Yet I remain in the brook, gazing down at the fine hair of my arms. It pricks on end, resembling needles.
A stick snaps behind me, and I cover my breasts, jerking my head towards a grove of trees. A shadow moves behind the trunk of a pine, and my heart thumps. I am not alone. Someone orsomethingwatches me.
I search the bed of the brook for a sharp rock, keeping a hand across my chest as I feel my way across loamy soil; I left my knife in the folds of my dress, so I’ll have to improvise.
When I find a rock sharp enough, I raise it high above my head, ready to hurl it at the peeping Tom.
The shadow moves again, and I grit my teeth, tossing the rock.
I don’t care if the Grim Reaper himself awaits me behind those pine trees. No one, and I meanno one, watches me bathe.
The rock makes contact, and then someone shouts, “Fuck!”
My heart hammers when I recognise the voice, and then I scream his name, wrapping my arms around my breasts,“Tegwyn!You pervert!”
I grab another rock, and I hope this one knocks him out. He deserves it.
“You were watching me? I can’t believe you!”
The Fae steps out from behind the tree, covering his eyes. “I wasn’t watching you. Don’t flatter yourself!”
I growl, readying the rock to launch it at his horned head. “Now you’re insulting me? You really are despicable!”
He removes his hand from his eyes, pinning me with that cold, vicious stare, and not once does his gaze wander.
Still, I sink beneath the water, using my hair as a veil.
“I was herefarbefore you arrived, princess. Besides, modesty is a foreign concept for the Fae. So…don’t think I haven’t seen it all before. You’re nothing special.”
I roll my eyes. “Well, that’s reassuring.”
Silence stretches for an age as I remain in the water. Somehow, I can’t stop the ache that forms in my chest.
Nothing special…Is that what he thinks?
I’ve never been with a man. I’m inexperienced, while he, on the other hand, has most likely bedded hundreds of females. I bet they were all Fae, like him, and ten times more beautiful than I could ever dream of.
Who am I kidding? Ofcoursehe wasn’t watching me. Compared to the Fae, I’m nothing. Hardly worth a second glance.
His eyes remain respectfully on my face, and I guess he truly did mean what he said; he isn’t interested whatsoever.
Still, I have to get out of this water sometime; I can no longer feel my toes.
“Well, now that we’ve established that you weren’t,indeed, watching me, could you turn around? I need to get dressed.”
He hikes up a brow, regarding me strangely. Are faeries truly that blasé about nudity? Or was he just saying that to mess with me?
Tegwyn sighs, turning back towards the trees. “Do what you must.”
He disappears, but I wait a few more moments before I climb out, dripping water onto the rocks.
As I slip into my clothes, I look to where I saw him last, wondering what he was doing in that grove in the first place. My hair hangs wet about my shoulders as I meander down the slope, coming to a stop behind a tree.
He sits by the brook, the water running as smooth as silk over the glistening rock. He looks so serene beneath the shining sun. His horns glisten as brightly as bronze, and I wonder if they’re just as sturdy.
He snorts, “Now who’s the peeping Tom?”
Tegwyn swivels on his rock, an accusatory look in his gleaming eyes. I bow my head, shame heating my cheeks. “I wasn’t looking…”
