Page 72 of House of Crimson Kisses
I slump to my bottom, wrapping my arms around my knees and letting the water soak my locks and wash the grime away. Several tears leak down my cheeks, not from any single emotion, but from all of them.
I’m exhausted and desperate for Eleanor to wake, and all I keep thinking is that I’ve come this far, and she still may not return to me.
I scrub the dirt from my hair, kneading the soap in until it froths. Then I start on my body and use the scourer to scrub my skin. I find a spare razor and raze the hair from all the places I hate to see it, and it’s this action that finally feels restorative.
It’s what makes me feel clean.
With my body smooth, my hair creamed and conditioned, I climb out of the shower and towel myself off.
The nurse must have popped back in because there are clean clothes waiting for me on a stool.
When I’m finally dressed and ready, I pull open the bathroom door and wonder if I’ll be able to find my way back. This place is quite the warren of corridors and rooms. But to my surprise, the nurse is sitting on the floor waiting for me.
“Wow, that’s quite the difference. You smell much better,” she laughs.
“Thank you,” I dip my head and curtsey at her, and she laughs again.
“Right then, ready?”
“I am.”
As we walk back, she asks me. “How did you two meet, miss? If you don’t mind my asking.”
I smile, a soft chuckle escaping my lips. “Ahh, my mother was trying to marry me off to some hideous lord, and I injured my ankle at one of those equally hideous dance ball things. She sent me to a healer who ended up being Eleanor.”
“But your families don’t get on?” she asks.
“No, and that’s the polite way of saying they’re essentially mortal enemies. Our families have done awful things to each other and unfortunately, I believe they discovered we were together...”
I let the rest of that sentence hang in the air between us. Thick and malignant, like tar.
Slowly, her eyes widen as the realisation of what happens dawns on her.
“So... Miss Eleanor... it was...”
I nod, and she swallows hard.
“Gods,” she breathes as we arrive back at Eleanor’s bedroom.
As soon as she clocks the door, her expression morphs. She bobs up and down on her toes.
I examine her face, but she presses her lips together like she’s holding a secret on her tongue.
“Hmm, what are you up to...?”
But she shrugs at me, a big grin peeling across her mouth. I open the door and gasp.
Eleanor is now in an enormous double-sized bed with plenty of space for me to sneak in and lie down next to her and, thank the gods, sleep.
I glance back at the nurse. “You did this?”
She shrugs again. “The boys helped, but yes.”
I leap at her, bundling her up in my arms. “Thank you so much.”
She startles and relaxes into my embrace. A smile that makes her entire face radiate warmth blooms across her countenance.
“You’re most welcome, miss. Now, get some sleep.”
