The Eden Series: The Complete Collection (111 page)

“Can you believe her?” Wolf said, to no one in particular.

“Yes actually, I can,” Logan answered. Finally Aiden, Moose and Logan broke out in laughter. “Consider yourself lucky,” Logan said, wiping tears from his eyes. “I’ve seen Franca in action; you definitely don’t want to come face to face with her anger. Elisa is saving you and all your man parts.”

Elisa slipped into the bath, sinking until the hot water reached her chin. Franca had added lavender smelling salts to the water and lit candles around the small bathing room. She could feel her eyes drooping simply from the feeling of finally being able to relax. Sinking in deeper, she didn’t stop until her head was completely submerged. When she rose up again, she only kept her head above the water, letting her aching muscles loosen in the heat. Travelling took its toll, especially at the pace Jameson had set. All she wanted to do was sleep in her own bed for the next year, except that wasn’t going to happen. They were only planning on spending two days in the Capital before heading out again. There was a lot to do before then, which led her to believe that rest and relaxation weren’t going to happen for a really long time.

She sighed happily, enjoying the calm while she could. Franca had been ecstatic to have her home. Elisa knew how hard it was for her maid whenever Elisa had to go anywhere. Franca worried about her like a mother would a daughter. Her happiness hadn’t lasted long though, once Elisa told her about Markus. Although it did sort of improve when she explained about Wolf, Elisa reasoned. He wasn’t rich like Markus, but she thought Franca was always secretly rooting for him.

The bedroom door opened and closed, meaning Franca had left for the evening. Apparently she had a date. Elisa smiled at that. It was the first time she had even seen Franca look excited about a man. She wouldn’t tell Elisa who it was, but it didn’t matter. All that Elisa cared about was that Franca was happy. She let her eyes close and let her mind empty of any thoughts.

“This is the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Elisa’s eyes popped open, flying to Wolf standing in the doorway.

“Wolf!” she shrieked, sinking lower. Thankfully it was a deep, copper tub so she doubted he could see anything. “What are you doing? Franca is going to kill you!”

He smiled, looking rather pleased with himself. “Who do you think let me in?”

Elisa snorted. Figures Franca would conspire with him against her. To be honest, she wasn’t really all that mad. Having Wolf around her lately was like constantly being charged. He gave off an electricity that seemed to resonated throughout her body. The smallest of touches, or even just a look, could make her break out into a deep blush. The way he was looking at her in the tub made her want to melt.

“You shouldn’t be here,” she reproached, although her voice had no conviction. She sounded breathless rather than forceful. His smile grew as he slowly undid the tie at the top of his pants. “What are you doing?”

“Some girl – a rather beautiful one at that – told me that I needed a bath. She was quite insistent about it actually,” he explained.

Oh Goddess, she thought. She had no idea how to handle Wolf. He was walking sensuality, one of the things she used to hate the most about him. It was almost impossible not to get hot and bothered from looking at him when he was walking around without his shirt. She had seen that look on other girls, and knew she must have had the identical starry-eyed gaze on her own face at times, but she hoped she had hidden it better than they did. There was no hiding it now. Her mouth felt dry and her pulse raced. No matter what, she couldn’t bring herself to look away as he stripped off his riding pants and walked slowly towards her.

She watched as he got near enough to see her naked flesh in the water. It was the first time any man had ever seen her bare. His pupils dilated and she heard him inhale sharply. His eyes roamed each part of her body before stopping at her eyes.

“You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen,” he said softly.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“Move forward.”

She did as she was told, while Wolf lowered himself into the water behind her. When he was fully submerged, he tugged her back so that she was flush against his chest. His muscled thighs rested on either side, trapping her. “Relax,” he whispered in her ear, trailing light kisses down her neck. With each kiss she found herself relaxing more, until her whole body melted into his, and her head fell back against his chest.

“That’s better,” he said. She could hear the smile in his voice.

“Do you always get your way?” she asked, laughing lightly.

“Not always,” he answered. “I didn’t get my way for a long time.” She turned her head so she could meet his eyes. He smiled at her as he drank in every inch of her face. “If you think I’m going to stay away from you now that you’re mine, you are sorely mistaken. I’ve had to sleep in that room with Logan, knowing you were in here, every night for years. I won’t do it anymore.”

“I doubt you were in that room
every
night,” she teased.

He gave her an admonishing smile. “Careful, my future wife, or you will force me to do this.” Without warning Elisa found herself dunked under the water, and came back up sputtering. Her wet hair stuck to her face. She parted it so that she could see properly as she turned to look at a cheeky Wolf.

“That was not nice!”

“Neither was your comment,” he said.

“Wipe that smile off your face, Wolf, or I swear to the Goddess it will be your last.” She fought back the smile trying to force its way out. After a moment they broke out into laughter. “You’re such a child,” she said, splashing him in the face. He grabbed her, pulling her back to him. She snuggled down into his arms again, deciding she liked being with him like this, even though she could feel certain parts of him that made her incredibly nervous. She fidgeted, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. Wolf’s hands landed on the top of her thighs, close to her hips. She froze her hands gripping his thighs beside her.

“I suggest you stop moving around if you want me to behave,” he said, his voice tight. He leaned his forehead against the side of her head, breathing deeply. “And please stop clutching my thighs, it’s distracting.”

Her hands flew off his as she muttered an apology.

“Why are you tense again?” he asked.

She shrugged, hiding her face behind her hair. “I’m a bit nervous I guess.”

His hands moved to grip her upper arms as he effectively turned her so her chest crushed against his. She looked up into his face, surprised.

“I’m sorry to tell you this, sweetheart, but you’re stuck with me so you had better get over this nervousness.”

“I just don’t want to disappoint you…”

He sighed, his breath fanning over her face. “Nothing outside of us matters. Not my past, and not yours. Whatever happens between us is going to be perfect because it’s just you and me. I could never, and would never, be disappointed with anything you do. To me, you’re perfect.” She smiled up at him, blinking back her tears. His thumb wiped one away as it trailed down her cheek. “Don’t you understand how hopelessly in love I am with you?”

She laughed, even as more tears fell from her eyes. “I love you too,” she said. Both of them moved at the same time, their mouths meeting. It started off as a gentle kiss, but quickly grew in intensity. As they pulled apart, both of them were breathing heavily, and she could feel his excitement against her stomach.

“Show me how much you love me,” she said, pushing against him. He hissed through his teeth, his eyes bright and fevered.

“No,” he answered, pushing her away from him slightly.

It felt like someone had dumped cold water over her head. Suddenly all the heat in the room evaporated, leaving nothing but a cold chill. “No?” she asked, her nails digging into her palm. He had the nerve to say how much he loved her, but he wouldn’t
make
love with her? She desperately wanted to hit him, but he still held her arms immobile.

“I want this to be proper with you, Elisa. You mean too much to me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want to wait…until we’re married.”

The coldness vanished, leaving a warm and fuzzy feeling. Part of her was still slightly disappointed. She was sure that a night of making love with Wolf would have left her happy and satisfied. But the other part was elated that he wanted to be traditional.

“You are constantly surprising me,” she said.

He chuckled. “Well I try.” He pulled her back close. “But don’t be too surprised. This just means we need to get married soon,” he said, letting his hands trail down her back stopping just at the dip in her spine. She arched into his touch. “
Very soon.”

CHAPTER NINE

The door to Aiden’s room swung open, crashing into the wall with a resounding bang. Aiden and Moose’s heads snapped toward the opening in surprise.

“Ugh,” Logan groaned, dragging his feet into the room. “My room is soooo boring when I’m in there by myself.” He threw himself face down on the bed, his voice muffled against the mattress when he spoke again. “I can’t stand the silence.”

Moose looked at Aiden with raised eyebrows, a hint of laughter in his eyes. “You know what this means don’t you?” he asked Aiden, keeping a straight face.

“I’m afraid to even ask,” Aiden said.

“It means he’s going to be coming around here all the time while my brother shacks up with his woman.”

“Great.” Aiden sighed dramatically. Logan looked up from the mattress with a hurt expression.

“I’m sorry,” he said sarcastically, “am I interrupting your quality time?”

Aiden and Moose chuckled. “We’re joking, Logan, relax. You can hang out here all you want,” assured Aiden. The truth was he needed his friends to stick close to him as much as possible. If he were alone, all he’d do was dwell on Lily’s absence. The horrible thoughts of what might be happening to her never left his head. He hated not being able to just get her back right away. He hated all this waiting around. But having others helped make it bearable. He knew, realistically, it would take time to find her. Until then, he’d have to maintain his sanity and being around people like Moose and Logan helped. How his two friends would actually
help
his sanity was the question, especially watching them argue over who smelled the worst, as they were now.

“Enough,” he said, interrupting them. “Let’s head out to the tavern. I don’t want to be out all night, and it’s already late.”

“You think Wolf and Elisa are ready?” Moose said with a sceptical look.

“Maybe we should just go and they can meet us there,” Aiden suggested.

“Sometimes I wonder if it was better when they hated each other,” Logan said, pushing himself completely off the bed. He paused. “Yeah, never mind. Those days were horrible. I’ll take mushy, love-sick Wolf over brooding, angry Wolf any day.”

“I am not love-sick,” came Wolf’s response from the open doorway. His long hair was still wet, pulled back into a low ponytail at the base of his head. Elisa stood behind him, her tiny body blocked by his.

“Would you move!” she huffed, giving him a push. Wolf hardly budged, giving the boys a sly grin.

“Stop pestering me, woman,” he replied over his shoulder.

“You’re so annoying.” She sighed. Aiden couldn’t see her face, but he could imagine her rolling her eyes right about now. He couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t encourage him, Aiden.”

Aiden’s eyes widened. “How do you know it’s me laughing?”

“Because I recognize all of your stupid voices,” she said, peeking her head around Wolf’s torso.

Logan clapped his hands. “Since we’re all here, let’s go get some grub!”

The tavern they normally went to was packed full. There were considerably more soldiers in the city than normal, and the staff were running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Aiden had never seen them so frazzled. Thankfully the northern men weren’t causing any problems, and for the most part people were treating them respectfully. There was still a clear segregation between the people, but no one was being openly rude, from what Aiden could see.

As he surveyed the room, his eyes fell on one soldier sitting with the north. Stefan’s eyes lifted and met his. He gave Aiden a slight nod in greeting. Aiden motioned for him to come join them. He saw the other man hesitate for only a second before standing up and walking toward their table. A number of people watched his journey with interest.

“Take a seat,” Aiden offered when he reached them. Stefan sat down, his posture slightly stiff and uncomfortable. “How are you enjoying the Capital so far?” he asked, leaning closer so he could be heard.

“It is very crowded,” the northerner answered. “The walls are very tall, and there are too many buildings. It makes me feel claustrophobic.”

“Not like the north then?”

Stefan shook his head. “We don’t have to be as closed off as this. Our terrain is hard enough to navigate, so not many people would be able to even make it to our city.”

Aiden could imagine. Even from a distance the mountains looked harsh and intimidating. He’d hate to think what it would be like to live there, especially in the winter.