“I . . . I thought. It . . . it’s not mine. Grace gave it to me,” I stuttered.
He was silent for a long moment, studying my face.
“Why would she give this to you?”
“Well, to me and Frid. She said that all girls should have them.” I was ready to die from embarrassment.
“Is that so?” Tynan’s hand brushed against my navel.
“Yes.”
Tynan’s hand continued exploring my body, making me melt from within. It was too much, more than I could bear. With a gasp, I pressed my lips to his and our mouths crashed into a wild, unstoppable kiss. In that moment, nothing else existed but the two of us, the world could burn and collapse onto itself as his lips devoured mine and nothing else mattered.
It was nearly dark when we returned to Grace’s cottage. Frid and Victor were preparing dinner, while Tynan’s grandma sat talking to Sol and an unfamiliar girl he brought with him.
“What’s going on?” Tynan asked and his hand released mine.
“Grace brought us dinner, and Sol brought his lady,” Victor lowered his voice.
It was really cramped in the sitting area, but I made my way to the new girl, and after an awkward pause, introduced myself. The girl’s name was Angela and she was a maid in the castle.
I only managed a quick glance toward Frid when I sawher make a sign for me to approach her. I excused myself and went straight to the kitchen where the blond girl, wearing a dress that looked two sizes too big, was wrestling with a kitchen knife.
“What happened?” I asked, getting closer.
“You know I like blades, all kinds of blades. I even had a nickname, ‘Black Blade Mary’,” she started saying.
“I didn’t know that.”
“Yes, I did. So why can’t I cut this stupid cucumber?” She made a cutting motion, while the poor vegetable rolled on the cutting board.
“Oh.” I frowned.
The truth was, I was just no good in the kitchen. No matter how hard I tried to learn to cook, I would always get bored, and paid dearly every time I tried to cut corners or experiment. My fiance would never allow me in the kitchen because I would waste good ingredients.
“Do you want me... to try?” I approached the water basin and quickly washed my hands.
“Please, or I will have to kill someone, and it will be Victor, because it was his idea,” she muttered.
I bit my lip, concentrating on the knife, my hand landed on the cucumber and I slowly tried to cut a piece. With extreme precision, I was able to slice a piece that was twice as small as Frid’s, but still quite thick. I sighed, shaking my head.
“I’m absolutely useless,” I mumbled and suddenly felt Tynan’s presence right behind me.
His hands landed on my waist and he touched his lips to my temple. He said nothing, watching me slice another piece. My face turned beet red. For some reason, I did not want him to know about my kitchen incompetence just yet.
“How’s it going?” he asked.
“It’s going,” I pursed my lips, trying to slice another piece.
“How’s your Sage business?” Frid asked.
“Not good,” he said.
“Do you want my help?” Frid crossed her arms on her chest.
“No, I’ll figure it out,” Tynan responded.
I finished my task and looked back at Frid with triumph.
