Page 25 of Elven Oath

It wasn’t going to work.

Another hour passes, and I can see the tension in her form worsening.

Her body trembles slightly now, her shoulders hunched as she fights to keep the cold at bay.

I sigh quietly to myself. This was going to be interesting.

Pushing myself up onto my elbows, I glance at Falkor and Drago, making sure they are still in their places.

Then, without saying a word, I stand and cross the short distance to where Vevina lays.

She is barely aware of me, her body too focused on the cold to notice my approach.

It isn’t until I am right next to her that she stirs, blinking up at me in surprise.

“What are you...?” she started, her voice hoarse from the cold.

“You’re freezing,” I say flatly, not bothering to give her the chance to protest. “You can’t sleep like this.”

She frowns, pulling her cloak tighter around her as if to prove me wrong. “I’m fine.”

“You’re not,” I say, crouching down beside her. “You’re shivering so hard I can hear it from where I was sitting.”

Her defiance flickers in her eyes, that stubborn pride rearing its head again.

But she doesn’t argue further because she knows as well as I do that she won’t make it through the night like this.

“Come here,” I say, my tone softening just a little. “It’s too cold to be sleeping alone. You won’t get any rest like this.”

She hesitates, her gaze darting to my face, then to the ground between us as if she were weighing her options.

I can see the war going on in her mind. Her desire to prove she doesn’t need my help battling with the undeniable reality of the cold.

Finally, she lets out a frustrated sigh and mutters something under her breath before shifting slightly.

“I don’t need your help,” she says, but even as she says it, she scoots closer, the barest hint of reluctance in her movements.

I raise an eyebrow, but don’t press her further. Instead, I settle back down on the ground, pulling my own cloak over us both.

She shifts awkwardly beside me, her back still turned as she tries to keep some semblance of distance, but I’m not about to let her freeze in her pride.

I reach out, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her flush against me.

She stiffens immediately, her body going rigid in my arms.

“This isn’t...” she starts, but I cut her off, my voice low.

“It’s just warmth, Sweet,” I murmur. “You can hate me all you want, but you’re not going to freeze tonight.”

She is silent for a long moment, her breathing shallow as she lays there, pressed against my chest.

I can still feel the tension in her frame, the way she is clearly trying not to react to our closeness. It’s almost amusing how hard she’s fighting it.

Slowly, though, I feel her start to relax. The warmth spreading between us and her shivering finally subsiding as the heat from my body begins to seep into hers.

She still isn’t comfortable, that much was clear, but at least she isn’t trembling anymore.

After a while, she shifts slightly, her back pressing more fully against me as she gets used to being against me.

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