Page 72 of War

“Because I’m naked and I want to get out and I don’t want you to keep looking at me.”

The heat in those eyes seems to deepen. “I will see that pretty flesh eventually,wife.”

Again my core clenches at his voice.

I’m about to protest when his eyes do close. Letting out a breath, I slip out of the bath and wrap a nearby towel around myself. As quickly as I can, I shove on the new clothes War left for me, surprised that they actually fit mildly well. To be fair, a T-shirt and standard issue cargo pants are hard to mess up.

Still.

“Thank you for the clothes,” I say. Because civilization might be dead but manners aren’t.

“Can I open my eyes?” he says in response.

“Uh, yeah,” I say, tugging my shirt to keep it from sticking to my still damp flesh.

War finishes removing his armor, then stands. I don’t know what I’m expecting him to do next, but I am definitelynotexpecting him to drop his pants.

Which is precisely what he does.

“Holy crap!”Ishield my eyes. At least, I shield them alittle—I mean,be braveis my mantra …

Technically, I should’ve seen this coming. He was undressing after all. I just expected him to wait until I wasn’t looking to change.

Also, two words: no underwear. And now I know for sure that if War ever wanted sex, he’d break me.

Holy balls—or maybe holydickis more appropriate.

Clearly the nudity is amething, because War seems unfazed by it. He’s not even looking at me as he walks across the room, towards the basin. There’s just zero awareness that’s he’s naked and I amperversely intriguedmassively uncomfortable.

My eyes slide back to the tub of water I was just in. The one he’s now stepping into. There’s something literally and figuratively dirty as fuck about the fact that he’s reusing my water. And it’s making me feel strange and self-aware.

“Do you want me to leave?” I say. I don’t even know why I ask it. Ishouldjust leave. Even though my knees are shaking with fatigue, I should.

War’s kohl-lined eyes find mine as he steps in the basin. “And miss your reaction, wife? Never.”

“So youdoknow it’s inappropriate to flash people?” I say, mustering up some righteous indignation.

The horseman lounges back in the basin. “It’s just nudity. It’s not supposed to be offensive.”

Somehow War, the asshole that’s killing everyone off, just managed to sound like the innocent one.

“It’s notoffensive,” I say. “It’s just … not done.”

“Is it now?” he says. “So husbands don’t see their wives naked and wives don’t see their husbands naked? They somehow just enjoy each other fully clothed?”

I want to rake my hands through my hair. “We are not married.”

War gives me a look that states plainly,we are.

“I shouldn’t be staying in your tent anymore,” I say, backing up. I clearly hadn’t thought through the logistics of sleeping here, where War lives and bathes and sleeps.

“You should havealwaysbeen staying in my tent with me. I have let you enjoy your own space because it pleased you, and I enjoy pleasing you and your ridiculous, human whims.”

My ridicu—?

“You want to please me?” I say, now officially peeved. “How about you stop killing people?”

War gives me a piercing look. “There’s another who I seek to please too, Miriam. And unfortunately for you, He wishes differently.”

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