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“So tell me more about Kalix showing up,” Tiber said, sitting down in the dimly lit kitchen with us. “You’re sure he’s dead?”
“You know Finn’s information is always solid,” Kaden said. “It was a trap of some sort.”
“Any idea what Herrick was trying to do?” Tiber asked.
“I don’t know and wasn’t willing to find out. He doesn’t like to deal head-on when he can be duplicitous, as we both know,” Kaden said.
A look passed between Tiber and Luisca. He reached out and grabbed her hand.
“That was a long time ago,” he said, and then leaned in and feathered a light kiss on her lips. She smiled at him as if he was all she needed to be whole in this world.
It was so quick and simple, but held so much meaning and emotion that it was hard to feel comfortable witnessing it, especially coming from the place I was in.
She turned back to us, but for a second, it had seemed as if they’d both forgotten we were there.
“You’re probably exhausted and need a few minutes. Come with me and I’ll show you your room,” Luisca said.
Kaden looked at me. “I’ll be up in a minute,” he said.
That was when it hit me. We’d be staying together, and probably in the same room. Why wouldn’t we when we were mated and not planning on undoing it?
I nodded, trying to act as if nothing about this situation was unusual. Hopefully no one had caught that couple-second pause.
I followed Luisca upstairs and caught sight of a young girl with matching red hair. She jumped back into her room as soon as she was spotted.
“That’s my youngest, Marina. She’s shy. She’s also supposed to be asleep.” Luisca said that last sentence a little louder.
We went up a second set of stairs. “Hope you don’t mind being on the third floor. We occasionally get off-world guests, so we fixed up the area. It’s a little more private.” She looked over her shoulder, smiling, as if I’d appreciate the privacy.
“Thanks.” I returned the smile because it was what she expected. Luckily, I was behind her, and she probably hadn’t caught sight of my panic-stricken face. How was I going to share a room with a man I wasn’t intimate with, but was lusting after? My brain had barely functioned when he touched my back earlier.
“You probably left in a hurry, but we have plenty of everything, so don’t worry yourself. I can give or lend you anything you need.”
I nodded and muttered more thanks as she left. All I could do was size up the area I’d be stuck alone with Kaden, night after night. The room was as quaint as the rest of the house. The bed was also quite cozy, if I wanted to put a good spin on it. Was it really that small, or did it just seem that way because I’d be sharing it? I walked to the foot, trying to figure out how tight this sleeping situation truly was.
It was bad. It was a full-size at best. In a king, I could’ve pretended Kaden wasn’t there. In a queen, I might be able to cling to my side and still ignore him. This? There was no way we wouldn’t be bumping into each other, especially sleeping next to someone as broad as him. It wasn’t as if he were some slim-built person. He’d barely fit in this bed on his own.
My new roommate walked in while I was still looking at the bed, my palms already sweaty and my heart racing.
“Are we really—”
He put a finger to my lips before whispering in my ear, “These walls aren’t that thick. We’re mated, remember?” he said softly.
Our gazes locked, a million things passing silently between us.
He looked to the bed, his expression closed off.
“There’s a lake nearby where we can bathe,” he said.
I nodded. The tension and heat in this room was already too thick to handle. Any time out of this place I could get, I’d take. I grabbed some of the few things I had on the way out the door.
We walked through the quiet streets with nothing but the bugs chirping, but I could see the occasional shadow of someone watching us through their window. The people here were definitely taking note of our presence.
I got to the bank of a small lake and glanced at Kaden. “Are you staying? Are we taking turns?”
“We’re mated, remember?” he said, throwing that little tidbit at me again. “You made a choice without having any idea of the repercussions. Not caring what the repercussions were. Now we both have to deal with the fallout, and it would appear odd if we had to take turns.”
I gave him my back and stripped out of my clothes, stepping into the lake and trying to pretend it was natural. It wasn’t like he hadn’t seen everything I had anyway. Several times, in fact.
