Page 54 of Tiger's Voyage

Yet greater is my heart,

And fairer than pearls or stars

Flashes and beams my love.

Thou little, youthful maiden,

Come unto my great heart;

My heart, and the sea and the heaven

Are melting away with love!

A noise startled me during my second read of the poem. I jumped off the bed, spun around, and found Ren grinning and leaning against the frame of a door I hadn’t opened yet.

“How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to appreciate the view.” He stepped closer and took the poem from my hand. “Do you like it?”

“Yes.”

He put his arm around my waist and dragged me closer. He kissed my robe-clad shoulder and inhaled. “You smell delicious.”

“Thank you. You don’t smell bad yourself. What’s through there? Where did you come from?”

“My room. Want to see?”

I nodded, and he steered me toward his room with a hand at the small of my back. The room looked similar to Kishan’s.

“We have a connecting door?”

He grinned. “Yes.”

“Did Kishan know about this before you made the room assignments?”

“Yes.”

“Huh. I’m surprised he let you take it.”

Ren frowned. “We originally thought Nilima or Mr. Kadam should have it, but we both felt it would be better if you had a tiger close by. We fought over who would take it, but I won out in the end.” He scowled and mumbled, “Mostly because Kishan knows I can’t touch you anyway.”

I stifled a laugh and said, “I would have liked to have been a fly on the wall for that conversation.”

“My room is nice, but I was kind of hoping I wouldn’t have to use it.”

“What do you mean?”

“I was thinking that maybe I could sleep with you. As a tiger, I mean.”

I quirked an eyebrow and laughed. “Can’t get enough of my snoring, huh?”

“You don’t snore, and I like being near you. Plus, you’re nice to wake up to in the morning—not that you aren’t nice to have around now.” Ren pulled me against him. “Have I told you lately that you’re beautiful?”

I smiled, stretched out my hand, and brushed the hair away from his eyes, letting the silky strands twine between my fingers. He dipped his forehead to touch mine, but after several seconds, he moved away. Ren’s face had paled and his eyes were closed. I squeezed his arm before stepping back.

“I’m alright, just give me a minute.”

“You recover, while I change,” I said and pushed him back into his room, closing the door behind me. I put on my silky Indian pajamas and then reopened our adjoining door.