No, it was fine. He probably hadn’t even looked. He hadn’t peeked when I asked him to turn away; he’d have the decency to ignore my lacy underwear this time too.
I jumped out of bed, searching for the clothes I had arrived in, but found nothing. It was time to explore the set of doors that had caught my attention the moment I woke. One of them had to be a wardrobe. I just hoped it was at least partially stocked.
My hand closed around the golden handle, and as I stepped inside, a light flickered on above me, illuminating the wooden room before slowly cascading into the side lamps nestled between the wardrobes.
Charming. Of course, it was.
And it was fully stocked. The realisation both pleased and unsettled me. It meant River truly intended to provide me with this space, but I feared it went beyond that… that he expected me to accept because I was his mate, not because I needed somewhere to sleep.
Would he feel like he owned me if I slept under his roof?
Grabbing the first baggy sweater I could find, I completed the look with a pair of black mom jeans. Let’s not give him a reason for his eyes to wander anymore than they might have already.
Though the more I thought of it, was it even a bad thing?
River was a conventionally handsome man, and being the focus of his attention made my insides tingle again. For someone who had never thought herself particularly attractive, it meant everything.
Even if nothing could come of it… though I couldn’t stop questioning why I kept him at arm’s length. Especially when I craved him every bit as much as he craved me, and the Gods themselves had bound us together.
The fire in my veins thrashed, begging for release, and I found myself wiping the sweat from my flushed face. My power was betraying me. Everything about that man was an aphrodisiac I wasn’t sure I could resist much longer.
I exited the wardrobe and headed straight for the other door—the bathroom—splashing my cheeks with ice-cold water. The reflection that greeted me looked better than it had that morning when I left the Isles. Maybe I slept better in his proximity. Or maybe the adrenaline from holding my flames at bay helped stave off the exhaustion.
I glanced to the side and nearly yelped. A couple of bottles of repellent sat among the perfumes and body lotions. I sprayed myself and slipped one into my pocket.
Step by step, I made my way downstairs, hoping not to find River as unclothed as I had been. My prayers were answered; he busied himself in the kitchen, still wearing the burgundy shirt from earlier.
‘Did you sleep well?’ he asked with a smile as I made my way over to the kitchen island and took a seat.
The room smelled sweet and tangy; whatever he was preparing required fresh tomatoes.
‘Yeah, the bed’s quite comfortable. What are you making?’ I asked, shifting in my seat to silence the grumbles of my stomach.
Wiping his hands on a piece of cloth, slowly enough to catch my attention, he grinned before saying, ‘Your new favourite.’
‘Okay. Bold. I like it.’ I admired his efforts. From the looks of it, it could be spaghetti. ‘Are you sure it’s not burning there?’
He whipped back toward the gas top. ‘Shit.’
Quickly and in circular motions, he moved the pasta around on the pan and kept adding seasonings. ‘Where did you learn how to cook?’
‘I never went out of my way to learn; it’s just something I picked up from my grandpa. He’d spend hours in the kitchen to avoid my granny. Unhealthy habit, but best believe that man can cook.’
Ah yes, the mad woman. Personally, I couldn’t blame the man for escaping. ‘Why the kitchen?’
‘Granny was raised rather… snobbish. She is the oldest of her siblings and was raised to be the queen, she always looked down on simple tasks like cooking. Not that she didn’t appreciate the staff; she was a fair ruler, but her pompous ways keep her away from mundane tasks and places.’
‘I think I get the gist.’ I instinctively touched my eye and laughed. ‘It’s just funny because when you first took me to the Volcano Lands and I met her, all that ash-throwing didn’t seem very high and mighty.’
River looked back smirking as he plated our dinner. ‘She was asking about you recently. Said you should come over soon and that she has a stash of that wine you drank last time just for you.’
My eyes widened. ‘Oh hell no. Never again; that stuff is evil. What in the world does she even put in that wine to make it so strong?’
‘I’m not sure. I used to steal it to get drunk with my friends when we were younger. Until one ended up in a coma.’
My mouth slacked open.
‘Oh no, don’t worry. It was only a short one; he was fine within a few days.’ River scratched his forehead. ‘His mother gave us hell, though. Father threatened me with boarding school. Fun times.’
