Chapter 18

Cosette sat in her nightgown, staring out the window of the lodge room with a smile on her face as she reminisced about spending yesterday with Oriel in the field of poppies. She twisted her dark hair around her finger as she remembered his kind gesture of taking her to the field, his leap into action to protect her from the sun, his kiss…

Especially his kiss.

Very lightly, her fingers brushed against her lips, butterflies erupting in her stomach as she vividly remembered every detail. His nearness, the feel of his lips as soft as the poppy petals she’d touched moments earlier, his body pressed against her own as they took shelter from the sunlight. She had never been kissed before—which wasn’t surprising. It was a perfect kiss, one even her imagination couldn’t have made better. While she had been so nervous to spend time with Oriel alone on this trip, she was far from upset about it now. She’d had the loveliest time.

She sighed happily as she rested her head against the glass windowpane and stared out over the white expanse of snow below. It was beautiful here, and she disliked the idea of returning to Ichor Knell in a couple of days. At the very least, she’d been able to get to know the male who was her mate and found even more to like about him.

A knock sounded at the door, making her jump. She hadn’t heard anyone approach.

Moments later, Oriel entered, and she gave him a sheepish grin as he looked her up and down, slowly raising an eyebrow. “The reason I left in the first place was to give you privacy to change. Shall I step out for a few more minutes?”

“You needn’t leave,” she said, shaking her head as she moved away from the window. “Just turn your back. I will be quick.”

“All right.” He chuckled as he sat at the table with his back toward her. He took out a piece of parchment and began scribbling on it, and although she craned her neck to look, she couldn’t make out the words from here.

Right, I need to get dressed.

She pulled out a dark-red winter dress with a high waist and large ruffles on the bottom of the skirt. When worn with her boots, she felt beautiful in this dress. Would Oriel think the same?

Casting an uncertain look toward him to make sure his back was turned, she hurried to change but found herself completely puzzled by her corset as she tried cinching it up over her undergarments. She tied and retied it, but it wouldn’t cooperate with her today no matter how hard she tried. It didn’t lie flat like it usually did, and as she set to retying it again, she muttered under her breath.

“Giving me…so much…trouble…”

She twisted the infuriating thing back and forth, but it only seemed to make the problem worse, which resulted in a frustrated groan. Doing this by herself was not easy.

“Do you need help?” Oriel asked, and to her horror, he turned around, looking straight at her.

“Oriel!” she shrieked as she grabbed her dress and clutched it to her chest. It didn’t cover much, and he didn’t look away. But he was looking at her face and nothing more.

“You’re making quite the fuss. Will you allow me to help?”

She blushed deeply at the thought of him seeing her in her undergarments. But she really was having a ghastly time trying to lace her corset. “You’ve done this sort of thing before, have you?”

He chuckled and shook his head. “Not once in my life. But it can’t be too hard to figure out.”

She paused but then finally dropped her dress, blushing even more as she exposed herself in her undergarments and her very untidy attempt at lacing the corset. He rose from his chair and closed the distance between them in a few strides until he stood directly in front of her. His movements were slow, as if he didn’t want to spook her.

“Ah, I see what you have done here,” he said after studying the horrible job she had executed. “It’s like when I miss a button on my shirt and have to restart from the beginning. Now bear with me. I will have to untie these…uh…ribbons.”

Her lips twitched with amusement at his lack of terminology despite her obvious fluster.

Oriel’s fingers made quick work of the lacing, and she had to press her hands to her corset to keep it from falling off without the lacing to keep it held in place. He successfully laced the top portion but then became adorably confused as he crisscrossed the lacing one way and then crossed it the other, his puzzlement clear on his features.

“This is why you need a ladies’ maid,” he muttered. “Males have no business with corsets other than taking them off.”

Cosette gasped, and he stared at her with wide, horrified eyes.

“Did I really just say that?” Suspicious color entered his face. “My apologies. I don’t know what has come over me.”

“Being cooped up with me for the better part of two weeks, perhaps?”

She had meant to tease him, but her voice escaped quietly and lacked a humorous tone. Her blush worsened, and it certainly didn’t help when the same thing appeared to happen to him as well.

“That may be it,” he replied just as quietly before he turned with immense concentration back to the corset. His fingers tugged on the lacing as he weaved it downward, and for a moment, she allowed herself to entertain the thought. What if he actually did work to take it off rather than put it on? How would she react? What would it be like? They were mates, after all, if through the ceremony only. But she suspected someday their own blood bond would happen. The thought both thrilled and terrified her.

“There!” he finally said as he stepped back to admire his work. “It wasn’t too hard. I think. Actually, I may have done it wrong. Is it supposed to be tighter? Or did I tie it too tight?”

A reply flew out the window, along with her fluster.

Instead of answering, she reached for her red dress and pulled it over her head, threading her arms through the sleeves. The buttons wound up the back, which was one disadvantage. It would take her a long time to do it herself, but with Oriel here…

Taking a deep breath, she turned her back to him. Her hands trembled. Her heart quickened.

“Please,” she whispered.

“Now buttons are something I can do. Why you need so many is beyond me. Perhaps the latest fashion in Ichor Knell?”

Her breath hitched as his fingers brushed against her neck as he pulled her hair out of the way, and the tremble in her hands worsened as he pressed a soft kiss to her bare shoulder. It felt intimate. Her cold vampire skin suddenly felt unbearably warm. It was difficult to concentrate. What did he just ask her?

“I…I don’t know,” she finally said, surprised she wasn’t a complete stuttering mess as he buttoned up the back of the dress starting from the bottom and working his way up. “I would think…I would think it’s something you should ask your sister.”

“Your sister now too,” he said, his lips very close to her ear. She shuddered pleasantly at his breath on her skin.

Finally, he finished the last button, but he didn’t step away. He wrapped both arms around her waist from behind. Her eyes widened. Her heart pounded so fiercely she was sure he could hear it. She willed her heart to remain steady. Whenever it beat too hard, she had a tendency to…transform. And she couldn’t un transform for a good while. If that happened, she would be utterly mortified.

He placed a kiss right below her ear. Her heart developed a mind as its own, thundering within her ribcage. She warred between turning into his touch and fleeing from the room entirely.

“I shouldn’t be allowed to dress you,” he whispered, his words tickling her skin. “You are much too tantalizing for me to be doing this.”

“Oriel,” she said in a strangled voice.

“Don’t you worry,” he said, at last dropping his hands from her waist and putting distance between them. “I promised I wouldn’t touch you unless we were both comfortable with it.”

Her heart panged with disappointment.

I am willing. Are you not?

But without him near, she caught her bearings. She placed a hand to her heart and breathed deeply. Just a simple kiss was almost too much for her to handle.

“Tomorrow is our last day here,” he said casually as if the heart-thrumming scene hadn’t just happened. He returned to the table and continued to scribble on the piece of parchment. “I thought we could attend the theater today, but only if you’re comfortable. There will likely be a lot of people there. Humans. And if you’re not fond of the idea”—he tapped the parchment—“then I have a couple other suggestions—”

“The theater is fine!” she squeaked, taking Oriel—and herself—by surprise.

She had agreed in a moment of panic. Although she found being around crowds difficult, she thought it might be easier than spending time alone with him. Her heart needed to recover. And if he wouldn’t allow her to hide, then she had to face the crowds. It was the next best thing.

“Are you sure?” he asked, clearly not expecting her answer. “I had other suggestions too—”

“I’m sure.”

He paused, giving her a strange look.

“If it’s what you want to do, then I would be a fool to deny you. Laurel adores the theater and begs me to take her once a month, especially when Zachariah is busy with his apprenticeship at the infirmary. Me? I think I would enjoy it a lot more with you.”

Heat stained her face, and she turned around and pressed her hands to her cheeks to try and hide it. Just two more days. If she could last two more days, then she would have successfully made it through this heart-hammering two weeks of solitude with Oriel. How could she enjoy something so much that also terrified her? But it was almost over. She could do this.

“Then to the theater we go.”