She stopped at the railing and ran her fingers over the pastel, soft-as-butterfly-wings fabric of the dresses. Oh, man. With their many intricate fastenings, yup, she was going to dinner draped in a towel.
A burnt-orange bit of fabric sticking out in the corner caught her eye. She removed it from the railing to find a flowing,shorterGrecian-style dress, probably calf length on Aerén’s mother.
If the men here were that tall, then she was certain the women were too, considering Jisele was built like a gum tree.
Nope, the sandals wouldn’t fit at all, she knew at a glance. A pity because they were so pretty. But her boots were there, cleaned up and all shiny black, revealing the lovely scuff marks from her work outdoors. Great.
She pulled on the gown, admiring the low V back and the gold circles holding the dress at her shoulders. Yep, it hit her ankles. She reached behind her, but couldn’t fasten the darn concealed single button and loop at her lower back.
Ugh.Arms sore from fighting with the fastening, she scooped her damp, curling hair into a topknot and fastened it with her scrunchie.
She held up an extra-long piece of fabric that had been on the hanger with the dress, and tried to figure out what it was for. A scarf? A sash?
“Leya?” Aerén called out from the bedroom.
“I’m not ready yet!” she grumbled.
“Can’t find anything to wear?”
“I did…” She bit her lip and quickly pulled on her socks and boots before walking out into the brightly lit room. “I don’t think I’m wearing this dress right—” Leya waved to herself. She lifted her gaze from her dress to him and stumbled to a halt, all the air swooshing from her lungs.
Aerén leaned a shoulder against the bedroom doorjamb, waiting for her.
Black pants hugged his muscular thighs and disappeared into knee-high boots. He’d teamed it with a charcoal tunic, with a short front placket fastened by buttons and loops, which he wore half undone.
He was breathtaking. Every inch an immortal prince.
Then she met those pale, diamond-faceted gray eyes, his stare doing their own appraisal of her, and she pressed a hand to her tense stomach.
“Not good?” she asked. Maybe she looked like a child playing dress-up. “Everything else is too long. I can’t fasten this gown, and I don’t know what this is for.” She waved the long piece of fabric.
“The color’s made for you,” he said softly. He strolled to where she’d stopped in the middle of the enormous room and stepped behind her.
Warm fingers brushed her bare skin and trailed along her spine. Her breath tangled, and the always-there tingles in her palms increased as he did up the single fastening at her lower back.
“All done.” He pressed his lips to her nape in a soft kiss, his hands caressing her sides.
Leya shut her eyes, desire stirring.
With a soft exhale, he stepped back, took the long piece of fabric from her, and held it at the edge, the length flowing to the floor. “I don’t know what it is.”
“Maybe a scarf or head covering?”
“You don’t need it. You’re beautiful, and everyone should enjoy your beauty, too.” He tossed it to the bed, unaware of how his words made her stomach flutter. “Footwear?”
“Nothing fits, so I wore my boots.” She stuck out her feet, showing him her black, scuffed footwear, making him smile.
“Next time, I’ll send you a lady’s maid to help—”
“What? No, don’t. I’m not going to be here long.”
“Leya, I do not know how to put on female clothes. Take them off, yes.” A sexy, wicked smile teased his mouth and lit his eyes.
She snorted. “I’m sure you do.”
“Anyway, I thought we’d eat up here in the living room.” He ushered her through another door into a cozy living room and to a small table laid for dinner near the window.
It overlooked a balcony and the rolling gardens and pretty sea beyond. As he saw her to her seat, the sun sank, painting the sky and landscape in striking hues of pink, orange, and purple.
