But she was still limping, and his heart ached with every painful step she took.
“Wait,” he told her, striding over and wrapping an arm around her so she could lean on him.
He led her into the bathroom, and she looked around appreciatively.
“This place is amazing,” she said.
“I am happy you like it,” he replied. “It is my second home. Everything here was designed to accentuate the beauty of Autumn.”
She glanced longingly at the steaming tub.
“Yes, that’s for you,” he chuckled. “I’m going to help you undress now.”
She wrapped her arms around herself instinctively.
“I will not touch you if you do not wish to be touched,” he told her, being careful to look into her eyes. “But you are hurt and shaken. I do not want you to risk a fall on the stone floor.”
She studied him for a moment, then nodded slowly.
He moved behind her and tugged at the tie of her white apron.
It slid to the floor with a strange clunk.
“My tips,” she said.
“What?” he asked.
“Money that I earned at work,” she explained.
He bent to retrieve the apron, feeling completely confused.
Indeed she was right, flimsy mortal coins and faded green paper bills were wadded in the smallest pocket.
How far ahead of him had she been?
It wouldn’t have taken long to change her clothing and get her hands on some mortal coin. But why was she making up a story to go along with it?
Something about her tone was so reasonable, like she really believed what she was saying.
“Thank you,” she told him as she placed the apron carefully on the countertop.
Heath winced.
“What?” she asked.
“We don’t say that,” he reminded her gently.
Surely, she knew that much. Had she really forgotten even the basic rules of Faerie?
“We don’t say what?” she asked.
“We don’t imply a burden of debt with words like the ones you just said,” he explained.
“It all seems so real,” she murmured, as if to herself, shaking her head slightly.
“What seems real, my love?” he asked.
“You, the house, the… world,” she said. “But I know I must be dreaming.”
“Why would you think you are dreaming?” he asked her.
But she merely smiled and reached out a tentative hand to stroke his cheek.
He closed his eyes and leaned into her touch.
When she took her hand away, he opened his eyes and saw she was looking up at him longingly.
“Let’s get you in the bath,” he murmured.
She helped him to remove her chemise and peel the little skirt down.
He removed her shoes and willed himself not to go wild as he helped her remove her strange undergarments.
If she was trying to fit in with the mortals, she had certainly paid attention to the details. The scrap of silky material he pulled down her thighs was hardly worthy of being called a garment at all.
At last she stood before him, naked but for the improvised bandage still wrapped around her wrist. The candlelight accentuated every dimple and curve. She was delicious.
But she was looking modestly at the floor.
It was the first time she reminded him of the overly-humble woman he had met before. The Fae were not ashamed of their bare bodies.
He began to undress as well, quickly, so as to make her feel more comfortable.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“I’m getting in there with you,” he told her. “You’re weak as a kitten. We can’t have you hitting your head.”
He wasn’t entirely sure if he was trying to convince her, or merely trying to justify it to himself. He expected her to argue, but she appeared to be too busy staring at his chest in open admiration to bother.
He grinned, glad if his looks could speed this seduction along.
Not that he planned to take advantage of her as she was tonight. But if he could stoke a craving in her, it would bode well for both courts.
It would bode well for me, his inner voice laughed.
And it was true. The Autumn Court was not really foremost in his thoughts anymore when he thought of claiming the girl. He wanted her badly for his own reasons, which were making themselves known.
She gasped almost inaudibly as he pulled down his breeches.
He was not ashamed for her to know how much he wanted her. But he did not want her to be frightened.
“I cannot hide my attraction to you,” he admitted. “But I will not act on that instinct. Not tonight, at least.”
Her eyes locked onto his and he felt a shockwave of need.
“Come on, let’s get in,” he said through a clenched jaw.
She took the hand he offered and together they stepped into the water.
Warmth soaked into his bones as they sank into the water.
She made a sound of satisfaction that set his blood on fire.
I want her to make that sound for me…
“Let’s clean those cuts and scrapes,” he said, hoping that getting down to the business of caring for her would help tamp down his desire.
She extended her hands to him, so trusting.
“This will sting,” he warned her.
She nodded.
He poured out a few drops of milk and honey soap and massaged them into her skin, then let go so she could rinse.
“Okay?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said.
“Shall we look at the bigger cut?” he asked.
She loosened the makeshift bandage around her wrist.
He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the wound wasn’t as bad as he’d first thought, and showed no signs of infection.
“We’ll keep an eye on it,” he told her as he very gently cleaned the area. “But I think it will be just fine, no scarring.”
“Than… that sounds good,” she said.
She had stopped herself from thanking him. Again.
This was truly unusual. Many things about her confusion made sense, but not that. Such simple manners should have been too deeply ingrained in her to forget.
“Let me bathe you,” he offered. “You’ve got leaves in your hair, and I’m sure you don’t want to wash yourself when your hands are stinging.”
She looked down at the water and nodded.
Was she ashamed of her desire?
The fair folk did not apologize for lust. It was a part of them, one more hunger to be fed.
“Lean back and wet your hair, lass,” he suggested.
She did as she was told, displaying her beautiful breasts to him in the process.
He wrenched his eyes away from the firm peaks of her nipples and focused on massaging his hands through her hair.
The bath passed slowly, in long minutes that felt like hours of torture. The contact with her soft, warm form was making him wild with need that would not be satisfied tonight.
At last they were both fragrant and clean.
“Let’s get some rest,” he told her.
She allowed him to help her out of the bath and towel off.
He carried her to bed, praying for the strength to leave her there and go to one of the guest suites.
But when he pulled the blankets up over her and stood to go, her eyes grew wide.
“Don’t,” she begged him.
“You need rest, my love,” he told her.