The sincerity in his voice triggered a dull ache in her chest.
She nestled her head onto the pillow, pushing her hands beneath and resting them on his rock-solid thighs. “You are too good to be true, Birdman.”
“Don’t you forget it, Daredevil.” His strong, skilled fingers stroked her hair away from her forehead, tracing circles into her scalp.
She drowsily relished his touch, and after several minutes his fingers stilled and his breathing slowed.
Wrapping his other arm around her waist, she fell asleep more quickly than she would’ve thought possible in the pretend embrace.
A pleasant, dangerous fiction.
CHAPTERFIVE
Dust-stained floors cooled Xenia’s bare feet as she followed Alexei down a breezeway of open arches. Through the crumbling stone, the watercolor sunset seemed too beautiful to be real—a kaleidoscope of dusty pinks and purples dotted with puddles of shining gold.
The ancient fortress that Alexei led her through was just as decrepit as the dungeon below. Some kind of abandoned structure that Maksym was using as a temporary headquarters.
She’d never seen anything like the foreign landscape outside, not even in the thousands of books she’d read. Tall, prickly plants cupped the sky, fingers clawing for the realm of Anaemos. Low bundles of dry grasses dotted rust-colored dirt that stretched for endless miles, nary a hill or mountain in sight—an alluring display of barren, deadly isolation.
She wouldn’t last a day outside this fortress—if she could even escape in the first place. Not that she would risk it before finding out what she’d have to do to save Cael.
As they arrived at the end of the breezeway, Alexei opened a stone door into a circular room containing nothing but a free-standing tub that resembled a gigantic, hollowed-out pebble. Tendrils of steam curled up from the water’s surface; she wondered how they’d warmed it.
Alexei shoved her inside, then pressed a towel and silken scrap of green fabric into her hands.
“Wash up and put this on,” he hissed. “We’ll be back to fetch you in twenty minutes.” He locked the door behind him.
She peeled off her filthy training shirt and leggings, underwear as well, and slipped into the deliciously heated water.
She found an orange blossom-scented bar of soap sitting on the lip of the tub, then used it to wash her matted curls and scrub her skin raw.
Pink and glowing and smelling green, fresh and faintly of citrus, she was amazed at how human she felt with all the grime stripped away.
She rose from the bath and dried herself with the towel, then plucked the satiny green scrap from the floor, dangling the dress—if one could even call it that—from her fingertips.
She raised her arms and let the soft, silky material cascade down her lanky form.
The straps were thinner than a finger and the neckline dipped into a vee at her sternum. The fabric flowed down her torso, tightening over the flare of her hips before cascading to mid-shin.
Xenia barely had any chest to speak of, and had always been envious of Cassandra’s lush curves. Though, she was grateful for her lack of endowment in the backless dress. She didn’t bother putting her underwear back on since the dress scooped just above the swell of her ass.
She’d never in her life exposed this much skin.
The scandalous garment reminded her of that ridiculous nightgown Cassandra had worn to tease Tristan.
Xenia snickered at the memory before a pang of utter anguish gripped her. High Gods, she missed her friend.
Alexei didn’t bother knocking before he yanked the door open and poked his head in.
“Let’s go, little mouse,” he growled. “Maksym doesn’t like to be kept waiting.”
She bent down to retrieve her clothes.
“Leave them,” he bit out. “You won’t be needing them anymore.”
She obeyed, wondering if they’d offer her different clothes after dinner or if she was expected to wear this dress for the rest of her captivity. She padded out of the washroom, following Alexei back into the breezeway.
The black hilt of the dagger hanging at his hip looked familiar. She was almost positive it was the one Tristan had given Cass. Ker? Was that its name?
