Bloods Of Power

03

Aranya smiled and didn’t decline when he offered that she sat with him and have dinner together. She went to the seats and found one for herself beside him. She was aware of the way he kept looking at her, and she would say she truly loved it. No, she was used to it even though she had been giving this look by almost every man that had ever had an encounter with her. She had always been irresistible. Dinner with Jaromir was a peaceful one as they conversed silently, but most of the time all she could do was smiled at him. Because she didn’t often have things to say to the men she hunted.

It was at night before she stood up while apologetically looking at him with a soft smile on her lips, “I’m sorry, but I have to go.” He stood up as well, moving a little so he could give her some space to walk through.

“Where do you stay? Or you’re in Elara?” He asked, and she quickly shook her head. 

“No, I came here for something, but I’ll be staying for fifteen days. And you?” He was walking her to her room even though he wasn’t sure where the room was. But from the way she was slowly walking, he needn’t be told that she was going to her room. When his guards moved to walk behind them, he stopped them. 

“I stopped by to rest for a few days, we’re on our way back to Gantrick. I went to Kestramore for something. Would you like to have a drink with me?” He asked, and she looked at him for a second before she nodded her head. Nothing bad for having a drink or two, maybe more than two cups.

They walked silently to the bar in the inn, and Aranya hadn’t been this elated in a long time. The last time she had had a drink was when she took the last man to Zinambra, six months ago. And today, she would have to drink to her fill, even though she was afraid of being drunk lest she made the mistake Betla had always been warning her about. They sat down and she was aware of his eyes on her, he liked her almost as immediately as he set his eyes on her, which was comforting. She had always never had any difficulties with the men, all of them liked her at first glance.

His guards waited for them outside and they ordered their drinks. “It’s been long since I’ve seen a beautiful woman like Keres, but I can proudly admit that you’re the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in this life. What are you?” A few cups into their drink and he was already rambling nonsense, Aranya had noticed. And who was Keres to start with? Maybe his girlfriend or someone? Whoever she was, Aranya didn’t mind. Because there was no way she was letting go of her hunt now.

He had asked her what she was, from where did he want her to begin? Even though she would want her death for her to begin to tell him what she was, but if by chance Aranya was going to tell someone someday the kind specie she was, what would it be? Which clan would she claim to belong to? She quickly brushed that off and smiled at him, she hardly ever get drunk, and that had always been a blessing for her.

“And who’s Keres? Your wife?” She asked, pouring more drink into his cup and he drowsily poured her some more drink too. 

He looked at her for a few minutes and laughed, “Me? A wife? I’m not married. But she’s the one my family wants me to get married to, she’s beautiful, but not as you.”

Aranya deliberately poured more drink for him as she watched him getting even more drowsy with each passing minute. “That’s bad, I thought you liked me?” There was no point of not being the first initiator, she had always loved hitting on the guys first. Seeing the uncomfortable grin on their faces as they admitted that they liked her since the first time they set their eyes on her.

“I do, the first time I saw you. But I don’t know what I should do, I think that’s the reason why I have to leave to Gantrick to tell them I finally have a wife. You’d be my wife, right?” She threw her head back and laughed. None of the guys had ever asked her to be his wife in only an hour of their first meeting. Some of them only wanted a relationship, some of them just loved the idea of being together with her and oh, most of them were after the body. Her body, the most beautiful body they all had ever seen.

“You can talk about this thing now, we just met. We have to see where it goes when we all aren’t drunk and sensible, don’t you think?” She asked, looking around the window and she noticed that some of the shops outside had already closed. 

“Yes, I think I should go to bed now, it’s pretty late. Let me escort you to your room.” He stumbled after he stood up and his guards rushed to him. Even though she was pretty drunk as well, which she would like to tag as the first time of being drunk, she composed herself.

“Take him to his room, I’ll be fine by myself.” And they left without looking back at her. She kept stumbling and nearly fell face-first on her way to the corridor she had lodged in. And when she looked up at the identical rooms she mused to herself.

“Which among these rooms is mine?” She asked no one in particular, stumbling as she tried so hard to keep herself intact. “I’ll take a guess,” she drawled drowsily and closed her eyes for a moment and when she opened them, the first room her eyes got in contact with was the one she felt rest assured with and she walked up to the room.

She banged the door open and walked inside, smiling for having a blast tonight. Even though she didn’t enjoy his company so much, she was thankful for the wine he bought for her. She fell on one of the chairs and lifted her hands, “You’ve never been this drunk your whole life! This is something to take a good bathe for and fully enjoy the rest of the night.” 

As if she had been prickled, she stood up and took a hold of the bun she had made of her hair, and in a matter of seconds, Aranya had loosened it and her hair ran like a rivulet on her shoulders. “This feels so good.” She mused to herself. Even though she knew she had taken her bathe this evening, she still wanted water on her body lest she wanted to have a hangover tomorrow morning.

She took off her red gown and it left only her inner transparent dress before she walked into the bathroom, wondering how she magically got a living room adjoined with her room. If she could clearly remember, she hadn’t booked a suite like this. Now that she looked around, it was more spacious than her room. But she was definitely in her room.

Musing happily to herself, she walked to the bathroom and as she walked into the bathtub, taking off her inner dress, Aranya felt herself dipping into someone. No, was that a human she was marching on? She was drunk, maybe she had resorted to imagining things. She dipped more into the tub and giggled, feeling as her hair got completely drenched. There was a certain joy that always got to her soul whenever she had her hair drenched, she loved it.

But out of nowhere, she felt someone emerging from the tub and when his face got revealed, Aranya didn’t know when she screamed at the pitch of her voice. Maybe someone was here to kill her? She kept screaming, trying to get out of the tub and when he noticed that she might get someone’s attention on them, even though he was equally terrified as she was, he had to do something. And with a swift, he flipped her so that she was resting on his chest and he used his hand to cover her mouth.

She got tired of trying to get out of his hold and the water helped a lot in making her sober, she didn’t know what else to do, didn’t even know who it was, all she knew was it was a man. And for a man, he was strong and muscular, that was without doubt. She bit his palm so hard until he let go of her mouth and she turned to look at him, flipping her drenched hair backward to have a look of his face.

“What?! What are you doing here?!” She thundered, looking at him with anger evident on her face.

“This is my room,” Lorcán said, feeling equally frustrated as she was. He had been angry at her all night long and seeing her in his room and for her to disrupt his peaceful shower infuriated him more. Who the hell did she think she was?!