Chapter 42: Willa

I was really getting tired of having to hide in rooms whenever Ferrin was acting like a jerk. I didn’t regret my decision to stay with him, but all this was becoming a bit suffocating. I couldn’t handle it if Ferrin suddenly started keeping things from me.

I paced around the room for a while before I changed into my pajamas and tried to go to sleep. But I only ended up tossing and turning for a couple of hours. Finally, I let out a frustrated huff and threw the blankets off of me. I was still frustrated with Ferrin, and I was mad that I missed him, but I was also worried. It was the kind of worry that just sat in the peripheral. You know it’s there, but you just don’t know why.

But then again, we both had a lot to worry about right now. So, I was probably just overreacting.

I climbed out of bed and made my way through the joining bathroom and through to Ferrin’s bedroom. I paused a moment to breathe in his scent, which was all over the place. I quickly started to relax. I crawled under the covers of his bed and was almost instantly asleep.

I woke up to a weight resting on my waist. Blinking my eyes open, I shifted to find Ferrin asleep beside me. He must have thought I was trying to get up because he yanked me tighter against his chest.

“No,” he growled. “Not yet.”

“What time did you get back?” I asked gently.

Ferrin yawned, not opening his eyes. “About six a.m.”

I glanced up at the clock. That was less than two hours ago. The worry started to creep back in. And the frustration. But now wasn’t the time to start that. He needed sleep.

But I needed to get up.

I pushed up and scooted toward the edge of the bed. But I didn’t make it far before Ferrin hauled me back against him, both arms going around me, his face buried in my tangled curls.

“Not yet,” he stated firmly. I could even feel a hint of a command in his voice. Not enough to affect me, though.

“Ferrin, your sister is going to be here soon. I need to shower.”

A frustrated rumble resonated from his chest. Even in his fatigued state, he moved fast. Pinning me to the mattress in a second. His mouth crashed into mine, kissing me long and hard. After he pulled away, he flopped back down on the bed, his arm still draped over my middle.

“I guess that will have to do,” he mumbled. “Unless I’ve convinced you to stay?”

I chuckled as he tugged me closer again. Rolling my eyes, I turned to face him.

“It is tempting, but I really do have to get up,” I said. “Rebekah said she wants to spend the day together. She’s going to prepare me for meeting the nobles tomorrow night.”

“Oh, that’ll be a good time,” he said with good-humored sarcasm.

“I mean, it’s probably better than going in completely blind.”

“True,” he agreed.

I hesitated before I asked my next question, but I needed to ask it.

“I was hoping she could also show me around the castle and grounds some today, too,” I said tentatively. “If you thought that would be okay?”

“Of course,” Ferrin replied without a pause. “It’ll be good for you to get out. Just make sure you stay with your guards. Just as a precaution for now.”

“Okay.” I had no problem with that if it meant I could finally move more freely.

Ferrin yawned again. “Adam is off today, but Shawn and Ryan should already be outside the apartment. Just let them know when you want to leave.”

“Thank you,” I said, kissing him excitedly.

His arms folded around me, and he rolled over onto his back, pulling me onto his chest.

“Are you sure you don’t have a little more time?” he teased, running a hand down my back to cup my ass.

It was getting awfully tempting. But Rebekah really was going to be there in about half an hour, and I wasn’t ready for her to see me in the state her brother always left me in. Still, I glanced at the clock to be sure.

“Nope,” I said, pushing off of him. “My times up, but you need to get some sleep.”

I kissed him on the cheek, and he groaned as I crawled out of bed.

“Fine,” he huffed. “But we’ll be revisiting this later.”

“If you’re lucky,” I teased over my shoulder as I made my way to the bathroom.

I showered quickly, despite wanting to spend the whole morning standing under the hot water. As I dried myself off, I promised myself I would take a long bath in the gorgeous clawfoot soaker tub that had been luring me in since I’d seen it.

I had never really been able to take baths before. Our house in Avilvale only had a small shower with terrible water pressure and very limited hot water. The last time I had a bath was when Jason had taken me on a weekend trip, and we stayed in a hotel suite. But that memory just seemed so lacking now. Either way, I could only imagine how blissful it would be to just soak in the hot water until I was all wrinkled.

I went to my bedroom to the walk-in closet that held even more clothes than I had been given when I was in the tower. It was a little overwhelming, to be honest. I decided to grab my phone and check the weather for the day. It had still been pretty hot the last few days, even with it being this late in the summer. Expecting it to be close to ninety degrees by midday, I decided to stick with a pair of black shorts and a green, flowy tank top.

I had taken the bandage off my leg before showering and was pleased to see the progress. My knee was only left with a slight shade of fading yellow, and you would never have known how deep the gashes on my leg actually were. They were still a bit red, with thick scabs along them, and itched like crazy. But I could tell how quickly I was starting to heal now, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there were only faint marks left by the end of the day.

As I finished drying my hair, my phone pinged from its spot on the bathroom counter. Rebekah was here. I quickly put the hairdryer under the sink and went to let her in.

“Good morning,” she said brightly as she pushed past me, holding two cups in her hand. “I had some coffee made up for us. We’ve got a lot to cover and only a few hours. Henry and the kids will be here around one this afternoon. So, I need to get as much girl time as I can.”

She held out the metal tumbler for me. I took it with a smile, wondering how many she had already had this morning.

“Well, I got the go-ahead to roam freely, so I’m ready when you are.”

“Fantastic,” she exclaimed, looping her arm through mine and immediately dragging me out the door. “And your leg looks much better, so I won’t feel guilty dawdling around.”

Shawn and Ryan were just outside as Ferrin said they would be, but they quickly followed step with us, trailing along to wherever Rebekah was dragging me to. She whisked me through the halls, chatting excitedly. I discovered that even though Ferrin’s and my apartment is on the same floor as the main entrance, it was actually three stories above the ground level on this side of the structure.

She led me through a maze of stairs and hallways until we came to an outer door.

“Where are we going?” I finally asked.

“I thought we could work our way around the gardens this morning. There is a charming gazebo at the far end that I used to love escaping to when I was a kid.”

“That sounds nice,” I said with a broad smile.

“And that way, we’ll still be out of the way and less likely to draw attention from all the guests who are just dying to meet you. Royal order or not, there are plenty who would see this as an opportunity to sneak in an introduction.”

“So how likely do you think it will be that someone will approach us?” I asked, not exactly dreading the idea. It may be easier to handle a couple throughout the day instead of all at once at the dinner. At least out here, there won’t be so many eyes on me.

“I’m sure there will be one or two who catch wind that we’re out here,” she replied. “But we have Shawn and Ryan to keep anyone away.”

“It may not be too bad to stagger some of the meetings today,” I informed her.

“I will keep that in mind,” Rebekah said. “There are some that I would be happy to introduce you to if they come around. I know we’ve kind of made the council sound menacing, but there actually are some good people. I’m not sure how many will be here tomorrow, though. Not all of the council members will be able to attend. But I’m sure anyone you don’t meet tomorrow, you’ll meet before your Luna ceremony.”

We had left the castle and were walking through an impeccably manicured garden. It was quite breathtaking, and for the first time since I was first brought here, I felt like I was experiencing  Dharlow the way I was supposed to.