“Yes, I will.” I put a hand on my hip, ready to start a fight if he tried to go alpha-male and start ordering me around.
Instead, he let out a harsh breath and said, “Thank you. What do you intend to eat for breakfast, if not whatever I make?”
I blinked at him, surprised he hadn’t continued fighting with me. “Um…” I glanced around the room, looking for something that would excuse me from eating considering my twisted stomach and the nausea that was tangling my abdomen even more. “Bread.” I tossed a hand toward the small, wrapped loaf on the counter. “Diora brought it for me, remember?”
“Right.” He dipped his head in another nod, though this one was tiny. “And lunch?”
“You can feed me if you want, or I can go find something in town. I’m sure Diora and—”
“You’ll join me, then.” He cut me off before I explained anything about the other couple. “I’ll retrieve you from your room when it’s nearly time.”
I nodded, and he took a step backward. “Don’t forget—clothing, next time.”
A snort escaped me. “Maybe.”
His eyes darkened as he stared at me. “Yes, Akari. Clothing. Every time.”
I gave him a relaxed shrug that had taken me years of practice to figure out. “We’ll see.”
Since he was then back far enough for me not to smash him in the face with the door, I swung it shut and turned the lock again.
With the wood between us, I actually sort of missed the big bastard.
Of course, that was probably just the bond talking through me.
He left the hallway, and a moment later, I shuffled back to my bed.
Nope; I wasn’t going to reconsider anything. No overthinking allowed in the room.
At least, not about the fated mate who seemed to go back and forth between liking and hating me.
I slid back into bed and closed my eyes, but my mind lingered on the slow way his eyes had trailed up and down my body when he pointed out that I was naked.
At lunch time,there was another knock at the door.
I rolled out of bed again, grabbing my dress from the day before off of the ground and tugging it into place as I walked. Without the undergarment, it hung a bit scandalously off my figure, but because I had no curves I could pull it off just fine.
I opened the door to a tense looking Espen, but he relaxed when his gorgeous silver eyes met my faded blues.
And then he tensed again when his gaze dipped to my chest.
“Hello?” I drawled, leaning against the doorframe once more.
My body was utterly exhausted after another round of nightmares.
Restless sleep was almost worse than no sleep, but it was all I’d had for far too long.
“You must be hungry by now,” Espen said, clearing his throat after he spoke.
He tucked his hands into his pockets, and I wondered what exactly he had been itching to touch that had compelled him to do so.
“I’m not. Thank you, though.” I reached for the door, but he caught my hand and slid his fingers between mine before I could grab the wood.
Our eyes collided.
“Let me see the bread Diora brought back,” he said, surprising me with the words.
“Why?” I made no move to let him further into my room.