a full view of his impressive muscles.
