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I scowled at the top of the tent. “I don’t want to look like the people who trapped me.”
There was a long pause before he finally said, “I’ll be back in a few minutes. Don’t leave.”
A moment later, I heard his quiet footsteps on the dirt, and closed my eyes. If I’d really wanted to, I could’ve made a run for it. I could get far enough into the forest to hide from him, and as long as I could get myself worked into a fearful frenzy, I could force my monster to take over and run us far, far away. After a week in the forest with Namir, I knew what plants were edible and which ones I shouldn’t touch.
I could’ve run.
…But I didn’t.
After a few minutes, his footsteps were on the dirt again. As he reached my tent, he asked, “Are you still there?”
I murmured my confirmation.
“Lavee will go out and find you some black clothing if you’d like, but we thought you might rather choose your own.”
The words caught me off guard.
I hadn’t expected that to be an option.
“What would you prefer, Love?”
I blinked once, and then again.
And then a third time.
My throat swelled.
He didn’t push me for an answer, though, or demand I reply quickly. He waited patiently, giving me as much time as I wanted.
“I…” I cleared my throat. “I’d like to choose.”
“Of course. You’ll have to put something on to go into the market, though. My warning about killing anyone who sees your breasts still stands.” His voice was back to playful, despite his threat.
Honestly, his threat didn’t offend me in the slightest. It made me feel sort of loved.
And that was a very, very foreign feeling for me.
“Okay.” I held a hand through the tent flap, and the same bag from earlier was placed in it. Pulling the bag back inside, I tried not to look at the color of the undergarment or dress as I pulled them both on. The white was bright, and made me uncomfortable, but the fabric was soft and stretchy. Namir was right about it feeling good on my skin.
I caught myself hoping that I’d find black and gold clothing of the same quality as the white and silver I was putting on, though I knew that wasn’t important. What mattered was finding clothing that didn’t remind me of the bastards who had hurt me so many times, for so many years.
I slipped out of the tent, smoothing the fabric down my abdomen. I felt a bit bloated—a consequence of the incredible meals the king had been feeding me, I supposed. Whether or not I looked as bloated as I felt, I didn’t care. I’d survived a nightmarish childhood; the opinions of those who hadn’t been through my hell mattered little to me.
Namir’s eyes slowly trailed down my body, smoldering a bit as they widened. “I should’ve told her to pick more conservative clothing,” he mumbled to himself.
I frowned, looking down at my body. “Does it look bad?”
A rough chuckle escaped him. “Not in the fucking slightest, Love.” He held a wide-toothed comb toward me. “I’m just going to be snarling at other men like a rabid wolf for a bit.”
The wolf thing hit me a bit hard, and my eyes narrowed toward him a bit.
“It’s the bond,” he explained quickly. “Having the eyes of others on you makes me feel as if I need to piss on my territory—and you’re my territory.”
A snort escaped me. “Refrain yourself then,Love.” I turned his pet name back on him, and earned a playful grin for it.
“I won’t make any promises.”
I shook my head at him as I started down the trail of sorts that Namir and his friends had begun making as they moved back and forth from the town to the forest. The comb worked better than my fingers ever had when it came to detangling my hair, and I barely noticed the tugs and yanks as I worked through the knots.
