The Alpha's Cursed Mate

Chapter 29

I sit and look at myself in the dressing table mirror after waking and brushing my hair. Alexei kindly brings me the water basin full of fresh water to clean my face, and then he returns to the washroom. This morning, he left a kiss on my neck.

I wash my face and dab it dry with a hand towel; the color has returned to my cheeks, and I look much more lively than last night. Alexei was relieved by the news of my eating. He thinks the punishing is over, and I dread the moment I'll disclose exactly what I ate. The cooks must be confused by the empty jug, but when things are easily replaced, no one seems to question where the first one went.

Someone knocks on the apartment doors. I glance to the washroom then get up from my chair, taking my robe from the back of it to cover my shift. I leave the bedchamber and cross the living room. When I answer the door, I see a well-dressed man holding a slip of parchment. He hands it to me, so I take it. "A message for the Alpha," the man states.

"Thank you," I say and close the door with a polite smile. I open the parchment and read; it's the message Senet said Gaius would send. I eagerly return to the bedchamber and open the one washroom door left ajar. "Alexei—"

My mate peers at me as he dumps the final water bucket into the bath. I suck a breath through my lips and clamp the parchment. Alexei is hardly dressed — bare-chested and pantless, covered only by his underthings. His legs curve and dip with muscle definition, and I stare briefly before turning red in the face. He places the bucket down and says, "Yes?"

I hold up the parchment, leaning into my excuse. "A message from Gaius."

Alexei nods, a gesture for me to read it. My brow lifts and my lips part. To save myself from ogling, I open the paper with trembling fingers and say, "He's requesting a meeting at his temple. If I do not come with you, he says our plans for the new temple and even our land claim will be at great risk and will likely not see execution."

I try to wipe the heat from my face with the back of my hand, and I place the message on the washstand for him to review. Instead, he asks, "How are you feeling?"

"Still much better — like day and night."

Alexei dips his hand in the bathwater. "Join me."

I glance at the tub and then back at his face which is anything but joking. I can't speak; my mouth opens slightly and my brow furrows, but an answer won't reach my tongue.

Alexei smirks and steps into the bath with his unmentionables on, and my thumping heart slows somewhat. My arms cross as my hands wrap and hold my waist. "Really?"

He nods once and lays his arms along the rim of the tub. I bite my lip at the thought of them enclosing around me, at the thought of sitting between his legs and resting against his chest. I inch closer like a nervous cat as my hands run along the tie of my robe. I tug the bow loose and slide the silk material off my shoulders, draping the robe over the washstand and standing in my shift. He knows very well nothing is worn underneath it.

He offers out his hand, and I hold it as I step over the side of the tub. The water warms my cold feet, and I hold my shift down to submerge it. The fabric soaks and feels odd against my skin, not touching it but hovering. Alexei guides me against him, and once I'm settled, I turn my head. "Have you worn clothes in the bath before?"

"I can't say I have," he murmurs and gathers my hair to one side.

I open the drawer of the washstand and take out a random oil. "Would you like to smell of juniper berries?"

"Whatever you like."

I place the oil back and take another. I turn my body this time and ask, "Hyacinth? I like this one."