Lorraine and the staff come out with the food. They all eat with us too, but they wait until everyone else has been served first.
Lorraine brings over a long plate, bigger than usual. She sets it down in front of us and says with a warm smile, “Now, I saw Kit sitting with you and I thought I’d just bring out a sharing plate for you both.”
She brushes a curl from Kit’s face and tells him gently, “Remember, Kit, don’t force yourself to eat too much, okay? Don’t make yourself sick.”
Kit smiles softly up at her. “Thanks, Lorraine.”
He straightens a little and grabs some cutlery, picking up one of the homemade fries. Lorraine makes them herself with her own seasoning… crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, covered in that perfect natural flavouring.
What I don’t expect is for Kit to turn around slightly and say, “Bite,” holding it up to my mouth and watching me.
I grin a little and take the food he offers. I can’t help it, but the gesture and his proximity make me harden beneath him. Kit freezes at the twitch against his ass.
I lean forward and whisper against his ear, “Ignore it, I can’t help it.Eat.”
Kit nods, but he’s blushing hard now. I pick up another fork and start eating too, one arm still loosely around his waist.
ChapterTwenty-Seven
~ The First Time ~
Kit
I feel the world tilt as Soren gently lowers me to the floor in the ensuite of his bedroom. I had insisted I could walk up the stairs perfectly fine, but he didn’t listen… he simply scooped me up and carried me the whole way. My body still feels weak, every movement sending dull aches through my limbs, but the warmth of his chest against me had been strangely comforting.
I hadn’t even thought about the mirror until now. The second my eyes land on my reflection, tears blur my vision instantly. My new face stares back at me, a stranger. The long, angry scar runs from my cheek, across the bridge of my nose, through my brow that’s been shaved off, and up my forehead. It’s still swollen and red, the stitches neat but stark against my pale skin. My left eye is still bruised and puffy, the skin tight and shiny. I lookdisgusting. My lips tremble as I try to stop my face from scrunching up, but every tiny twitch pulls at the stitches and sends fresh stings radiating across my cheek. The doctor did a good job, I know that, the line is clean,but it doesn’t change the fact that this is what everyone has been seeing when they look at me.
Soren’s voice breaks the silence, low and careful. “Hey…”
He quickly turns me away from the mirror, his large hands gentle on my shoulders. He wipes the tears from my jaw with his thumb, his face frowning in concern. He looks like he has so much he wants to say but doesn’t quite know how to get the words out.
I point at my face with a shaky finger. “I look fuckingawful.” Another tear slips free.
Soren shakes his head immediately. “No.”
I sniffle. “No?”
He inhales sharply, like the words are difficult for him. “I… I’m not very good at words, Kit…”
I nod, voice small. “It’s okay.”
Soren closes his eyes for a second, like he’s steeling himself. When he opens them again, his voice is rough but sincere. “Kit… the scar… it shouldneverhave happened. But all I see when I look at it is yourstrength. Your resilience. The fact that you survived. How fuckingproudI am of you… you kept fighting and managed to free yourself. You somehow managed to get yourself to land… never once giving up…”
My bottom lip trembles again. His words of praise and pride sink into me like warm sunlight after days in the cold.Goddamnit. Why is this man being so gentle right now? I never expected this treatment from Soren, not in a million years. All it does is stir up impossible feelingstoward him, feelings I know he’ll never give back. I need to bury them down,deep.
Soren clears his throat and changes the subject with his usual bluntness. “Take your clothes off.”
The sudden shift stops my tears cold. I even let out a little surprised laugh.
Soren raises a brow. “What?”
I shake my head, still smiling weakly. “Nothing.”
He hasn’t seen the bruises on my body yet. I purse my lips and undo the robe I’ve been wearing, leaving me in the thin gown the doctor put me in. Soren takes the robe and hangs it neatly on the door hook. I flick my eyes up to his face, watching his expression as I slowly remove the gown, leaving me in only my boxers.
Soren’s eyes widen a fraction and darken. He frowns at my body, taking in the bruises.
“Soren…” I say softly.
