Chapter 13
When Zain got out of the shower, his mood was much better. He could feel all body parts. He went out to the kitchen and immediately could smell the coffee. Sitting on the table was a bowl of soup, his sense of smell told him. Smiling, he went over and poured a cup of coffee. He was done running around in the snow.
“I thought you would like something hot for the inside.”
He turned to see Oaklyn standing in the doorway.
“I went and got some of my things. Thought I’d grab a shower while we were here.”
Zain nodded. “Yeah. We should get on the road. The weather could change ten times when we get closer to the factory.”
She shook her head. “I don’t know how folks like this weather.”
Zain laughed. “I agree with you there.” He looked at her for a moment before turning around and sitting at the table. “Sorry about earlier.”
“No harm done. I would have done the same thing myself.”
When he turned to ask her why, but she wasn’t there. Shrugging, he leaned down and inhaled the soup fragrance slowly. “Hot food.” He was all about anything with heat right now. When he lifted the spoon, he remembered his frozen boots. Setting the spoon down, he went to get them and put them near any heat source.
He found them sitting upside down on top of a heat register. Turning, he looked down the hall toward the bathroom. She was puzzle, that part was for certain. Shrugging, he went back to the kitchen. They had a long drive; he’d find out more about her then. As soon as this soup warmed his insides, he would get his map and plot a route for them to take. Might as well use another house along the way to stop at, rather than sitting in the car for a few days. He shook his head. Traveling wasn’t his thing, he’d decided.
Inside, he was a little more settled. He had Calum on his side, that made a big difference. The fact that Zain’s life had been changed because of a member or members of Shepard Addison’s clan and his son was now in charge, was going to make it difficult to get through. He didn’t look forward to sitting down with Devin and explaining all of it. Of course, the fact that his father was missing was going to make it worse, their only prince was going to be distracted by that.
“I’m surprised you weren’t talking to yourself.”
He glanced at Oaklyn and grinned. “I was inside my head.” He waved his spoon around. “It’s rude to talk out loud with your mouth full.”
She shook her head. “When do you want to get back on the road?”
“After I finish this, I’ll take a look at the map. See if we can plan a route that lands us near another Alliance house, so we don’t have to rest in the car.” He grimaced. “It does have heat, right?”
“That part works very well.” She ran a hand through her hair. “I’m going to go see if there’s a hair dryer, so I’m not back out in the cold with wet hair.”
He nodded and turned back to the bowl in front of him. Where had Calum come across her? Zain knew there were many members of the teams that had been recruited, or found by Calum, but with her accent, he had to have been in the lower states to come across her. His wolf stirred. He inhaled. She must have put on some kind of lotion because the room was filled with a sweet floral scent.
Glancing over at the door, he checked to make sure she had gone back to the bathroom. Setting the spoon down, he lifted the bowl and drank the soup like it was a big cup.