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What had happened to Xanthia? She seemed like she wanted to help her, but then she’d been spooked by the mark on her hand. Why? And the one who gave it to her had inquired about a white-haired witch in the castle. Jessie was almost positive he was referring to Xanthia. She debated whether she should tell Orik about Xanthia, but decided, for now, she would keep quiet. She wanted to talk with Xanthia first.
She lifted her hand. The mark still glowed bright as ever.
Next, she raised the covers to assess her body. Someone had dressed her in a modest pearl-colored nightgown with trimmed lace.
Orik returned and said, “Food is on the way.” He was still shirtless. For a moment, she was dazzled by his magnificent physique. It must have shown, for he glanced down at himself, as if reminded he was only half dressed. Then he crossed to a walk-in closet. When he emerged, he’d donned a white shirt.
Shame. “Who dressed me?”
“Edel and June, with the help of some female servants.” Still, his woodsy sent was all around her, in the sheets and pillow and on her skin. Had he been sleeping in her bed? Wait…this wasn’t her bed…or her room, for that matter.
“Where are we?”
“My chambers,” he replied, remaining across the room, his arms crossed over his chest.
“I’m in your room?” She used to love snooping through her boyfriend’s rooms like a little sleuth, discovering new things about them. Things no one else knew. What secrets did Orik conceal from the outside world? What might she learn about him?
Not that he was her boyfriend or anything. She didn’t knowwhatthey were. She’d gone from alien novelty to passionate lover to despised prisoner. And now she was…what? A tolerated guest? An obligation?
His aura was unusually obscure this morning, filling her with frustration. Had her recovery affected her abilities? She did still feel a bit tired. Only now did she realize how much she’d come to rely on her newfound gift to suss out Orik’s moods. Without it, he came across as stoic and cold, almost uncaring.
She didn’t like that. She wanted him to hold her tight and whisper all the dirty things he planned to do to her body. To have him drive her wild, and she would drive him wild in return…but after everything that had gone down, she found herself stymied by a sudden fear of rejection. She didn’t want to make a move without knowing for sure if he was still interested. He might be grateful and obliged to her for saving him, but the fact that she’d had to use magic to do it might have killed whatever had remained of his adoration.
She needed to find out where she stood with him, and to do that, she’d have to return to basics.But first it was time for a little sleuthing.
Her inquisitive nature took on an impish tone. Pasting on a smile, she threw back the covers and hopped out of bed. Aside from a slight weakness in her muscles, her body felt surprisingly great for having nearly been down for the count. “The great Orik’s personal chambers, huh? What dirty little secrets will I find here?” she asked.
Orik made a sweeping gesture as though to sayGo ahead,then took her place on the bed, leaning against the headboard with his hands behind his head. Sexy man. She had an overwhelming urge to re-join him there, but wasn’t sure how he would respond to that.
She turned to survey the room. The first thing she admired were the voluptuous potted plants that lined the room. There were dozens of them, all green and flowering and filling the air with an array of fragrances.
Delicately, she lifted a leaf by the pads of her fingertips. It was so thin, like gossamer. Every vein was stark white against green. Next, she smelled a blooming flower bud, closing her eyes as the sweet perfume hit her nose. “I didn’t realize you were such a plant lover.”
His expression remained impassive. “I had those brought up for you.”
She couldn’t hide her surprise.He altered his living space for me?“Why?”
She thought his gaze dipped to her bare legs, but at her question, he met her stare and shrugged nonchalantly. “You’ve shown you have an affinity for nature. I thought it might help with your recovery.” He frowned at that. Why. Because he resented his debt to her? Because she was a witch?
She shifted her attention to a nearby painting, a gorgeous landscape of lush hills and cascading waterfalls that flowed into a crystalline lake—a masterpiece that exceeded the beauty of many museum pieces she’d seen back on Earth. An equally stellar painting hung a few feet away of a lush forest where light from the sun silhouetted a backdrop of tall trees. Simply looking at it made her feel as if she was actually there. “Are you an art collector?”
He chuckled, shaking his head. “Those were also brought in for you. I thought images of the forest might put you at ease when you awoke.”
She stared at him for a long moment, unsure what to make of that. Had he redecorated his whole space for her? Her gaze swiftly swept over the rest of the room. There were smaller potted plants on shelves next to books and a few hanging ones in the corner. The duvet on the bed appeared new and…no way! “Is that a bed for Phoenix?”
“Aye. Not that the little vermin uses it.”
Her heart squeezed with emotion. The most any of her lovers had done was give her a drawer or two. They never modified their habitable space to accommodate her.
She faced Orik, a question in her gaze.
He simply shrugged in response.
Had he done all this to impress her? What other purpose would there be? Once again, she had the overwhelming urge to jump atop him and kiss him until both their heads swam, but she wasn’t sure he was there yet. His aura, though muted, seemed a little anxious. Was he…could he be nervous about having her sleeping in his room?
“Do you invite a lot of women up here?” The words were out before she could bite them back.
His expression remained intolerably stony. “You’d be the first.”
