Chapter 21
21
P ari moaned and stretched. She was sleepy, yet something nagged at her to wake up. But part of her didn’t want to. She was warm, content… at peace. Something she’d not felt in, well, she couldn’t remember.
Warm. So warm…
Pari’s eyes fluttered open. She was lying on her side and immediately noticed she was not alone. She swallowed hard. “Bondrah?”
He moved, and she sucked in a breath.
“Kahtala Miah…”
She froze. His voice was different, not as deep. Still darn comforting though. “Are we safe?”
He moved, lowering his head to hers. “You are safe. Nothing can harm you here.”
Pari gasped. “You talk!” She maneuvered herself so she could face him. “You… spoke English.”
He cocked his head. His eyes were so full of admiration she almost rolled off the bed, or whatever it was they were on. “I speak many languages, Kahtala Miah.”
Pari looked into his eyes. They weren’t the bright blue she’d seen before. No, his eyes were a steel gray now. “Are you hurt?”
His chest and broad shoulders shook with silent mirth. “You ask if I am hurt, even after all you’ve been through?” He bent his face to hers and gently ran a finger down her cheek. “You are a wonder, little kitten.”
She made a face at his words then quickly smiled instead. She didn’t want to insult him. Maybe it was some kind of endearment.
Pari noticed the intimate position they were in. It was generally a sleeping position, but they didn’t know each other. “So… are you okay?”
He gazed deeply into her eyes, making goose flesh ripple over her skin. “I am your Bondrah, you are my Kahtala. I am much more than okay.” He ran his finger down her cheek again then got into a sitting position. “You must be hungry. I’m slacking in my duties already.” In one swift move he was on his feet, walking toward a low table…
“Raina and Halden were here earlier,” she blurted without thinking.
He plucked a grape from a bowl and popped it in his mouth. “They brought food.”
“Yes, and I drank…” Her eyes widened. “Don’t drink anything!” She tried to get up and fell off the bed with a thud. How embarrassing!
He was at her side in an instant. “Are you all right?” He took her by the arms and lifted her to her feet like she weighed nothing.
Lord in Heaven, who was this man? Oh, wait, now she remembered. “You’re… n-not human.”
He pulled her a little closer and bent to her ear. “No, I am not. But you are, and you must eat.” He looked at her with a gentle smile. “Shall we see what they’ve brought us?”
Pari noticed he had an odd accent. One she had never heard before. Curiosity hit her hard and fast, and a million questions began to form. “Where are we?” She followed him to the low table, spied a coffee pot, and sank onto the nearest cushion. “Coffee?!”
“Smells like it.” He picked up the silver coffee pot and sniffed. “Yes, an Italian blend I believe.”
She gaped at him. “You can tell what kind of coffee it is by how it smells?”
He gave her a light smile. “I can tell a lot of things, little kitten.”
She blushed a deep red. The nickname was intimate. Too intimate for her. She wasn’t… anything. Maybe to someone like him, it was a pet name. Literally. “You haven’t answered my question.”
He poured her a cup of coffee, handed it to her, then motioned to the cream and sugar on the tray.
She helped herself to the cream, poured some into her cup, the reached for the sugar. He watched her every move. “Um, where are we, if you don’t mind my asking?”
“My private quarters.” He poured his own coffee, added some cream, then picked up a spoon and gave his cup a stir. She watched him, fascinated. She’d seen him crack the wall of his cell, then his door. He had fangs, and went nuts every time any of their captors touched her. As much as he could after they pumped him full of sedatives, that is.
“Wh-where is that?” Pari asked next.
He sat on a cushion and sipped his coffee. “Someplace far, far away from the place we were being held.”
Her shoulders slumped in relief. “That’s good to know.”
“It is, Kitten.” He smiled, and the corner of his eyes crinkled. She didn’t even mind the nickname he seemed to have chosen for her.
“Are you… hungry?” she hedged.
“Famished, but I would see you eat first. What would you like?” He looked over the two covered trays and pulled the lid off one. “Breakfast food!” He waggled his eyebrows. “Human, breakfast food.”
She peeked at the plates of ham, potatoes, and scrambled eggs. Her mouth watered. “Oh, that looks good.”
“Very well.” He grabbed a nearby plate and began to spoon eggs and potatoes onto it. He stabbed a slice of ham, added it to the plate, then handed it to her. “Eat, Kahtala Miah.”
Pari took the plate. “I… have a name.”
He smiled. “Tell me.”
Her cheeks heated. For some reason, she wanted him to like her name. “Pari. My full name is Pari Mae Lindir. But my uncles sometimes call me Pariwink.”
His smile grew. “Pariwink. I like it. It’s… adorable.”
She frowned. “Adorable?”
“I mean that in the best way, my kitten. My… Pariwink.” He smiled again. “Pari Mae… Pari.” He cocked his head again. “They all suit you, Kitten. My lovely little heart.”
An odd sense of peace came over her. “Why do you call me that? Your heart?”
His eyes filled with such longing; she almost couldn’t stand it. She knew that look. She’d worn it herself. “You are my heart, my Pari. Kahtala Miah.”
“And you… are Bondrah Miah?”
His eyes closed and he straightened, chest puffed out, as if the words affected him in some way. Just like when they were imprisoned. When he opened his eyes, they were much bluer. “Yes, I am your Bondrah.”
She gave him a tiny smile. “What does that mean?”
He looked into her eyes as the blue of his faded to a bluish gray. “In time you will know the answer in your heart. It is best, you recognize what it means.”
“But… why?”
“Trust me, Pariwink, it is best you learn the answer yourself. But know that it means you have my protection. I’ll let nothing harm you, I’ll care for you, and see that you are happy.”
Her jaw went slack. “Why? Why would you do any of those things for me?” Her chest twinged. What was she? Nothing, no one. He had no reason to…
“Eat, Pariwink,” he said softly. “Your food is getting cold.” His eyes grew bluer, and she sensed a gentle nudge in her heart and knew she had to eat.
Pari looked at her food. It smelled wonderful. “Okay.” She took a long sip of coffee, then picked up a fork. The eggs were the best she’d ever had, the potatoes and ham to die for.
He uncovered the other tray. There was a plate with croissants, muffins, and donuts. She grabbed one of the plain donuts and noticed he was once again watching her every move. She put the donut on her plate and blushed. She hoped she wasn’t making a pig of herself. “You never told me your name.” She looked up, met his gaze. “Halden and Raina called you something else. Not Bondrah.”
He closed his eyes, drew in a deep lungful of air and exhaled. “No, that name is for you alone to call me. They call me Melvale.”
She smiled. “Yes, that was it. Melvale.” Her blush deepened. “I’ve never heard such a name.”
He smiled and gave her a slight bow. “Then allow me to introduce myself, my kitten.” He got to his feet and bowed low. “I am Melvale Lohrinthian Olwen, and I am forever at your service.” He sat next to her and took one of her hands in his. “You are…” he blinked a few times. “Oh, stab me, I can scarce take you in.”
Pari laughed. “What?”
He gazed into her eyes again, his expression serious. “Oh, little Pari, you… you don’t believe me, do you?”
“Believe what?” She didn’t mean to sound terse, but the fact this was happening to begin with was so outlandish, she could scarce take it in. This was her, for crying out loud. Pari Mae Lindir. LOSER. The minute he realized that he’d drop whatever sort of infatuation he had and go about his business. It was only a matter of time, and she knew it.
“Your defenses are amazing. So quick to surface,” he said softly.
She froze as if she’d just been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. “What did you say?”
He cocked his head, and she was learning he did it when he was puzzling something out. “Your heart is attempting to push me back. You are… frightened.”
“No, I’m not,” she spat. Pari got to her feet and backed away. Okay, not the smartest move. It made her look guilty as heck. She crossed her arms over her chest. “I need to use the… the…” She waved in the general direction of the toilet she’d used before. “I’ll be back.” She marched toward the arched doorway on the other side of the room.
Melvale followed, his long legs catching up in an instant.
Pari stopped. “I’m just going to use the little girl’s room.”
His eyebrows slowly rose. “Ah, yes, of course.” He gave her a single nod.
Her heart in her throat, she continued through the arched doorway, followed by the wardrobe area, through the bedroom, and finally into the pool room, she decided to call it.
She went behind the screen, took care of her business, and was about to head back when she heard a loud splash. “What the…”
Pari stepped around the screen. Melvale had shed his clothes and was in the pool. All seven naked feet of him. She gasped and spun around. “What gives?”
“I’m bathing,” he called from the pool.
“I’m still in the room!” A hand went to her chest. She didn’t think she was going to have a panic attack, but she wasn’t sure what had her chest fluttering or her spine tingling. Oh, good grief, she wasn’t enjoying this was she?
“Are you still hungry?” he asked.
“Yeah, sure.” She started for the bedroom, as fast as her legs would carry her.
She could hear him sluicing through the water and climbing out of the pool. “You do not wish to bathe?”
“Not yet!” She broke into a run. “Put some clothes on!” She ran into the large room with the food and plopped onto the cushion she’d occupied earlier. She stuffed her donut in her mouth and tried not to look at the arched doorway. What if he waltzed into this room naked as a jaybird, as Uncle Leo liked to say?
Her face fell. “Uncle Al, Uncle Leo.” She let what remained of the donut in her hand fall to her plate. “They must be worried sick about me.”
She looked at the arched doorway. Bondrah, that is, Melvale, must have taken her advice and was putting some clothes on. Either that or he’d returned to the pool to finish bathing.
Good, she didn’t think she could take much more of the godlike specimen she’d woken up to. Maybe she was dreaming, and she’d wake up at home in her own bed.
But her lower left hip was sore where they’d taken a bone marrow sample. Now that hurt, and she’d screamed at first, sending Oswald into the other table. She remembered how he’d jumped forward and almost rammed into hers. She didn’t remember anything after that. Oswald had disappeared from view, and she figured he’d slipped her a sedative so he could finish the next round of tests without causing her any pain. At least he’d tried to be nice.
Unlike Dr. Charles.
Pari shuddered. She still had so many questions and so few answers. All she’d learned so far was her fellow prisoner’s name—or in this case names—his name for her, and that they were far away from where they’d been taken and…
She didn’t want to think about it.
Pari heard a rustle of clothing, looked up, and saw Melvale enter the room wearing a floor length blue and silver robe of some sort. The outfit was beautiful and made him look like a freaking prince or king. She openly gawked. “He is so out of my league.”