Page 24 of The Wolf and Her Shadows

In lieu of responding verbally, I take the two steps necessary to close the distance between us and drop onto the bed beside her. As soon as I open my arms, Mariane falls into them, pressing her face into my chest and letting out a sound halfway between a snarl and a sob. After a moment, I shift so that we’re both lying on the bed properly, with her head still resting on my chest and my arms still wrapped tightly around her.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers, wiping away a stray tear. “I just… That was the first time I’ve been with a woman since…”

“Shh. It’s alright, you don’t need to explain.” I squeeze her a bit tighter, wishing I could do more to ease her pain. “We can stay like this for as long as you need. Then we can go eat some questionable food. Afterwards we can come back up here and sleep for as long as you’d like, and on beds much softer than hard-packed earth.”

“All of that sounds wonderful,” she mumbles, the tenseness in her back and shoulders easing. “Wake me up in roughly an hour.”

Mariane’s breathing evens out not but a moment later as she succumbs to sleep.

Chapter Eleven

Mariane

At first, the feeling of arms wrapped around me causes my heart to leap into my throat. That is, until I realize it’s only Vannaria, still holding me like I’d asked her to in my moment of weakness. In place of my waning anxiety, I’m struck by another wave of guilt. How could I be so selfish?

She must’ve felt my muscle tense, because the strong arms around me tighten, cutting off my self-loathing thoughts before they can fully take root. “You’re alright,” Vannaria whispers, running her fingers through my hair. “It’s just me. No need to be alarmed. I was about to wake you for dinner, as requested.”

Forcing my eyes open, I lift my head off her leather-clad chest so that I can look at her properly. The soft violet eyes and gentle smile that greet me do wonders to wash away my lingering guilt. In this moment, Vannaria looks as at peace as I’ve felt every time she’s held me.

Giving her enough time to pull away if she wishes, I slowly lean down and place a gentle kiss on her ashen grey cheek. A welcome sense of satisfaction fills me when I see her skin slowly darkening. I suddenly find myself struck with the thought that I may never grow tired of seeing this woman flush under my attention.

Which is a dangerous thought indeed.

Softly clearing my throat, I whisper, “Thank you, Vannaria.” I leave my words of gratitude brief, fearing that if I say too much I may make a fool of myself.

The depths of the emotions I’m feeling… It would be so easy to lose myself in them. To succumb to the pull I feel towards this woman and forget every reason I should keep her at arm’s length. That very notion becomes even harder to remember as the elf somehow pulls me impossibly closer.

She doesn’t say anything in response, just lets out a sigh. Not one of pain or exasperation. Not even relief. No, it was a sigh of contentment. Unable to help myself, the same sound slips from between my own lips as I rest my head back on her chest, my arm loosely wrapping around her waist.

We continue to lie like this for several more moments, until a gentle knock at the door startles us both. Vannaria reflexively clutches me even tighter before pressing a finger to her lips and carefully pulling her body from beneath mine. I have to fight back a whine of protest at the loss of contact, even as my mind begins to register the potential danger we could be in.

Slowly slipping a dagger from the boot she’s still wearing, Vannaria reaches out to open the door, blade tucked behind her back and ready to strike if needed. On the other side of the door, with a tray of steaming food held in each of her hands, is the same blonde courtesan I’d fucked earlier.

Giving Vannaria a bright smile, her eyes drift meaningfully down to the arm behind the elf’s back. “I thought you two might be hungry. Figured you likely worked up even more of an appetite after I’d left.” She shifts her gaze to me. “May I come in, ma’am?”

Not wanting to risk causing a scene that others may witness, I nod. “You may.”

Vannaria steps to the side, her eyes never leaving the blonde as she opens the door just enough to allow the woman through. My mouth waters at the smell of the food, but I don’t dare take my eyes off the woman either.

“I don’t recall either of us ordering room service,” Vannaria says, shutting and relocking the door.

The courtesan glances between both of us, and grins. “No, you didn’t. Although, as I said, I imagine both of you are quite hungry.” Sitting both trays of food down on the end of the bed, she lowers her voice to a whisper. “But neither of you need to be down in the dining room at the moment either. We have… Guests.”

At both mine and Vannaria’s quick inhales, the woman chuckles. “Ah. Yes. So, I figured I’d bring you both some dinner. My own excuse to temporarily avoid having to deal with such an unsavory sort. And it’s the least I can do for how well you took care of me earlier…” She lowers her voice back to a barely audible whisper. “Mariane.”

A familiar knife is at the woman’s throat before my name finishes leaving her lips. “What are your intentions? Speak quickly and plainly,” Vannaria commands, her own voice somehow even lower.

The blonde doesn’t struggle. Nor even flinch. She simply smiles at me, seemingly ignoring Vannaria’s threat completely. “Darling, I knew who you were the moment you stepped foot in this place. We all did. It’s our jobs to be in the know and to protect our clientele from any of the unsavory sorts I just mentioned.” Raising both her brows, she cocks her head. “Why do you think I drug you up here so quickly earlier, hmm? Normally, we like to wait for our services to be requested, not all but throw ourselves at women lost in thought and attempting to enjoy what had likely been her first real meal in quite some time.”

“Lower the knife, Vannaria,” I whisper, choosing to trust the words of a courtesan far more than I would any other person I’d met as of late. Besides one of course. I can’t help but to grin as my elven protector does as I requested, and to the blonde I say, “And for the record, I have actually been eating rather well the last few days. Courtesy of my new friend here. She’s a rather remarkable cook I’ll have you know.”

Now free to do so, she glances at Vannaria over her shoulder. “Well then, aren’t you full of surprises? And here I thought you were only the muscles.” She gestures to the so far ignored food. “Please, eat. I’ll stay up here with you long enough to not arouse suspicion, then I’ll head back down. See if I can gather up any information pertinent to you both and then let you know when they leave.”

While I hesitantly pull a tray closer to me, Vannaria steps in front of the woman, her eyes narrowed and tone harsh and untrusting as she asks, “Why?”

The blonde merely smiles wider. “Oh, darling. It’s my job. Is that not why you chose to stay at our establishment in the first place? Hoping for a bit of extra discretion?”

Some of the tenseness in Vannaria’s shoulders melts away as she sighs heavily. “Indeed. It was.” After a brief moment of hesitation, she places a hand over her chest and dips into a faint bow. “Thank you, ma’am. For both your assistance and discretion. I apologize for my rash actions.”