A Soul For Trouble

Chapter 15

The pale light of dawn filtered through her eyelids, but Arden wasn't ready to open them yet. Her head still throbbed. She ran her hands over the silk cushions under her and immediately cursed, wondering if Loku was playing the same trick on her that he'd played on Dev.

"No, my Soulbearer, you're not dreaming. I'd have you naked if you were."

The damp wool of her tunic rubbed against her shoulders, answering her next question. Her thoughts turned to the face of the man she saw last night. Kell. His dark brown hair curled at the ends and framed his square jaw when he looked down on her, and his brown eyes danced with amusement. He even had a dimple in his left cheek when he smiled. All and all, it was a handsome face. One she wouldn't mind seeing again. "Loku, did I dream him up?"

The chaos god's laughter filled her mind. "Is that where your tastes roam?"

"No, not usually, but I liked the look of him."

"I'll have to remember that if I decide to tempt you."

Kell intrigued her. Maybe it was because he actually seemed warm and friendly to her, a sharp contrast to Dev's cool and distant demeanor.

A mixture of metal clanging and conversation began to fill her ears. She tensed. Wherever she was, she wasn't alone. Then something furry stretched next to her, and she relaxed. Cinder had stayed by her side. But where was Dev?

She called out his name and opened her eyes.

"He's still in the healer's tent," an unfamiliar voice answered.

Arden shot up and immediately wished she hadn't. The room spun in circles, matching the swirling in the pit of her stomach. She crumpled back down on the cushions.

A face swam above her. "Still dizzy?" Cool fingertips brushed her hair from her face, and the man from last night came into focus. "Should I send for the healer?"

Her tongue refused to cooperate with her and form an answer. She didn't know if her speechlessness was from the fact that he didn't appear to regard her as some kind of freak or that he was probably the most gorgeous Ranellian she'd ever seen. She licked her dry lips and found her voice. "I think if I try to sit up slowly, the dizziness won't hit me as hard."

"Then let me help you." A pair of arms encircled her and lifted her back off the cushions. "Tell me if I'm moving too fast."

If he had been a customer at the inn, she would have some sarcastic reply to that, but he was one man whose touch she welcomed.

"Enough to let him under your skirt?" Loku asked.

Her cheeks burned. Leave it to Loku to take her attraction and add some perverted twist to it. "Why does everything have to come down to sex with you?"

"Because it's the one thing all you humans seem to have in common. It's what drives your species forward. I have a feeling you'd enjoy it if you ever gave it a chance."

"Absolutely not. I don't want to be labeled a whore and end up with a bastard child."

"Always picturing the dreariest outcome, huh?"

Her gaze flickered to the man at her side. His brows knitted together as he studied her.

"Will you just shut up so he doesn't think I'm completely crazy?" She forced a smile on her face. "Thank you," she told Kell. "The dizziness is slowly going away."

"I'm glad to hear that, Trouble."

Her body flinched at the sound of that name. "My name is Arden, not Trouble," she replied with a bit of steeliness in her voice.