Death Wind (Elven Alliance #3) - Tara Grayce Page 0,100

broth drooled down his face and onto his neck.

“Sorry. I’m so sorry. I’m apparently not a good nurse.” Essie hurriedly set the mug of broth back on the tray, her face heating. Bad enough she got broth all over, but her brother and sister-in-law were also watching.

Farrendel wrinkled his nose and gave her a raised eyebrow look.

Edmund managed to keep a straight face as he handed Essie a cloth. “Remind me never to let you nurse me.”

Since she had already thoroughly embarrassed herself, she stuck her tongue out at Edmund as she took the cloth. She washed the broth from Farrendel’s face and neck. “I’m so sorry. I’m not good at this.”

Farrendel reached a shaking hand toward the mug. “I can feed myself.”

There was something about the mix of determination and pleading in his voice. It wasn’t that he was offended at her efforts. But it was that he felt like he needed to do it to reclaim a part of himself.

When they’d found him, he’d been pinned to the floor, unable to move more than a finger. He wouldn’t have been able to feed himself. Had he suffered a troll forcibly feeding him?

He’d been stripped of all control over even the most basic things. He needed some of that restored to him.

Essie held out the mug, and he gripped it in both hands. With her holding up his head, he lifted the mug to his mouth with his shaking hands and sipped. Essie resisted the urge to take the mug. Farrendel needed to do this himself. But she kept a hand free, in case he looked about ready to drop it.

He managed a few sips, resting the mug on his chest for several minutes between each sip, as if he wanted to pretend he didn’t find the mug heavy.

Essie managed to eat her own supper one-handed and kept up a lighthearted conversation with Edmund and Jalissa. When they were finished, Jalissa gathered the trays of food, and she and Edmund headed for the tent flap, Jalissa glancing over her shoulder before leaving as if to reassure herself one last time that Farrendel was really there.

Once it was just her and Farrendel again, Essie turned back to him. He was shivering, his eyes squeezed shut.

Essie gripped his hand. “Do you need more morphine? I can run after Edmund. They can’t have gone far, and he can get the surgeon.”

“No.” Farrendel shook his head, though his jaw remained tight, as if he was clenching his teeth. “Just cold.”

The fire in the wood-burning stove was already going merrily, and Essie didn’t see any more blankets to pile onto him. As he already had four blankets, he shouldn’t be cold.

There was only one thing left to do. She gestured to him. “Scooch over.”

His nose wrinkled as he glanced at her. “Scooch?”

“Yes.” She lifted a corner of the top blanket. There wasn’t a whole lot of room next to him. Army cots were designed for only one person. But, Farrendel was thinner than the average Escarlish soldier, so that left a little bit of room.

Farrendel squinted at her. “This cot is not intended for two people.”

Of course he would manage a full sentence for that. She wasn’t going to admit she had just been thinking the same thing.

Wiggling onto the cot next to him was more difficult than she’d expected. She nearly fell off several times, and the cot wobbled. With Farrendel so thin, she probably weighed more than he did right now.

With a little squirming, she managed to tuck herself alongside Farrendel. The wooden side bar of the cot dug into her hip hard enough to leave a bruise, and she wasn’t sure what to do with her right arm. She couldn’t lay on it because of the wooden bar, and eventually she just tucked it awkwardly against her chest.

Since she didn’t want to rest her head on Farrendel’s shoulder and possibly cause him pain, she tucked her head next to his. With her left hand, she clasped his, their hands resting on his chest.

She squeezed his hand. “See. I fit.”

“Barely.” Farrendel shifted. At first Essie thought he was trying to put space between them, but his movement gave her a fraction more room to fit more comfortably against him.

“Are you warm enough now?” Hopefully he was. She was sweating thanks to her coat, the blanket, and the roaring fire in the stove.

“Yes.” His voice was quieter, sleepier.

“Good.” Essie closed her eyes and snuggled against him. Except for the boniness of Farrendel’s shoulder