is definitely out of character for him. It must be late afternoon by now. I wouldn’t have expected him to last this long, even if it was just to stop by to gloat over something he saw.”
“Do you think we should go over to his room and check on him… just in case?”
Now Eliph frowns at me, his horn pulsing with a strange glow that’s just weird. It’s been doing that all morning, but after a moment, he shakes his head and gives me another smile, despite the tiny glimmer of worry I feel buried within him. I want to say something about how weird all of this is, but I shake it off. If he’s not worried, then I guess I should take his lead on this matter. He does know a hell of a lot more about elves and, on top of being pretty suspicious of most people I don’t know, I am a bit of a worrier.
I know that Eliph has probably been trying to distract me for that very reason. And he’s done a good job of it. All morning and afternoon, he’s used every opportunity possible to seduce me. Of course, I’m quite willing when it comes to being seduced, so it wasn’t like it was hard for him. Our bed has seen action, as has the table, and even the bathtub again as we bathed to prepare to dine with the king. I’m certain that a good portion of my nerves is due to that alone. Eliph seems pretty sure that he’ll give us safe passage, but I’m not so certain.
I mean, why keep us penned in?
Eliph assures me that it’s not unlike elvish culture to keep unexpected guests separated while they figure out what to do with them, but this just feels wrong. It’s like being kept in a waiting room of a government office just knowing that everyone is watching you suspiciously like they are just waiting for you to fuck up. A whole world away and I’m being fucking ‘othered.’
I’m not impressed.
Whatever small hope I had that the guardian at the pillars was some sort of anomaly is slowly fizzling in light of our complete isolation. Control contagious disease human? Check. Ha… ha. My own inner attempt at humor falls flat, and I’m depressed.
Not to mention I’m tired of being kept here. I would go out in the gardens and explore, but all I have around me is the bedsheet as Eliph works. I could put on my muddy clothes… I wrinkle my nose and immediately reject the idea. They are filthy and smell. I would have thrown them out entirely if there had been any kind of garbage can in here. I guess I could have shoved them into the dumbwaiter with our dishes, but that is pretty fucked up to foist that on an unsuspecting servant.
Sighing, I plop down on the bed beside him and crane my neck to look at the garments in his lap. They look familiar…
“Wait, don’t I own this?” I ask in disbelief as I pick up the white blouse from his lap.
The short little red jacket immediately drops into his lap, and I have to admit that while they closely resemble my clothes these are finer, like touching the softest fabric with tiny details stitched in of vines and blooming flowers. It’s so fine that I have to bring it up close to get a good look at them.
My mate smiles proudly.
“It was the outfit you wore the day I came to your home and announced my claim,” he says, clearly pleased with my awed reaction.
“You paid that much attention to what I was wearing?” I ask in surprise.
He gives me a puzzled look that just makes me want to smooch him because of course he wouldn’t think it out of the ordinary to be so attentive.
“Of course. It was the second most important day of my life, second only to the day that you tried to kill me with the door,” he answers with a grin.
“Ha ha. Very funny,” I snort as I pillow my head against his arm.
His lips brush my forehead, and he snuggles me in his arms, pulling me directly into his lap in the process, which just makes me feel ridiculously happy. I’m also grinning like a loon because I know that we must look a sight. I fill my mate’s lap, my body covered with the sheet while his arms practically engulf me. I don’t want the moment