Another World

Chapter 5

Charlotte's cheeks were still flaming red from her mortifying experience, and she hastily stuffed what little clothes she could find in the dresser situated on the one side of the room. A dark wood double sized sleigh bed was placed against the middle of the wall and a white quilt embellished with images of birds and flowers graced the bed. Not something she would have chosen, but her mother had been very much the girly girl – the floral wallpaper in the living room proof of this feminine trait. Charlotte disliked the way the house was decorated, but Charlotte could not bring herself to change any of it. It felt as though she would be dishonoring her parents by doing such a thing.

Shutting the drawer with harder force than necessary, Charlotte strode to the closet and proceeded to stack the boxes back in their hiding spot. She stiffened when she felt Thranduil's presence enter the room, like a silent, but formidable, storm that was brewing and could not be ignored.

Charlotte kept her back to him. She just hoped that he had found the clothes she had laid by the bathroom door and wasn't currently wearing that towel.

"You can sleep here. I know it's not much, considering that you're used to better..." Charlotte trailed off and closed the closet door. She decided it was time to face him and maybe pretend that the whole fiasco had never happened.

Charlotte blinked in surprise. Thranduil was wearing plain black pajama pants that were a bit short at the legs, and a simple black shirt that was a bit too snug. Charlotte hadn't been able to find much other shirts in any other color: Eric had been a plain cut sort of guy, preferring black and white, and sometimes, if he was feeling adventurous, he would wear grey.

But as she stared at Thranduil, Charlotte had to admit that black was a color that looked exceptionally good on him, even though he was wearing hand-me-down pajama pants and shirts. And the shirt showed off his lithe and well defined form quite nicely.

Thranduil merely stood in the doorway, utterly still and perfectly postured as his mesmerising blue eyes swept over the interior. Then his eyes flickered to hers, and Charlotte felt her breath catch and her heart speed up. How could he unnerve her with one simple glance, and he hadn't even uttered a word yet. No, Charlotte! The pretty elven King is waaay out of your league. Don't even think about it! She mentally scolded herself and nervously shifted her gaze away.

"It is good enough, Charlotte. Surprisingly better than the bathroom," he said, his rich and deep voice gliding over her skin.

Charlotte glanced up and noted, with surprise, the teasing smile that now adorned his luminous face.

"Um...yeah. Sorry about that," she murmured, resisting the urge to squirm.

Thranduil lifted an elegant hand and waved away her apology dismissively as he stepped further into the room. "Do not trouble yourself, little one. I found it all rather amusing."

"Glad you find me hilarious," she replied snarkliy, crossing her arms over her chest, feeling slighted by his words, and especially by the fact that he found her humiliation entertaining.

Thranduil merely smirked, as though sensing her ire, and came to stand by the bed, far too close to Charlotte for comfort. He gazed down at the quilt, though his face was like a stony mask and Charlotte couldn't decipher what he was thinking. So, like any normal human, she started rambling in situations like this.

"I'll bring in another comforter for your bed. The quilt is more for decoration than anything else. And you'll need something warmer, as the heating system in this house is old and it gets pretty cold here, especially at night."

Thranduil abruptly turned to face her, his hands clasped behind his back, and Charlotte instantly snapped her mouth shut.

"Your reactions around me are most peculiar," he stated.