Daughter Of Lórien || Book 1||

Ch 13 ~ A Night's Meeting

Stalking down the hall and into the open night air as the path opens to the outside forest, I draw my arms tightly around myself, trying to cast out the chill that has settled on my bones. In the adrenaline of my brothers return I have not noticed that this particular summer's night was chilly, and my thin nightgown did little to suppress said chill. I had let down my hair, previously knotted at the base of my head, in the hopes that it would give me a moment of warmth. It did not.

I grumble to myself, fighting off shivers, my mood steadily dropping with the decline in temperature. I find myself wishing for a soft robe and hot bath, despite the fact that I had just indulged in one, barely an hour earlier.

A soft, drawling voice jars me out of my thoughts.

"Out for a late night stroll, Princess?"

My eyes snap up and quickly locate the source of the voice, resting on the Prince's tall figure leaning against a pillar in the shadows, his arms folded across his broad chest.

I lift my chin and shoot him a hostile glance. "I could ask you the same question."

He flashes me a grin.

"Ah, not so much in the mood for a tease when we're tired and cold, are we?"

I stiffen at his remark and send a soft growl in his direction, only to be met with a faint chuckle.

Pushing himself off the pillar with feline grace, he strides toward me and chucks me a cloth that goes fluttering in the air. I catch it and realize with surprise that it is a fluffy blanket made of velvet green and embroidered with golden markings. I turn to the Prince and quirk an eyebrow, hiding my surprise at his gesture.

He gives me a lazy shrug, feigning indifference. " I saw you in the entrance hall... thought you might be cold and-" He trails off and I notice his eyes dip and sweep along the length of my frame, taking in the sensuous curves of my body made evident by the nightgown that thinly conceals them. His eyes snap back up to my face, the emotion behind them flickering away. "-grateful for some coverage."

I raise an eyebrow at him as I wrap the blanket across my shoulders, appreciative of the warmth it provides, but make a point of letting it fall across only my back, not moving to cover my chest. His gaze stirs something inside me and my previous annoyance slips away as the blanket cocoons me in its warmth. I take a few steps toward the Prince until I am close enough to feel his breath on my face, and tilt my head up to his, my emerald eyes sparkling playfully.

"I would not take you for one with such expensive taste," he murmurs. His eyes do not leave my face but I know that he speaks of my nightgown.

A dark chuckle slips past my lips. "Just because I fight as well as a man, does not mean I am as tasteless as one."

His eyebrows shoot up.

I purr softly. "I enjoy my luxuries..."

The Prince says nothing but his eyes drop to the soft curve of my lips. A silence settles around us.

"I think it's best you cover up," he speaks softly, breaking the quiet and proceeds to tighten the blanket around me. He pulls away but his glance lingers. I step back from him and pull the blanket tighter around myself as the nights chill fills the space between us. He turns to leave, but I call back to him.

"Although I am grateful for the warmth of the blanket Princeling, I take no shame in who I am." I straighten my back and lift my chin. He turns back to me, the moonlight glinting on his silvery hair and catching in his deep blue eyes.

"And what is that?" Although he makes a show of acting uninterested in my response, I catch a spark shine in his usually-icy eyes.

I angle my hips and fold my arms across my chest.

"I am a woman, both you and I are aware that I have curves," I drawl with a smirk. "I find no need to hide them in an ill-fitting blanket."

He laughs darkly and gives me a slight inclination of his head. "Good night Princess."

I turn to leave, my soft voice echoing back to him. "Night, Princeling."

With a lazy toss of my golden hair I stride away, blanket swaying with the movement of my hips and the soft steps of my bare feet. A shiver of satisfaction whispering over my body as the piercing eyes of the Elven Prince follow my retreating figure down the hall.