As she walked through the door to the ballroom arm in arm with Thorin, Imara looked around the room in search of Ben. Not seeing him, the disappointment began to rise in her stomach.
“I hope you don’t think poorly of me, Ben. This isn’t the kind of thing I do.” Imara slid her dress back down her body as she straightened it and Ben pulled the zipper up then smirked and shook his head.“I don’t Imara. Not at all. I can’t really explain it to you, you’ll think I’m crazy, but I’ve been dreaming of doing that for a long time.”
“Mr. Haldir, so nice to see you again.”
Ben rubbed the back of his neck as he leaned against the stone fountain in the courtyard and watched the sun go down behind the house across from them. “Oh, fuck! How are you going to do this? She’ll be destroyed.”
When Haldir returned later, he walked into the parlor wearing his tuxedo. Thorin looked him over and chuckled to himself. “It’s always entertaining to see a thousand-year-old Viking savage like yourself all cleaned up and looking dapper. You just might be confused with a proper gentleman if you’re not careful.”
As Imara slammed the door shut behind her, Thorin sighed as he rolled his eyes then pushed himself up out of his chair and came to the foyer. “Unless you’re planning on paying for that glass out of your own pocket, young lady, I suggest you treat the door a little kinder.”
Imara sat on the edge of the garden pool with her feet in the water. Her lips were swollenand chapped from the unending stream of tears. She inhaled deeply and smiled as the warm wind blew through her hair and eased the ache in her heart for just a second.
“Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub.” Ben’s eyes snapped open as the faint ticking filled his wolf’s ears. He pushed himself up to his elbows and looked around the room as the early morning light filtered through the shutters. Not seeing anything out of place, he closed his eyes and laid back down on his pillow beside Imara. “Lub-dub, lub-dub, lub-dub.” The quick, faint ticking came again but this time lingered in his ears.
“I want someone with her at all times.” Thorin briefed the guard the Order sent as he finished his coffee in the kitchen. “I don’t want her to feel smothered, just keep her company. If you notice anything unusual call the Order immediately.”