Page 26 of A Kingdom of Fire and Fury (House of Embers #1)

It was such a highborn thing to consider bathing a social activity.

Nimue let me borrow a swimsuit, which was both more revealing and less revealing than I expected.

The skintight swimsuit, like the other women’s, clutched at our necks, covered our arms, and cut off at our thighs.

The men’s swimsuits went all the way down to their ankles.

Though I had to say, if I thought the leather uniform was considered revealing, this was practically scandalous.

My gaze lingered on Kieran as he walked into the massive swimming pool in the center of the room.

Damn. He had a good ass. The suit left nothing to imagination.

The sleeves showed off the thickness of his arms. And that wasn’t even considering the bulge he packed between his thighs…

“It’s not fair the gods favor him,” I muttered to Nimue.

It took a serious amount of control to look away from the outline of his groin.

This was one of many bathing chambers, but being that this one was meant for socialization, it was more expansive than the one I’d been too.

There were still shower stalls and lockers along the sides, but there was an added room—a small kitchenette.

Alongside the pool were some added benches but also lounge chairs.

There was even a small ledge inside the pool, called a rest pool, that was deep enough to sit inside and swing your legs.

Fucking nobles.

Nimue snorted and tossed her bag onto one of the benches by the lockers. “It isn’t, but life isn’t fair. Now relax. Let’s enjoy the time we have off.”

I followed her into the water and groaned as the heat soothed my aching muscles.

I studied the others. Even Aurelia seemed to relax slightly in the bath, though she remained sitting on the ledge inside of the pool.

Ben jumped into the water, sending a splash my way.

Gareth lounged outside the pool, reading a plain covered book.

My eyes went to Kieran, who relaxed against the edge of the pool away from the others but close to Gareth. He arched a brow when I approached him. “What do you want?” he asked in that blunt tone of his that made me want to punch him.

I willed myself not to snap. “I'm not here to fight with you. Wasn’t the whole point of this bonding or whatever?”

He sent an unreadable look at Gareth, who lowered his book and smiled. Kieran exhaled before focusing on me. I fought a shudder. Being this close to him was like being struck by lightning. I wanted to reach out and run my hand across his chest, to see if his abs were as defined as they looked.

“Do you want to run more laps, Selena? Is that it? ”

I groaned. “Can you get new material? Is it so hard to believe I want to work with the person supposed to protect me?” I folded my arms. “I’m not going anywhere. You’re going to have to accept that.”

His gaze trapped me in place. “I already have. You make it impossible not to.”

I fought a scowl. “Well, good.”

An awkward beat passed between us. “What’s your favorite dish?”

I blinked. “What?”

He looked at me as if I was a moron. “Didn’t you just say we should trust each other? Bonding, right? Since you’re so insistent on us getting... acquainted with each other, tell me about yourself. What is your favorite dish?”

That asshole. He had a way of making me regret my words, and I had half a mind to go back to Nimue.

But then I thought about the attack and earlier today.

Kieran was my best shot at protection until I could protect myself.

“My mother used to make this soup. Corn, potatoes, and green beans. Sometimes some meat if we had money to splurge. It wasn’t much, but I always loved it. And it’s pretty easy to make.”

I studied him, waiting for him to mock the simple dish. But he didn’t. He nodded as if I’d just revealed the biggest secret in existence. “I haven’t had it before.”

“Of course you haven’t. It’s a poor people dish.” I didn’t feel self-conscious about my background. Just because these nobles had money didn’t make them better than me. And yet… it was so fucking obvious I’d ne ver be considered one of them.

“I’ll have to try it sometime.”

The earnestness in his tone caught me off guard. “Really?” Was this a ploy on his part? A way to make me like him? “What’s your favorite dish?”

“I’ve always been partial to shepherd’s pie.”

A surprisingly humble dish. “Not steak or venison?”

He stared down at me, his stormy eyes pinning me in place. “You’ll find, Selena, that you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”

My heart stuttered, and I was all too aware of how close we were. And how badly I wanted to get closer. “I think I know you well enough. Like the fact that you’re an asshole who is trying to make me quit.”

“And like I said, you understand nothing if that’s what you think.”

I scowled and folded my arms. “You know I haven’t trained as much as the rest of you.

I’m catching up, but you’re holding me to a standard I can’t give right now.

And then you mock me for failing. That’s not fair.

” I wasn’t against the training despite all my complaining.

I wanted to be strong. That wasn’t the problem.

The problem was that it was rigged for failure, and he knew that.

“Are you saying you want me to treat you like you’re less than? Do you want to be handled with kid gloves because a poor commoner can’t reach the status or strength of a noble?” His eyes darkened.

“Of course not.” Gods, he was infuriating. “But that’s not the point. You’re being intentionally obtuse. ”

“And you’re being intentionally pathetic. I'm training you as hard as I am because I know you can reach our level. Coddling you keeps you weak and vulnerable. If you’re to survive, you need to be stronger. I know you can be strong, Selena, of course I do.”

Why did his words make sense? Why did the fact that he believed in me make me want to forgive all of his assholery? “You’re such a manipulative prick.”

His lips twitched in amusement. “We don’t have time to waste. Everyone here—their lives are my responsibility. I’m your captain, Selena. Whether you trust me or not, I am responsible for your life, your health, and your safety. I won’t fail you again.”

Warmth flooded my body. I wished I could say it was from the steam of the bath, but it wasn’t.

As I looked at his dark eyes, at the hard set to his jaw, I knew he meant every word.

And that was fucking terrifying. Because as much as he wanted to use me, I knew this assassination attempt bothered him.

It wasn’t just pride—it was fear. Fear that he would fail me, fail everyone.

No wonder he pushed us so hard, and why he trained me past my limits. I exhaled. He made it so hard to hate him. If he could just… be less of a dick.

I raised my chin. “I’ll hold you to it. Kieran Caddel, my life’s in your hands.” As much as I loathed it, we needed each other.

A muscle in his jaw ticked. “Believe me, I know.”