She tugged on a particularly hard knot in her hair, and he couldn't stand the wince that she made.
"Be more gentle," he said, gruffly. He placed his things on the floor next to the door and closed it behind him.
"I brush my hair multiple times a day and it's always tangled. Eventually you get tired of it," Rose replied with a little snarl. Then he swore he heard her pull so hard that she tore hair out of her own head.
Sighing, he approached the bed and snatched the brush out of her hair. She glared at him, whipping around to take it back from him.
"Turn around," he ordered. "I'll do it."
"You are not going to brush my hair."
"If you're going to keep tearing out all those lovely strands, then yes I am."
She glared for a few more seconds, but he could see that the fight in her had already drained out. With a little huff, she turned her back to him and crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine. But if you tug just as hard as I do, then I get to finish it. I'll be much faster than you."
"Probably."
But she didn't care about her hair as much as he did. He started at the bottom, lifting the long strands of her hair and taking his time. He stood behind her, not wanting to risk sitting on the bed and becoming even more distracted. Every strokeworking out the knots without pulling or tugging. He could see them easier, anyway. He'd wanted to do this for a very long time.
The nest of her hair was a personal challenge. She deserved to have a silken waterfall of stunning hair. She deserved not to feel it pulling at her scalp whenever she moved. And now he got to be the person who could give that to her.
Every brush through the long locks seemed to relax her further. Soon enough, she was leaning into him. He wasn't sure she even noticed that she was doing it. He had to take a step back as she scooted closer to him, and soon enough she had the small of her back resting against his thigh as he got the last of the tangles out.
She hummed low under her breath as he could brush through the strands without a single snag. "This feels nice."
"I don't mind doing it. If you need someone to brush your hair again, you let me know."
She snorted, again with that sound that was almost a laugh. "That would be every night, Gunnar. Even if I braid it, I get knots."
"Then I'll brush your hair every night."
"That's a mad thing for me to ask anyone to do."
He set the brush down on the mattress beside her and ran his claws through her hair. Pure silk. So soft that it made him want to never stop touching it. "I don't mind at all, Rose. I'm more than happy to brush your hair every night."
A long lull broke after he'd admitted that. Almost as though he'd broken some unspoken rule between the two of them. Or maybe, just maybe, he'd done everything right.
She took a deep breath. "We should go to bed."
"Do you want to braid this? It might help it not tangle while you sleep."
She seemed to hesitate, so he just made quick work of it. He’d braided many people’s hair in his life, from his own when he hadkept it longer, to warriors on the battlefield. He knew how to tie it without a leather strap as well.
Once he was done, he flipped the braid over her shoulder and then got underneath the covers. All without a word. She could make the first move. He wouldn't force her to get into bed with him, and he wouldn't insist that she do so.
Still, the tension in him eased as she slipped underneath the covers with him and draped herself across his chest. Was she stiff? Yes, of course she was. But she was here. And that was a start.
He said nothing, just breathed in slowly and deeply until he could almost feel her falling asleep. At least, until she murmured something under her breath.
Then she said it again, louder this time. "I don't think we should tell anyone we're bonded yet."
His blood went cold. Why? Why would they not? She was his troll wife now, and he would do everything he could to keep her safe and happy and be the best troll husband he could be.
"Why?" he asked, trying not to let his emotions show through his voice.
"The bridal games. Didn't we break some kind of rule?"
Shit.
