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“…meeting is confirmed,” Connor said. “Right close to the border with Germany. You and Kristin will keep your positions and intervene only if, and when, I give you the signal. There may be no need for you to do anything.”
There was a lingering stiffness between them, maybe because of their encounter in the cemetery months ago.
“What about the other operation?” Roy asked, hands shoved in his pockets.
Connor dragged a hand through his hair, his silhouette blurred by the rain. “There haven’t been any developments, and if they had, you know I couldn’t discuss them with you.”
“But you would.”
“Roy—”
“Connor.”
They paused and started talking again, right when the rain intensified, covering their voices. Bloody weather. But whatever they were saying, they were both glaring at each other. I shut the window and returned to my seat. Somehow, I didn’t believe the ‘other operation’ had anything to do with our current mission. It sounded like a personal matter for Roy, and he’d never sounded more worried. I polished off the bowl of soup, its salty and velvety taste the only good thing about that dull evening and climbed back up to my room. In the corridor, I spied the gazebo again, but couldn’t see Roy or Connor.
The room had a wide diamond window that opened to the back alleyway of Bloemstraat. Gusts of wind were picking up speed, splattering the rain against the glass in a merciless rhythm. A chill seeped into my bones, despite the fact that my clothes were warm and dry and I’d just finished a delicious hot soup. Howls echoed from the street, and the window shook under the assault of the gale. It was as if the wind didn’t want me there. Or maybe as if it were warning me to leave.
The slow stirring of my beast anticipated Roy’s arrival. He entered the room, carrying the cold, damp air of the garden and the stormy mood of the weather.
“Kristin.” He paused, a shadow crossing his face. “I’ll be back soon.”
Before I could ask him any questions, he grabbed a change of clothes from his suitcase and left again. A sigh heaved out of me. He was preoccupied and didn’t want to talk to me. Nothing new. At least he was consistent. By the time I’d unpacked my luggage, he was back, fresh from a bath, barefoot, and wearing only a half-buttoned shirt and a pair of dark trousers. His mood was still the same.
“Bad news?” I asked, rubbing my goosebumped arms.
“No, good news actually.” He hung his wet jacket on the hook on the wall, drops sluicing down his sharp jaw. “The meeting has been confirmed. Everything is going according to plan.”
“Why that long face, then?”
He plonked down onto the bed, putting his elbows on his knees. “Nothing that concerns the mission.”
“Personal reasons?”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” My money went on ‘No.’ But I had to ask anyway.
He put his tie and waistcoat on a chair. “It’s late. We’d better get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a busy day.” Without bothering to warn me, he removed his shirt and trousers, leaving only his black hallowed silk underwear on before stretching over the bed in all his muscled glory.
It wasn’t the first time I’d seen him half naked, but the shock of the surprise and the tingling on my skin were always the same. As he stretched over the bed and rubbed his face, I opened the doors of the wardrobe and started to undress behind them, careful to stay out of sight.
“What are you doing?” he asked, propping himself up on his elbows.
“Well, there aren’t screens in this room, or a separate bathroom.” I unbuttoned my shirt, half hidden by the door. “That’s the only way to have some privacy.”
He scoffed. “You are joking.”
“Not at all.” My voice came muffled by the door.
“We’ve seen each other in various degrees of undressness.”
“Undressness isn’t a word. You made it up.”
“Every word is made up.” He exhaled sharply. “Just come out of the bloody wardrobe. It’s unnerving having you inside it. I promise I’ll keep my eyes closed. You have my gentleman’s word. Done. Come out.”
I paused halfway from untying my petticoats and peered at the bed. His eyes were shut, and he was lying down again. I closed the wardrobe’s doors and removed my shirt and skirt, leaving only my satin chemise on. My stockings were next. I bent over my bag, rummaging through it for my nightgown. The tips of my hair tickled my skin when I undid the bun at my nape. The current fashion preferred short hair for women, but my hair had been straw-like and dull for all of my life until my beast had awakened. I didn’t want to cut it. For the first time, I had some luscious auburn curls that—
“Blue suits you, and bloody hell, the view is magnificent.”
