Taming the Dragon - H.S. - Harry Styles (AU)

Chapter 15

Harry shook Darya awake early the next morning. "Sweetheart, open your eyes. I want to talk to you before I leave."

She struggled to sit up. "Where are you going?"

"To work," he answered.

She started to sink back down under the covers. Harry leaned over the side of the bed and grabbed hold of her shoulders. He couldn't tell if her eyes were open or not, for her curly hair hung over her face, blocking his view. He held on to her with one hand and brushed her hair back over her shoulders with his other. He was both exasperated and amused. "Are you awake yet?"

"I believe I am."

"I want you to stay inside until I return home. I've already given Stefan and Damon their orders."

"Why do I have to stay inside?"

"Have you already forgotten about the policy in effect for thirty days?"

She let out a loud yawn. She guessed she had forgotten. "Do you mean to tell me I have to stay under lock and key for a full month?"

"We'll take it one day at a time, wife."

"Harry what time is it?"

"A few minutes past dawn."

"Good God."

"Have you heard my instructions?" he demanded.

She didn't answer him. She got out of bed, put her robe on, and walked into his bedroom. Her husband followed her.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting in your bed."

"Why?"

"I belong here."

She buried herself under his covers and was sound asleep a minute later. He pulled the covers back, leaned down, and kissed her brow.

Niall waited in the hall. Harry went over his instructions with the butler. The town house was going to become a fortress for the next thirty days, and no one other than immediate family was going to be allowed entrance.

"Keeping company out will be easy, milord, but keeping your princess inside is going to be most difficult."

Niall's prediction proved accurate. The battle began late that morning. The butler found his new mistress sitting on the floor in Harry's bedroom. She was surrounded by a stack of her husband's shoes.

"What are you doing, Princess?"

"Harry needs new boots," she replied.

"But he has at least five pairs now he never wears. He's partial to the old Hessians even though the Wellingtons have become more fashionable."

Darya was looking at the soles of the boots. "Niall, do you notice the heel on the left boot is barely worn?"

The butler knelt down beside his mistress and looked at the boot she held up for him. "It looks brand-new," he remarked. "But I know he's worn... "

"Yes, he has worn these boots," she interrupted. She held up the right-footed boot. "This one's well worn, isn't it?"

"What do you make of it, Princess?"

"We're speaking in confidence now, Niall. I don't want a word of this discussion to reach Harry. He's sensitive about his leg."

"I won't say a word."

She nodded. "It appears Harry's injured leg is just a bit shorter than the other one. I would like a bootmaker to look at these shoes and make a few adjustments."