“You have nothing to apologize for. Now try to get some rest. I’m going to get a pillow and blanket for the couch. Just married a few hours, and already I’m relegated to the couch.” He winked, then squeezed her hand as he got up.
“Wait.” Caliban stopped and turned around to look at Adira when she spoke. “You haven’t done anything to be kicked to the couch.” She took a shaky breath and gave him the best smile she could manage at the moment. She didn’t really want to be alone in the bed and felt foolish for that too, but he seemed to understand all her fears so far and hadn’t made her feel stupid or foolish for them. Maybe he would understand this one too. “So, if you’d like to lay on top of the covers with your blanket, I guess that would be okay. I mean, we are married after all. No reason you should be relegated to the couch when you’re taking care of your wife. What would the staff think?” Her eyes darted around the room and she took another deep breath before looking back up at his face. She was finding it easier and easier to meet his eyes, and found she liked it when she did. The way that he looked at her made her feel warm and safe.
Caliban’s brows were raised and his mouth was curved in an amused smile, it did seem that his new wife was full of interesting surprises. He had certainly not anticipated that invitation, he had only been joking with her before. “When my wife is being gracious, who am I to turn her down?” He chuckled, gave her a wink, and headed to the other room to get his things.
While she waited for him to return, Adira looked around the dimly lit room. She was still trying to take in everything that was going on, and failing. When she’d heard the explosion of the lightning nearby, she’d been sure that she’d open her eyes to find the twisted and enraged face of Mircea nearby. That it was thunder made her feel a fool, but how both Caliban and Lars had acted told her that she was safe, no matter what her mind that was trained to always be on guard for the moods and whims of her ex-husband. Ex-husband. That was truly what he was now, and there was a relief in it. Riona was dead, and with her went any connection to Mircea. She just needed to relax and try to move forward with this chance at life that Caliban was giving her..
There was a soft golden glow coming out of Caliban’s room when he returned. “I’m going to leave a lamp on in there so that it’s not so dark in here. Will you be able to sleep?” Another flash and immediate crack of thunder had them both flinching in tandem. “Or at least as soon as that stops?” His soft smile took on a slightly amused air.
Adira nodded. “Yes. I’ll be fine, thank you.” Her smile was warmer and more genuine this time. It wasn’t just that Caliban was nicer than Mircea, it was that even Lars and Theron were more friendly and kind than any of her former husband’s staff. She felt like maybe this was some fever dream from being knocked unconscious back in that hostage house. “As long as I don’t wake up, and this was all a hallucination.” She gave a short laugh.
“If it is, it is an expensive one, Mrs. Andros. I tend not to give out that many diamonds to my hallucinations.” He winked at her as he sat on the opposite side of the bed from the one she was on. He hadn’t had a shirt on when he’d come in earlier, but he’d thrown on a tee shirt now. Until he knew her comfort level more, he would take things slow with her. He’d gotten another message from Theron, only three words: cherish your wife. Damn man either was spying on him or had some kind of sixth sense.
Adira held her hand out and admired the diamond encrusted band. “It is the most beautiful thing I’ve seen, hallucination or not.” She looked over at him as he moved closer to him. “You really did not have to…” A laugh started to giggle up when he cut her off with a finger once more. Being cheeky, she kissed his finger.
“Mrs. Andros, Adira, my darling wife, you really need to listen better to Theron. He will not steer you wrong when it comes to me. I do nothing I do not wish to do. Keep that in mind.” His brows rose as he laughed along with her. “I have a feeling, my beautiful bride, that you are going to keep me on my toes. I also think I’m not going to mind.” He winked over at her, seeing even in the low light the bright pink that flushed across her cheeks.
“You keep flattering me like that and I might, just to make you do it more.” Adira’s chin lifted a little in defiance, but there was merriment and mischief sparkling in her eyes. “You are spoiling me, husband of mine.”
Caliban couldn’t resist it, he reached over and gently cupped the side of his face with his hand. “That is what husband’s are for, love.” He saw the swallow, the widening of her eyes, and the slight parting of her lips. Something about the combination, the sudden uncertainty in her, that made him want to kiss her fully, kiss her till she fully believed his words. In fact, it took all of his self control not to pull her to him and do it right then.
It was at that moment that another bolt of lightning hit a tree somewhere on the estate, the sound of an explosion as the trunk disintegrated was as instantaneous as the crack of thunder that once more shook the walls and windows of the mansion. Caliban found himself with Adira almost in his lap and clinging to him. His arms slowly wrapped around her so as to not spook her, he could feel her trembling. Even he wanted to make sure that it was JUST a lightning bolt. Hopefully by morning at least the house would still be standing.
“It’s okay, Adira. Just more lightning. It’s going to be a bad storm. You’re safe.” He kept his voice low as he held her and kissed her temple softly. He felt a slight warm and moist patch growing on his chest. While one arm stayed wrapped around her back, another came up to her head to cradle it against him. Waiting for her to calm once more, he tried to think of anywhere in the mansion that would be any better for getting away from the noise, but he couldn’t think of one. The basement might be, but there was nowhere comfortable down there, it was all storerooms and staff workrooms. They would just have to wait it out. There were far worse fates that Caliban could think of than spending a storm with the beautiful woman wrapped up in his arms.
A knock sounded at the door, not loud but firm. “Come.” Caliban called. He knew who it would be, and maybe Lars would hold the answer to what exactly had happened.
“Sorry to disturb,” his eyes dropped to Adira huddled against his boss, “but there is a fire on the estate, sir. Authorities have been called. That last bolt of lightning hit a tree and it is completely gone, but it has littered the ground with flaming debris. Even though it is raining, we thought it best to call the Fire Department. Emyr and Gareth are handling it.” Lars nodded to Caliban.
“Thank you, I was going to inquire if there had been damage from that, once things calmed. If they need to speak with me, please let me know immediately.” He didn’t have to say what he was referring to for any of it, he could see the understanding on Lars’ face before he backed out the door into the hallway again. This is why he kept the staff he had, they could handle things without having to constantly ask what to do.
“See, you had good reason to be scared from that last one. There was some actual damage. So, before you try, don’t even apologize for being scared.” He kissed her forehead and felt her nod against him. “Although if you stay all curled up like this, I might think you like me.” There was tease in his voice now, and he could swear he felt her laugh just a little bit.
“We wouldn’t want that, now would we.” Adira teased back, sniffling at the end. She was starting to relax now that there had not been another loud crack of thunder. One of her arms snaked around between his back and the headboard, her other hand landing on his chest. She could feel the strong and steady beat of his heart, and it made her smile. Even in the early days of her relationship with Mircea he never would have been like this with her. He would have just gotten mad for her being upset and gone somewhere else so he could rest. She gripped the back of his shirt a little bit, the memory hurting more than she would like, even with how much she hated him and the confusing feelings she had been having all day for Caliban.
“Of course not.” Caliban kissed the top of her head and gently caressed her back. “You start liking an assassin and head of a family and the next thing you know, you start wanting to get into the business, learn to fire a weapon, start sleeping in the same room…all kinds of bad things happen…” He couldn’t help but smirk. Somehow he was the first woman he’d been around that he could see doing all of those things, and wanting at his side doing all of those things, yet he’d only known her one day. The woman just seemed to have an inner strength that he had not expected when he first glimpsed her huddled in the basement of that house.
A soft chuckle came from Adira, her head tipping back to look up at him with an amused smirk. “Is that so? I must be careful not to like you then, those sound like such horrendous things to have happen. We wouldn’t want any of that.” She had just started to lightly laugh when another bright flash and almost instantaneous clap of thunder made her tighten her hold on him again. “And heaven forbid that I would look for comfort and protection.” Her cheeks were aflame and she could not hide the smile, one that creased her eyes and caused the dim light from the other room to dance in them.
“Yes, sweetheart, we absolutely cannot have that.” He joined her in the laughter, glad that she was relaxing. While there had been some truth in his tease, there had been in hers as well and he wondered exactly where along the line things had started to change between them. If Theron had been surprised earlier, he would have been completely stunned to see the scene that was transpiring now.
“What do you think we should do to prevent it, Caliban? I mean there has to be something.” A teasing smile was tugging at her lips as Adira looked up at him. She had to keep reminding herself that there was no genuine affection from him other than him wanting to make sure she was safe and some friendship. It would be too easy to fall for a man like him, a man so opposite of her ex-husband. That he was so darkly handsome, in more ways than one, and charming only made it harder to keep all of that in mind, they were in a very, very fake relationship.
Caliban looked down at her with his own amused smile for a moment. Everything in Theron’s email played in his head combined with the evening that they had spent in his office. There was something about her…something about her very being that he thoroughly enjoyed and that had made him smile more in one evening than he had in some whole months. “I’m not sure, my darling wife. There may not be anything.” He breathed out a fake heavy sigh as thunder sounded farther away now. “I might have to consult some experts to get advice, but I would say that it would definitely not be this.” He figured the worst she could do was slap him, but after the way that she’d been looking at him and he’d been looking at her, he doubted that would happen. Two fingers under her chin kept her face tipped to him as his lips found hers gently at first, then slowly deepening when he felt her fingers on his neck and into the back of his hair.
When their lips first met, she had thought that he might be teasing, but then the kiss lingered. His heart under her hand was thundering just as fast and hard as hers was, and that was what prompted her forward to kiss him back. The building attraction that had been sparking between them since she had walked into his office earlier had finally caught and was a building flame now. Adira wasn’t sure where it would lead, but for the first time in years, she felt safe and cherished in a man’s arms.
Slowly Caliban ended the kiss, but kept his forehead against hers, looking deep into her olive colored eyes. They were unique, much like the woman herself. “Adira,” he wasn’t sure what to say as his fingers gently stroked the side of her face. She was suddenly so special, so treasured, so important to him. “I…” he wasn’t sure whether to tease her again or be serious. The last thing he wanted to do was break this moment, to do anything that was going to cause her to stop looking at him the way she was in that moment.
“Should definitely not do that again.” Her voice was soft, almost a purr as her fingers played in the short hair on the back of his head. Slowly her head tipped to bring her lips to his again, hoping that she had not read him wrong that he was as affected by their kiss as she was, in a very good way. It was like her whole world was tipping on its axis, but as long as his arms were around her, it would all work out.
“Definitely not.” He breathed out the words against her lips before claiming them once more.
The world went out of focus, everything so much less stable, gravity losing its weight. A large dark blur appeared out of the corner of his eye saying something unintelligible. Petyr ignored it, his insides racing in every direction and thrashing against the confines of his body. What had been land was now water and he was fighting to stay afloat.
