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His prick could wait. A male didn’t get many opportunities early within the heat of Ha’shena to prove his worthiness to his mate beyond his ability to protect and provide in the most material sense. He savored that he had this moment with her as he held her, listening languidly to the rain together as it beat against the tent.
ChapterThirty-One
It was the plaintive sound of her stomach demanding to be fed that roused Raskyuil to action a short time later. Hiding a smile of excitement at having the opportunity to see to another of his mate’s needs, he drew back the blanket and tucked it back around her as he climbed out of their bed.
“Wait here,” he rumbled as he bent and pressed a kiss to her brow before straightening and glancing around to locate where he’d set his trousers.Ah, there they are.
He stooped to retrieve them as MaryAnne sat up on her elbows to watch him curiously as he made quick work of pulling on his trousers and boots. “Where are you going?”
“Just to the galley tent to get our meal,” he assured her as he tugged his tunic over his head. Dragging his long hair from beneath the hem, he leaned down to brush another kiss against her lips. “I won’t be long.”
Her eyebrows flew up in an expression of surprise as he straightened, though he did not understand the reason. Did human males not feed their mates? If not then she was fortunate to now be with a troll. He grinned over at her as he pulled a cape with a particular weave that had been once the pride of the artisans of his village for repelling water and pulled it around his shoulders.
He froze while securing the broach and ties when, rather than nestle into the warm bedding to await his return, MaryAnne crawled eagerly from their shared bed. His shocked turned quickly to dismay as she scrambled for her clothes, making her intention to join him clear.
“What are you doing, little human?” he rumbled peevishly as she began to pull on her own pants.
Her brow beetled as she glanced up at him before looking to the floor once more as she began to hunt for her footwear. “What does it look like? I’m going with you.”
Was she that eager to end their sequestering already? He knew that it wasn’t a proper sequestering, but he had hoped to have the one day at least. Not to mention that she was taking a very real risk of falling ill from being out in the rain. He hadn’t forgotten how sickly he’d heard humans could be, and it frustrated him greatly that she would be so careless with her health.
“No, you will remain here. I won’t be long, and when I return, we can eat. There is no reason for you to leave the tent,” he reiterated, assuming she required the reassurance of his return.
Perhaps she expected that he would abandon her now that they’d lain together. Aelves were notorious for it before they were finally snared into a mating. He inwardly snorted at the idea. Trolls were far too possessive for that to ever be a problem. In fact, it was the furthest thing from his mind. He wanted her pinned beneath him and hidden away where no other male would see her until they were thoroughly bonded to each other and there could be no doubt of it.
He assumed that his reassurances must have worked because she stopped her frantic search and slowly straightened. As she turned toward him, his lips curled in a satisfied smile, fully expecting her to slither out of her pants and return to their bed with a grateful smile to wait for him.
The boot lobbed at his head was unexpected. Raskyuil ducked, easily avoiding the missile, and frowned with confusion at his glowering mate. He mentally went over his words, uncertain if he had expressed his intent incorrectly. His human, however, wasn’t inclined to wait for him to puzzle it out—for which he was grateful because it had all sounded right in his head.
She lifted her chin and glared at him. “I’m going to pretend that you didn’t just suggest that I should be happy to wait here by myself whenever you leave the tent and go straight to the fact that youorderedme to stay here.”
Raskyuil cocked his head and blinked in confusion as he tried to work out exactly why she was angry. “I gave guidance,” he gently corrected, “as is my duty when it comes to the safety of my mate.”
“Safety?” She reared back and stared at him in bewilderment. “Safe from what—rain?”
“Precisely,” he replied confidently. “Humans are prone to illness, especially in unfavorable weather. It is better that I keep you here out of the rain.”
She squinted at him. “So this is just because it’s raining and no other reason?”
He hesitated and eyed her warily. He was getting the impression that she objected strenuously to his protection in this matter, but he didn’t know how he could please her and keep her adequately safe at the same time. Even though she would be safe enough with him outside their tent, there was still the risk of someone taking advantage of any distraction to harm her. Now that they were mated, it was something that his instincts demanded he do, especially after what had happened to the vampires which had changed everything as the atmosphere of the Night Carnival became far more deadly.
Keeping her within the wards he recently placed on his tent thanks to Zagrol’s reluctant tutelage was a far better idea as far as Raskyuil was concerned. The male was surprisingly skilled when it came to such things as making and unraveling wards. Raskyuil had insisted on being taught after his encounter with the goblin so that he would never again have to depend on another male to guard her. He would feel a lot better having his mate magically protected and safe from anyone or anything else within the carnival… but it was clear from the look on her face that she didn’t share the same sentiment.
“Raskyuil, I can’t spend every minute of every day shut up in this tent.” She sighed. “I can accept a certain amount of your overprotectiveness, but it can’t get in the way of what needs to be done. My kids have to come first over my own safety, and I think you understand that.” She pursed her lips. “I think I can compromise on this new overprotective zeal, but the least you can do is let me get out and stretch my legs by doing something as simple as going with you to get food.”
He gritted his teeth, disliking her reasoning, but he stiffly inclined his head, aware that was perhaps the best compromise he was going to get from her. And she was not wrong—it was going to take both of them to find her younglings. That he distinctly disliked the fact that he couldn’t just do it for her didn’t mesh with reality. He just hated it with every territorial instinct within his body.
“Just not today. Not in the rain,” he stubbornly maintained.
His mate gave him a thoughtful look and to his surprise nodded in agreement. “Okay, that’s fair. Not in the rain.” Her lips twisted wryly as she glanced toward the door. “It does sound like something of a downpour.”
He grimaced. It certainly did. It seemed that the rain had picked up while they were entwined with each other.Fuck.
Tugging his cloak around himself tightly, he drew up the hood and untied the lashings to the entrance’s screen. Rain immediately began to pelt him before he even stepped outside. Raskyuil gritted his teeth against the icy blast for a moment before ducking out and securing the flap behind him once again.
Ducking his head, he jogged along the muddy path, making his way for the galley tent. Even with his cloak wrapped tightly around him, it didn’t save him from getting a little soaked where it didn’t cover. The mud squelched beneath his feet and splattered as he ran as muddy water splashed up even higher from around his boots onto his trousers. He could feel the rain soaking into them, and they clung to his thighs and backside uncomfortably.
That wasn’t the only part of him that wasn’t spared. Water ran freely down his face and neck, soaking the hem of his tunic. It didn’t help that the wind pulled his hair free from beneath his hood, drenching those strands and dripping all over him and inside his cloak.
