Page 92 of The Primal of Blood and Bone (Blood and Ash #6)

POPPY

I’d just finished washing my hair when I felt the faint throb of the notam in my chest.

“Poppy?” Kieran called out.

I looked at the stool, realizing I’d forgotten to grab a towel. My gaze swung toward the wall as the footsteps drew closer.

Damn it.

Strands of hair floated around me, and my knees broke the surface as I sank until the frothy water reached my chin.

Whoever it was halted, and then the half-open door creaked.

“Poppy?”

Briefly closing my eyes, I exhaled slowly. “I’m in here.”

As his steps drew closer, I glanced down and immediately wished I hadn’t. While bubbles still swirled on the water’s surface, they had thinned out, leaving vast swaths between the foam clusters.

Kieran stepped around the privacy screen, and in the silence that followed, I peeked up at him.

He must have bathed because he was clean-shaven and had changed into a black, short-sleeve tunic made of soft leather and fitted at the waist. The sunlight caught the golden threads of the embroidery along the shoulders and on the two front panels. My gaze lifted.

The hue of his eyes was a bright, glacial blue as his gaze swept up from the foot of the tub to mine. A muscle spasmed in his jaw, and it was only then that I realized my arms had remained nestled against my sides, and there were a lot of gaps in the bubbles near my half-submerged chin.

His jaw loosened as his gaze met mine. “Did you fall asleep in the tub again?”

My mind immediately flashed back to New Haven when I woke to find Kieran kneeling beside the tub. To say I’d been surprised to find him there would’ve been an understatement. I’d been convinced that he held no fondness for me then, and I was pretty sure I’d been right.

“No,” I said. “I heard you come in. I just forgot to grab a towel.”

Amusement flickered across his features as he looked down at me, but there was something else to his stare and in his eyes—an edginess that brought a flush to my cheeks.

“You’re uncomfortable.”

The frankness of his statement caused my brow to furrow.

“There’s no reason to be.” He paused. “It’s not like I haven’t seen it all before.”

My lips pursed. “I haven’t forgotten. And I didn’t say I was uncomfortable.”

Kieran arched a brow. “So, you’re not?”

Was I? I wasn’t. At least, not in the way I was in New Haven. And I really didn’t know what that meant or why I was even thinking about it while naked in a tub.

“Can you grab me a towel?” I asked.

“I can.”

I stared at him, waiting. “Approximately when do you think you might be able to do that?”

“Around the same time you remember that you moved a chair earlier without touching it and could simply will the towel to you.”

I opened and then closed my mouth. Damn it, he was right. “I can’t believe I forgot that.”

“Well, you’re not used to summoning things to you with your mind.”

“True.” My attention shifted to the towels stacked on the shelf. Eather hummed as I pictured the towel—

My eyes widened as one flew off the shelf.

Kieran’s hand snapped out, catching it in midair. “I doubt you wanted to be smacked in the face with it.”

“I wasn’t going to let that happen.”

“Uh-huh.” He chuckled.

Prying an arm from my side, I reached for the towel. Instead of handing it over, he knelt beside the tub, and the towel disappeared from view. My narrowed eyes lifted to his.

“So, what do you think of the new quarters?” he asked.

“Is that a question that needs to be answered while you’re holding my towel?”

“Yes.”

I shook my head. “I like them. They remind me of the ones in Evaemon.”

“You’ve never been up here before?”

“I wasn’t allowed into this section of the east wing since guests normally occupied the rooms.” I was surprised he wasn’t taking this most opportune time to launch into the lecture I knew was still coming about me crossing the Veil. “I think this section of Wayfair was built when Atlantia ruled.”

“What gave it away?” he replied dryly.

I grinned. “Casteel said his mother and Malec stayed here.” My lip curled. “Now, I’m thinking about my mother-in-law and uncle sleeping in the same bed, and that makes me think of how messed up my family tree is.”

Kieran huffed out a low laugh. “I’m sure the mattress has been replaced since then.”

“We can only hope,” I said.

“We?”

My eyes shot to his as I opened my mouth. It struck me that I had become so used to sharing space with Kieran while on the road to Carsodonia that it hadn’t even crossed my mind that he might prefer his own arrangements. That would make sense since he normally had his own quarters, but…

My fingers curled against my bare waist. Things felt different now but somehow the same. Which was entirely too confusing.

“We?” he repeated, quieter this time.

“Or whatever.” Staring out the window, I felt his eyes on me.

“Did you notice the chambers outside the quarters?” he asked. “One of them will be mine. I will be close, but not so close that I can’t escape when you two start getting on my nerves.”

I laughed. “I have a feeling that will be more often than not.”

“You are probably right,”

His tone had changed. Glancing over at him, I noticed the faint amusement was completely gone from his stare.

“There are no expectations, Poppy.”

My breath stalled in my throat.

He rested an arm on the wide ledge of the tub. “I know the Joining was…intense.”

Intense was one word to describe what had happened along the banks of the River Rhain.

I wondered if I would get to meet the god.

And why, in all the realms, was I thinking about that now?

“And we haven’t had a chance to talk about it,” he continued, jerking my focus back to him. “And what it means.”

I wasn’t sure I wanted to be having this conversation in my current situation, but I heard myself asking, “What does it mean?”

His gaze didn’t stray from mine as he said, “A bond comes with a Joining. A deep connection between those who partake in the act. It’s intense.”

I nodded. “I…I know.”

“It’s hard for there not to be with that level of intimacy—one where our hearts move in the same beat, and we can more easily feel what the other is experiencing.”

Wait. Did that mean—?

“And just like with the act of a Joining, that can get…intense.”

“You need to find another word,” I muttered. “Like overwhelming or profound. Powerful. Maybe fierce.”

A corner of his lips twitched. “And it can,” he said, pausing, “intensify—”

I sighed.

“What one feels, be it emotional or physical.” Kieran leaned forward, his gaze remaining on mine. “But that doesn’t mean there are expectations.” He searched my face. “Understand?”

Swallowing, I nodded.

Kieran held my gaze for another moment. “Good.” He rose and laid the towel on the tub edge. “I’ll find you something to wear since I don’t think we should have you attempt summoning an item of clothing from another room.”

“Wise call,” I murmured.

As Kieran disappeared behind the privacy screen, I faced forward. I hadn’t expected that conversation, but it had been necessary.

No expectations.

That was…good, especially since I had no idea what I expected.

“Poppy.”

I squeaked and jerked up, swinging my head to the side.

Kieran stood there, a shirt in hand. “Are you getting out of the tub?”

“Yes.”

He pinned me with his typical bland look, and then his gaze dropped. Muttering under his breath, he dropped the clothing on the stool and pivoted. “I’ll be waiting.”

Dragging my gaze from the shirt, I looked down. My chest was entirely above the water.

And it really sounded like he’d muttered, “ No expectations .”

Aaannnd I wasn’t going to think about any of that.

I stepped out of the tub and quickly dried off. Grabbing a smaller towel, I gathered up my hair and folded it in the towel, then picked up the clothing Kieran had left on the stool.

With a frown, I lifted…a shirt. A rather large shirt. Shaking my head, I pulled it over my head. The hem ended at my knees. I walked out, finding Kieran in the dining chamber, rummaging through the light oak cabinet against the wall.

“Do you think this is appropriate attire to meet with the generals?” I asked.

He glanced over at me. “No.”

“Then why the shirt? I saw clothing hanging—where did that stuff even come from?”

“As to your second question, Naill. He’s been able to work with a lot of the material left behind, so he has collected quite a number of outfits for you in a relatively short period.”

“And my first question?” I asked.

“Since we’re not meeting with the generals this evening,” Kieran said, and I stopped, “I figured you’d want to be comfortable.”

I turned to him. “Why are we not meeting with them?”

“Because I doubt Cas will be able to locate all of them in time.” He lifted a bottle containing a clear liquid. “So, he’s going to set up a meeting for tomorrow afternoon.”

“Why do I have a feeling that’s not the reason it’s not happening tonight?”

“I don’t know.” Unscrewing the lid, he gave the bottle a sniff. His lip curled. “Gods.”

“Could it be that Casteel doesn’t want me getting overwhelmed?” I replied.

“He’s not the only one,” Kieran said.

“Neither of you needs to worry.”

“Not going to happen.” He frowned at an oval-shaped decanter. “Would you like a drink?”

“Sure.” I moved farther into the dining chamber. “You know we don’t have time to waste.”

“There’s little to be done between today and tomorrow,” he countered.

I tugged the towel from my hair as my gaze flickered over the intricate detail on the crown molding. It continued along the panes framing the glass in the domed ceiling. “I’m more than capable of meeting with the generals, Kieran.”

“And you will.” He put the bottle back and picked up another, this one containing an amber liquid. “Tomorrow.” He lifted the stopper. “Did you have a nice nap?”

Now I knew who had placed the blanket over me. “I did,” I said as the nightmare crept back to the forefront of my thoughts, sending a chill down my spine.

He looked over at me. “You sure?”

“Yeah.” I cleared my throat and draped the towel over the back of a chair. “So, that’s what Casteel is doing?”