When Ryleigh woke up, she was in that blissful state of half-consciousness where time and place were abstract concepts with no application. She turned on her side, hugging her pillow, and it took about a minute for her to realise she hadn't been able to sleep on her side before, due to the chains holding her back. That realisation was immediately followed by the realisation she wasn't wearing her cuffs. After that, the realisations kept coming.
She didn't know where she was and she didn't want to open her eyes just yet, but she was bathing in Austin's smell. The sheets smelled like him, the covers smelled like him, the pillow smelled like him. For a moment she subconsciously pulled the covers tighter around her, a sleepy smile playing on her lips. Then it hit her she was probably in Austin's bed and her eyes fluttered open, revealing a bedroom.
Her eyes swept the room, which lacked most forms of decoration. All that there was, at least what she could see in her current position, was a mahogany desk littered with books. She rolled on her back and discovered a fireplace with two easy chairs in front of it, one of which currently housed her mate. He was flipping through a book lying on his lap, but glanced up at the sound of her movements. She groaned and rolled her eyes to the ceiling.
"You just love to watch me sleep, don't you?"
From the corner of her eyes she saw him smirk. Images of him shirtless flashed through her mind again and she turned her face away so he wouldn't see her cheeks turn a shade darker.
"How are you?" he asked, which brought her attention to the fact that she should be dying of pain – which she wasn't. That is, yes, she was in pain, and now that her focus was returned to it, the pain was annoying, but it was manageable. Perhaps it was his proximity, or the fact that she'd been revelling in his smell for hours, but she felt better than she should have.
She draped her underarm across her face and yawned. "This your room?" She vaguely gestured around her without removing her arm from her eyes and without answering his question.
"Yes."
"What am I doing in your room?" She dropped her arm now and gave him a look that oscillated between genuine curiosity and a sort of unspoken challenge.
"Well, you've proved you can't be trusted in the infirmary. Ridge is too chaotic to stay wary of you. He said you probably nicked his keys from his pocket while he helped you go to the bathroom. Should have guessed you were a pickpocket on top of everything else."
"What can I say, I'm a woman of many accomplishments." She moved into a seated position with the speed and grace of a very old woman, and pressed her hands against her eyes as vertigo hit her.
"You alright?" he asked. She waved his concern away with one hand, keeping the other stretched out over her eyes.
"Just a second." She peeked through her fingers to see if the room had stopped moving yet. Satisfied that it had, she removed her hand and blinked slowly. "You can return me to the infirmary. I'm sure Ridge will safeguard the keys better from now on."
"Ridge is a very clever man, but he doesn't have the presence of mind to keep up with your guile, and I don't trust you to stop trying to escape."
"My guile, huh? You make me out to be some kind of criminal mastermind. I like it." She shivered and glanced at the hearth, which was burning brightly. She rubbed her hands up and down her bare arms, but the trembling wouldn't cease.
"You're cold?" he asked, surprise filling his voice. "It's very warm in here." He put his book aside and moved over to the bed, sitting down on the edge and placing his warm palm against her forehead. She sighed at this touch but managed to mask her feelings under a thick layer of scepticism.
"Are you my doctor now?" she said, grasping his wrist and pulling his hand down.
"You have a fever."
"I could have told you that much. I'm fine."
He glanced down at her fingers gently wrapped around his underarm, which prompted her to release him. Capturing her hand before she could withdraw, he let his fingers trail the scars circling her wrist. She pulled her hand back, pressing it against her chest. She cleared her throat and tipped her head further up.
"Aren't you going to cuff me again?"
He shook his head. "I was going to."
"But?"
"I didn't want to." He shrugged. "I figured I'd sit with you and if you tried to pull anything again, I could easily stop you."
"So what, you do have the presence of mind to keep up with my guile? I'll have you know that on a good day, I could take you."
"I doubt that," he said, that smirk playing around his lips again.
"So..." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "What now? If you're not going to let me go back to the infirmary, does that mean you're putting me back in that Goddess-awful cell?"
"I don't know."
"Can I propose something?"
His brows twitched, but he allowed it with a small nod.
"Alright." She sat up a bit straighter and tugged the covers higher, trying to regain some warmth. "The way I see it, there are two scenarios. In the end, this is all about Julie, right? You need to find a way to make her believe you did every possible thing to make this work" – at 'this' she gestured from him to her and back – "and that its failing had nothing to do with any lack of effort on your part, right?"
He blinked. "Yeah."
"So I'm thinking, if you really want to convince her, you're going to need my cooperation. Imagine this. When the month is over, you'll tell her you tried everything but I'm just insufferable and there's no mate bond strong enough to make you look past that, and despite our best efforts, there's no deeper connection between us. Now, if you were to just say that, she might feel that her prior claim on your heart has interfered with your ability to be open-minded towards me. But if I were to say it, now, that's a different story. If I were to say, for example, that I have really tried to see past your huge character flaws as well – o, don't glare – but that there is just too much discord between us, well, who is she not to believe me? Especially because it will be true, of course. And then I'll go on to say it's my choice, and that I really want to reject you and get on with my life. I'll paint some pretty picture about how I've always wanted a mate but you're just not it. I might even throw in a few remarks about how happy I am that you've found someone to love you to erase any guilt she might feel. Give her my blessing, as it were. How's that? Do you think that would help persuade her?"
He watched her with a tilted head. "Yes, maybe."
"Great. But of course, there are two sides to that coin. I could say all of the things I just mentioned, or I could tell her you're the man of my dreams and she's a home-wrecker. I'll spin some pretty tale about how she's disrespecting the Goddess by being with you, and that she'll be punished for ripping two fated mates apart. And that it's her fault you don't want me, that we could have had our happily ever after if only your heart would have been free. Did I tell you that I can cry on command? I'll summon a flood of tears, collapse onto my knees and beg you not to reject me, all right in front of her. You'll still reject me of course, but she would never let you mate her then. She'd feel too guilty."
He stared at her. "You wouldn't do that."
"Wouldn't I?" She leaned sideways to check if the fire was still burning, which it was. "I mean, quite honestly, what reason would I have not to? It's not as though you've been such a gentleman towards me so far." She gritted her teeth when they wouldn't stop clattering. "I'm right, though, aren't I? My responses could make or break your relationship with Julie."
"Hypothetically."
"So all I'm asking is that if you want me to help you, perhaps you should consider returning the favour."
"I can't release you."
"Can't or won't?" He didn't respond and she went on with a sigh. "Look, there has to be some middle-ground, a compromise. Just because you don't want to let me go, doesn't mean you have to lock me in a cell again or chain me to a bed."
He hesitated. She grabbed his hand, which made him snap his head up.
"Austin," she said, "I know we don't exactly see eye to eye, but if you don't hate me – if you have any regard for me whatsoever – please don't lock me up again. I can't take it anymore." There was a dimension of sincerity to her voice that surprised the both of them.
"Fine," he said, and with a sigh of relieve she released him. "But it'll be on my terms. You can never be alone. You must always be accompanied, either by me or by at least two guards. You can't shift without my express permission."
She pushed a breath through her nose. "Fine. What about my chains?"
"I won't make you wear any during the day. But at night..."
"Please no," she said. "If I have to sleep on my back for one more night, I'm going to scream."
"I get that, but I can't leave you alone at night, and I don't think it's a good idea to have two guys stare at you while you sleep. And Ridge is clearly not cutting it." He was silent a moment.
"What?" Ryleigh said.
"Nothing. Just something Ellis suggested."
She cocked a brow at him and he shrugged, a little uncomfortable.
"He said I should let you sleep here, in my room."
"Here? With you?"
"Yes. Obviously he thinks it will push us closer, but even though that's unlikely to happen, there's some logic to it. I can station a guard in front of the door and nail the window shut."
"Nail the window shut? Aren't you taking this a little far?"
"Far? You just escaped from what was basically your death bed. I've learned the hard way not to underestimate you. As long as I'm responsible for your actions, I'm going to make damned sure you're not going anywhere."
She scrutinised him with wary eyes. "If this is all a very elaborate scheme to get me in your bed..."
"Take it or leave it."
"O, I'll take it, but I'm not sleeping in a bed with you. You'll have to sleep on the floor."
"What – it's my room, you know."
"Take it or leave it." She gave him a defiant look, black eyes sparkling.
"Fine. And then when the month is over, you'll help me make things right with Julie."
"Agreed. And after that, if I show good behaviour this month, you'll talk to Alder about rescinding my sentence so I can go?"
"If you behave – If you show me you're not a risk to society – then yes, I'll talk to Alder. Are we in agreement, then?"
She smiled. "Yes."
_________
A/N: Our fated mates sharing a bedroom? Well, that should be fun.
Should you feel so inclined, you could hit the pretty little vote button that feeds my ego. As always, thanks for reading!