Well, he certainly had chosen one of the more derelict rooms to reside in. She was positive that there were ones that had actual ceilings, but she imagined him giving her some reason for his choice that would make her face light up with that silly smile she got whenever he revealed just a tiny bit about himself. She flicked her eyes cautiously around and finding no one at either end of the hall, stepped into the soldiers bedchamber. She ran her hands over the rough stone work of the walls and balanced along floorboards that had fallen from the room above then tugged at the climbing vine that was steadily growing up one of the corners of the room. Next, her attention gravitated towards the bed. It was small, only for one person but why would he need anything bigger? The bedcovers were pristinely clean, not one single speck of dust rising from the thick weaves when she patted her hand upon them.
Biting down on her bottom lip, she lowered herself to sit—rubbed her hands in circles over the soft wool and bounced a few times. Oh, yes. This was a comfortable bed, she approved. She felt the need to lay and snuggle into the covers but that would be weird, wouldn’t it? Honestly, she barely knew the man but he seemed to bring out the strangest behaviour in her, such as invading his personal space and testing the comfort of his bed like she had some claim to an opinion on the matter. She could argue that it was because she was the type of person that held everyone’s best interests to her heart but that would be a big lie and she knew it. She sighed, if only her Mother could see her now—hanging out in men’s bedchambers when she hardly knew them while they cleared their throats behind her and….. Oh dear Maker, he was behind her. She stood and whipped around to face him as her cheeks blossomed with her embarrassment; he is going to think I’m so weird.
The expression on his face surprised her—eyes roving over her and that smile left her feeling like some sort of prey that he had cornered. He stepped forward and she stepped back and his lips turned up at the corners even more.
“You didn’t have to get up on my account.” He took another step forward and her back bumped into the wall, the stone digging into her shoulder blades through her coat.
She opened her mouth then promptly closed it as he moved around the bed, stalking her with languid strides until he stood before her and took her chin in hand.
“I quite liked seeing you upon my bed.”
He lowered his head as he tilted her face up then brushed his lips lightly against her own before pausing. Her heart pounded in her chest, her breath coming out in a shaky huff and her eyes gently closed as he kept his mouth mere inches above her and then he was smiling while pressing those perfectly shaped lips to hers again, the tip of his tongue skimming along her bottom lip and his hand slipped from her chin to bury in her hair.
“Do you have need of me?”
Yes! It was a resounding scream in her head. Yes, she had need of him! Needed him to lift her up so she could wrap her legs around him while grinding against his…. Her eyes snapped open when she felt his warmth leave her and she found Cullen standing across the room looking at her quizzically.
“Excuse me, what was that?” she asked.
“I asked if you had a need of me. Are you feeling well? You seem a bit… far off.”
“Oh, I’m—” delusional “—very tired. I think I need to rest.”
He lips turned up into a smile and her mouth dropped open a bit. Maker, it was that smile. How was it possible that fantasy Cullen and real Cullen smiled at her the exact same way? She was delusional, it was the only answer.
She made to leave the room, her eyes averted from his gaze as she walked past him to the doorway.
“You know where to find me—if you do have need of me, that is.” She paused at his words and swallowed before giving him a brisk nod then hurriedly removed herself from his room. She wasn’t sure how she was going to go about it, but she would be claiming a space in that bed in the very near future, she was sure of it.