An Unexpected Romance

Chapter 11

Chikako was quiet, following Tobirama until he stopped at a door labeled women's. "This is your locker room. The attendant will help you with your questions and show you the door to the springs. I'll see you there."

He brushed a kiss against her lips and held the door open as she went in.

The locker room was dim, lined with baskets on shelves. On the far side there were showers and benches. An attendant sat by a table full of rolled up towels and as Chikako approached her she smiled and stood to help her.

Once Chikako had showered and was wrapped tightly in a towel that stretched from her shoulders to her mid-thigh the attendant pointed to the door that opened into the spring.

Tobirama was waiting just outside the door. Her eyes went wide and her heart pounded in her chest. Also clad only in a towel, Tobirama was covered from his waist to just above his knee. Which left the rest of him naked and open to her inspection.

Chikako felt her face heat as she gawked at him.

His chest was pale and broad, it swelled over a sculpted abdomen. His stomach was toned and solid, drawing her eyes downward until tight muscles disappeared into his towel. His body might have been etched with scars that told the story of his life, but they didn't detract from his beauty at all. If possible they made him even sexier.

"Are you ready?" Tobirama offered his arm to her.

She slipped her hand around his elbow, every fiber of her being aware of his nakedness. The bulge of his bicep flexing just above her fingers. Her body quaked with a mix of fear and curiosity. She knew he'd never disrespect or hurt her, but just how did he feel about being saddled with such a naive, innocent girl as her?

Was there someone at home he'd hoped to marry? He'd asked her that question and she'd never thought to ask him the same. She swallowed the painful lump in her throat wishing she could run and hide in their room instead of sit beside his nearly naked body wondering if he even wanted to be here.

"The water's hot, take it slow." He held her hand as she stepped into the steaming hot spring and then joined her, sinking into its heat while she took time to accustom herself to the warmth.

When she no longer felt as if her toes were being boiled like little potatoes she glanced around for her own seat. Before she could find one Tobirama's hands were wrapped around her waist and he was pulling her to down next to him. His arm slid around her shoulders, holding her tight against his body.

Over the days they'd been traveling it had been his body heat that had gotten her through the cold nights. He'd let her settle into her bedroll while his men banked the fire and set up watches. Once they were settled in for sleep, or on watch, he'd join her pulling her tightly against him and flooding her with his warmth.

Chikako looked forward to it, telling herself it was the darkness of the night and the cold he held at bay. But now, in the late afternoon sun, with the steam of the hot spring rising around them, she was neither cold nor afraid.

"What do you think?" He murmured the words in her ear, tickling her with his breath.

At the far end of the spring his men and her fathers men were quietly talking. They'd nodded politely and turned away to offer Tobirama and Chikako their privacy. Closer to them an old woman sat at the edge of the spring. She watched the young couple with shining eyes for a moment and then tipped her head back, setting her sight on the trees above them.

A shiver of fear coursed down Chikako's spine as she admitted to herself that she was enjoying being so close to him, just as she'd enjoyed being held against him in their bedrolls. Of course he fought off the cold, but he warmed her in ways fires and blankets couldn't. Did she do the same for him?

Beside her, he was more relaxed than she'd ever seen him and she decided to take his lead. Today was not the day to worry about her role in his life, or his happiness with their marriage. He'd had a choice in the matter that she hadn't, and thus far he'd given no indication he was unhappy with it.

She inhaled the steamy, mineral rich air and relaxed into his arms, letting her eyes slip shut.

"It feels amazing." The warm water soaked into her joints, soothing the aches that had built up after three days of nonstop walking and sleeping on the ground. "Will we get to Konoha before bedtime tomorrow?"

Tobirama chuckled at her question. " We'll be there by lunch. No more sleeping on the ground. Unless you go on another mission with me."

Chikako groaned quietly and sank into the water up to her chin. "I'm never walking anywhere again!"

Tobirama pulled her closer. "I wonder if you'll change your mind?"

The touch of his naked skin on hers made Chikako's mind go blank and she couldn't form an answer to his question. Instead she buried her head into the curve of his shoulder. He was divine to lean against, strong and warm, firm muscles rippling under soft skin. What would it be like to press her smaller, softer body against his? The thought made her dizzy with nerves and anticipation.

"Are you okay? Too warm?" His deep voice made his chest vibrate under her face.

"I'm okay." Chikako felt dreamy, the warm water swirling around her while she sat in his arms.

"If you get too warm, let me know. When we're done here we can go eat."

Chikako mumbled a reply as she fell asleep on his shoulder. She woke up to the press of his lips just under her ear and his whispered voice rustling her damp curls.

"I'm getting too warm and hungry. What about it Chika? Time to move on?"

Chikako opened her eyes groggily and stretched, catching her towel before it dropped and exposed her. She met Tobirama's gaze with her own, feeling the heat climbing in her cheeks.

"I'm hungry too." She stood beside him and let him help her out of the spring.

"I'll meet you outside the locker room. The attendant will help you get dried off and dressed."

The locker room was dark, making her pause as her eyes adjusted. When she could see more than shadows both the attendant and the old woman who had been across from them in the spring were smiling at her.

She greeted them, returning their smiles warmly and then addressed the older women. "Did you enjoy the hot spring, Oba-san?"

The woman straightened from slipping her shoes on and met Chikako's gaze. "Very much. And you? Did you and your new husband enjoy it as well?"

"We did."

"You haven't been married long, have you?" The woman had moved to stand closer to Chikako, her wizened features making her seem friendlier rather than old.

"Just three days. How did you know?" Did everyone know their business? Would they all offer advice and ask nosey questions? Only her upbringing hid the disrespect that lingered under her response.

"By the way you blushed when you saw him, and your reluctance to sit close to him in the spring." She grinned at Chikako. "Don't worry young lady. You will adjust with time."

The woman's words were echoing in Chikako's head still as she exited the locker room to rejoin Tobirama. Her husband, she said the words to herself, the man she'd spend the rest of her life with. Her head spun with all the change she'd experienced in the last few days, thankful that fate had landed her with Tobirama and not a man who would expect her to hide herself in her rooms and never speak.