Veils of Storm

6. Run, Kat, Run

Kat opened her eyes as the cold light of morning flickered through the dirty windowpane. For a few seconds, she lay in complete silence, trying to shake sleep from her mind and remember where she was and why. It was not her lavish wallpaper of roses and thorns greeting her, but dull grey painted walls.

The inn. She and Cage had already left and they'd stopped for the night at a tiny inn full of unfriendly people. And he'd left her in the room to rest as he departed to do... Something. She wasn't quite sure what, and half of her still believed he'd been running for some reason. Was he even...

She meant to turn on her back, but froze when she realized that side of her body was a lot warmer than the rest. With slow, careful movements, she glanced over her shoulder.

Cage was right there, in bed with her, sleeping on his back, one leg dangling out of bed. He already had his tunic on and had equipped his sword. And yet, his eyes were closed and his breathing peaceful. Her heart fluttered as she watched  him, once again enthralled by his beauty. Somehow, the wonderment never seemed to fade. Heat rose to her cheeks at the implications of him being there.

Had he returned for the night and nestled next to her? Had she slept in his arms without knowing? The thought was strangely disappointing, because she'd wanted to enjoy that. Enjoy a lot more of him. With some guilt, she had to admit that she'd preferred it when he was cursed and stuck in the castle with her. At least back then, he wasn't as concerned with propriety as he was now. That shouldn't bother her because it only proved he respected and treasured her, but after feeling his heat, she didn't want to go back.

This was a rare opportunity, being with him like this, able to just observe him in his most vulnerable state. She reached out her hand and traced her fingers down his cheek. He immediately stirred and opened one eye. A smile curved the corners of his gorgeous lips. The he blinked awake and sat up.

"Oh, fuck!"

"What's the matter?" Kat sat up too, a little taken aback by his reaction.

"I fell asleep!"

"So what? I bet that you got back in late last night."

"I can't leave us unprotected."

"Huh? Cage, we're in a tiny inn in the middle of the forest."

"We need to go." He stood, patting his sword as he went. "I'll let you freshen up and meet you downstairs for breakfast."

"Come on!"

He froze in the doorway and turned to her slowly, his gaze a mixture of impatience, exasperation and a mild trace of curiosity. Kat curled her fingers around the thin blanket on top of her, trying to rein in her anger.

"Is this how it's going to be?" she asked, forcing her voice to be reasonable.

He tilted his head. "What do you mean?"

"You always running away from me? Keeping me in the dark? Trying to protect me?"

"Kat..."

"No." She raised a hand in a placating gesture and closed her eyes. "No, Cage. Don't make me wish I was back at the castle. Because at least there you showed some interest in me."

He marched to the bed, leaned over and took her chin between his thumb and index finger. "Trust me, it's so difficult to stay away, not to focus on you every single second of every day. But I can't. I can't afford it because being isolated means I don't know half of the dangers we could be facing. And my top priority is keeping you alive."

"Your top priority should be keeping me happy." She winced once the words were out. They sounded so pathetic, as if it was his job to ensure her well being.