Erik’s POV
I gasped awake, feeling like I’d been pulled out of the fires of Hell itself. Moonlight from the window above made my head throb, and I blinked a few times to gather myself.
That was when I felt someone stirring against me, their head nestled onto my chest.
My body jerked; thankfully, she did not wake. My mind went blank with confusion as I took in the familiar dark, silky hair that lay softly on my chest.
Vanessa?
I looked around, my confusion deepening. She pressed against me, clinging to me. All at once, I realized she was without clothing.
Warmth struck me—a new one, different from the feverish heat that had knocked me out.
Vanessa’s touch was soft and comforting, and her face peaceful in her slumber. As she exhaled softly from her nose and cuddled her face against my chest, it was hard to imagine that she was the same cruel woman who had put me in this cage.
Still, I could end this whole thing right now if I wanted to. The imprisonment. The pain.
I tried to lift my hands to curl around her neck…
But I didn’t have the strength. And, more importantly, I lacked the will.
Death was not something I chased or desired for anyone but my father. He had slain my mother in cold blood, and I would make him pay. I would enact justice on him—no one else.
For me to do that, though, I would need to be out of these shackles and at full strength.
My eyes went back to Vanessa. While she slept soundly, I couldn’t feel her usual wrath or wickedness.
What boggled me was the sense of compassion that radiated off her sleeping form.
I decided to accept Vanessa’s embrace to survive that nightmarish fever. For far too long I had gone without the touch of a woman beside me. I shut my eyes and tried to imagine somebody, anybody else beside me. The lady from the stables with her bright red hair who fed the horses each morning, or the tailor with that infectious smile who hemmed the regalia into my tunics. No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t conjure the faces of those past loves.
Instead, I saw Vanessa’s face upon their own, and Vanessa smirked at me the same way she had upon throwing me naked to the cold ground and locking the prison behind me.
The thought chilled me.
I sunk myself further beneath Vanessa and cupped my arms around her waist. Her nose rubbed against my chest, and even the thought of looking at her again made my stomach crawl.
As much as it pained me to admit it, I needed her.
I glanced at the cup of water beside us, and noticed that my lips were, surprisingly, not dry. Had she helped me to drink water, too? Yes, this I had a faint memory of.
I could, when I closed my eyes, see her cupping my head, drinking from the cup, and pressing her wet, rosy lips against mine.
She had cared for me like no other.
But why?
My heart fluttered, and I felt a sweeping sense of calm rush over me.
Contemplating Vanessa’s intentions made my head spin. I needed to rest and take things as they were. I was imprisoned in her dungeon. Yet, strangely, she seemed to have totally reversed her treatment of me. Perhaps, eventually, she would let me go.
Vanessa had saved me, and that was that.
I would use her, and that was that.
Vanessa breathed softly through her nose on the hair of my chest. Her wrist was curled up against my abdomen, and she seemed so peaceful.
Drowsily, I shifted back under the thick blankets and put my arm around Vanessa’s back to bring her even closer.
Lying intertwined with a woman eased me, even if it was her. Why her sudden change of heart? I’d search for answers in the morning.
***
Vanessa’s POV
Although I awoke in the lower chambers, I could still hear the faint chorus of birds chirping. The sun’s rays shone brightly through the high window, and I felt so peaceful opening my eyes from the comfort of warm blankets, my fuzzy robe, and…
Erik?
He stared at me coldly from the corner of the cage, where he leaned against the iron bars.
Sunlight obscured his face, but I could see the rage in his eyes. One of his hands gripped the pendant around his chest, and the other held only enough blankets to cover his modesty.
I did not fail to notice, however, the veins in his strong arms, and the many abs etched into his strong stomach.
“Erik, you’re awake!” I exclaimed.
Erik shook his head.
“Feign no more interest in my life, Vanessa. I know what it is you truly seek.”
Careful not to expose myself, I bunched up blankets in front of my chest and scooched over beside Erik. The blankets fell for a second, and in the time that I had to catch them and raise them back over to cover myself, Erik glanced away.
“You seem so much better,” I told him.
A bit of color had returned to Erik’s face, and the shivers seemed long passed. Still, he sat slouched and his lids were heavy. I hoped that I had done enough to fend off the fever.
Erik said nothing, but his dashing yet angry blue eyes rested on me. My heart pounded wildly, “I—I need to check your temperature.”
I slid closer next to him slowly, remembering how my mother always checked my temperature and pressed my lips to his forehead.
Erik kicked his legs out and asked, “What the devil are you doing?”
“I detect no heat,” I ignored his question. I pressed the back of my hand to his forehead to make sure. “I think your fever has passed.”
Erik blushed, and perhaps, may be even angrier than before.
He said, “You could’ve used your hand the first time to see if I kept my fever.”
I blushed but forgave his snappy attitude. I thought how untrustworthy I would be of my captor should I find myself in his position, and prayed that he would possess the sympathy to forgive me too.
I told him, “Prince Erik, I’m only trying to confirm that you’re okay. There is no better way to identify a fever than through one’s lips. For you, I must be sure.”
Erik blinked rapidly and folded his lips inwards. Had I flustered him?
He scoffed, “That’s what my mother used to say, about the lips. Shall I expect you to read me a story before bed too, now?”