Galenor must have spent a long while cleaning last night, or this morning. Had he done all this so I could sleep longer? To give me some time to rest?
It couldn’t be, I calmed myself while I started brushing my teeth.
It couldn’t be, I had to convince myself again after I jumped in the shower.
It couldn’t be, I repeated, forcing the notion in my brain while I dried my hair, slightly aware that I was occupying the bathroom for a long time.
In my defence, Galenor must have emptied half the fridge by then, so a little tit for tat wouldn’t hurt anybody.
When I was finally ready to get out and start a new day, after checking the tablet for new messages and making sure no one had come to take the fae away again, I pushed the bedroom door open and let myself into the gym.
The small kitchen table, barely able to fit two people, had been brought into the gym. One of the benches was converted into a tray holder and leaned next to the chairs, filled with trays and drinks.
Galenor already claimed his seat in front of a full plate of food, snacking away with devotion. When he heard the squeak of the door, he stopped and turned, his chin jerking towards the empty chair to form the only invitation I would get.
Wordlessly, I took it and stepped closer to where he’d prepared a makeshift breakfast area for us, doing my best to ignore the taut muscles on his shirtless back.
“Don’t you have any clothes?” Of course my mouth had to go ahead and reveal exactly what I was thinking.
“Not really, muffin. The guards keep ripping them off when they poke at me with daggers and such… I only have one good shirt left.” His gaze remained pinned to mine, that glower telling me that once more, he questioned my intelligence.
“What are you having?”
“We,” he emphasised, pushing a plate in my direction when I took the seat in front of him. “Are having burgers.”
“Burgers, huh?” I tried to sound excited, though I worried about the effects the sauces and mayo would have on his stomach after last night’s vomiting session.
“I like burgers,” he nodded, biting into a new burger with conviction, causing a long line of ketchup to drip down his chin. He didn’t bother to clean himself, his only purpose was to discover how many bites it would take to shove as much of the bun into his mouth. Three.
I tilted my head to check the bench of trays he had piled on to spot over a dozen burgers, all filled with cheese, onion, tomatoes, lettuce, jalapenos, and every other kind of filling one could think of.
“How long did it take to prepare all this?” I tried to start a conversation after taking the first bite from my burger. I didn’t have to ask to know that I was only getting the one, which already rested on a plate to await my arrival. The rest were all his. Not that I wanted more, I couldn’t think about having so much heavy food for breakfast, but I did my best not to upset the fae and start building the friendship we obviously didn’t have.
“How long did it take you to shower, muffin? Did you think of me in there?” his throat grumbled, his eyes moving over me, gliding over my fingers as if to show he knew what I had been doing. Who I’d imagine in there with me.
My stomach dropped, breath stopping in my chest. He knew. He knew that just minutes before I had lost control of myself and allowed my fingers to draw pleasure from me. He knew that it was his hands I imagined caressing my naked body, his mouth trailing down my skin, his teeth grazing at my nipples. That my better judgement left my body and the need to be touched and wanted took over my senses.
He watched me for a second, as if daring me to lie to him.
“I miss my boyfriend, so sue me,” I snapped, biting a bigger chunk off my burger and doing my best to hide my crimson cheeks behind the bun.
“There’s no male scent on you, muffin. You’ve been cooking alone for a while,” he wrinkled his eyebrows and sucked in deeply, wanting to inhale all the oxygen out of the room in a single gulp.
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” I snapped.
“Just saying, cupcake. If you need some help in there, let me know,” his throat groaned, the invitation provocative and arousing, his voice suddenly turning into invisible limbs that poked and prodded in between my legs.
“Oh, I’m a cupcake now?” I huffed, sick and tired of all these stupid analogies. “How so?”
His eyes flickered across my body, taking me in as a proud smirk grew on his lips. “Because I would really like to see you filled.”
“You are a fucking prick!” I voiced out, angrily standing from the seat, making the chair creak with my abrupt movement.
“That, I am,” the fae nodded with pride.
“Fuck you, Gale!” I snapped, throwing my half-eaten burger on the table. It was not my intention for the mustard and filling to squirt and splash all across his chest, but I didn’t feel bad about it either.
“Anytime, muffin,” I heard him chuckle as I hurried back to the bedroom, leaving the subject in the company of his many burgers.
