Page 93 of Whispers of the Elderoak

Ava stopped and turned toward him, poking her finger into his chest. “No. There will be no fucking of any kind.”

Raine grabbed her finger, lowering her hand from him and pouted. “Well, that’s no fun.” He placed his hands on his hips. “There’s nothing a good romp in the sheets can’t cure. You could use that. You’re too uptight.”

She froze, looking up at him, suddenly self-conscious. “Uhhh… are you—I—what?”

He laughed. “Are you asking if I want to take you to bed?”

She backed away a step. “No.” She shook her head. “I just—you said?—”

Raine shook his head. “You’re very beautiful, but you’re not my type.” He resumed his walk toward town, and she turned to keep up with him. “I’m sorry. You’re just too easy to fluster. Fun to embarrass.” He paused. “Actually, you and Cas have that in common too.”

“Great, thanks.”

Changing the subject, she huffed. “Where are we going?”

“Shopping.”

“How about this one?”Raine held up a forest green and brown dress, the bodice lined with lace while the skirts had layers upon layers of fabric with embroidered flowers along the hemline.

“When would I even wear that?” Ava replied.

They had been going from clothing store to clothing store for the last two hours, Raine insisting she needed a betterwardrobe, and the dresses were all blurring together at this point.

“Out,” he said.

“Out? Like to a party?” She fingered the fabric.

“Yes,” he replied, holding out another dress. “This one?”

“They look the same.” She frowned.

“They’re completely different.” He laughed as he set the latter back on the rack and draped the first dress over his arm and continued meandering through the store.

The shop was small and cozy. Lanterns hung from the warm wood ceiling in clusters and the walls were covered with racks of clothing. Sounds of the streets entered every time the door opened, the tinkling bell alerting the owner of a new patron.

“Are you sure this is okay?” Ava asked as they continued to look through the clothing. “I told you I don’t have any money.”

“AndItoldyouI have plenty. Thorne pays us well.” He picked up an ivory-colored cloak with green thread lining the edges and draped it over his arm. “Besides, if you’re staying you need clothing. You don’t have anything. And I needed some new pants anyway.” He raised his brows at her as he grabbed a pair of boots and handed them to her. “Try these on.”

Her face heated as they sat down across from each other on two leather armchairs, and she removed the boots she was currently wearing.

He watched her and then asked, “Youarestaying, right?”

“I don’t have anywhere else to go,” she said, pulling on one of the boots. “So, yeah. I guess I am.”

He nodded. “Good.”

She stood up and walked back and forth, testing the fit, and then sat back down. As she removed them and replaced them with her previous pair, she asked, “Am I still a prisoner?”

Raine narrowed his eyes. “Kind of,” he lamented.

“What does that mean?”

“It means you’re allowed to explore if you have an escort.” He reached out for the boots she handed him. “That we don’t think you’ll harm anyone, but we still don’t completely trust you.”

“So, I’m on probation.”

Raine stood up and frowned at her. “I don’t know that word. Is it a human term?”

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