She waved toward the refrigerator. “We already ate. There are leftovers. Next time try to order something not so fattening, Amara.”
The Doberman sat at the edge of the stairs patrolling like some dog from Hell.
I set the to-do list on my nightstand, took my hair down from its tight holder, and shook my fingers through it.
Not knowing when Dorran would show up, I took a shower, and dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, but crawled under my covers in case Helena decided to come and add to my list.
After 10 pm hit, I figured she wasn’t coming to check on me, but I could see her new dog’s shadow from beneath my door.
Leaning back, I nearly yelped when I noticed Dorran bent down in front of my window. The playful smile on his face made my heart thud faster, but the way his vibrant green eyes dared me, filled me with a white-hot lust.
“The dog,” I mouthed.
Dorran disappeared from my bedroom window, and seconds later, like the time before, he stood in my doorframe. I slid my laptop into its place beneath my bed, while Toby walked into my room.
He winked at me. “Your sheets smell good—,”
“Toby,” Dorran warned.
A slight shiver tap-danced down my spine as his tone dipped deeply with his words. Dorran’s hand splayed across my back. “We’ll see you soon. Stop sniffing,” he said.
Dorran ushered me across the hallway, out of the bathroom window, and into his arms. The warmth he blanketed around me made me sleepy enough to rest my cheek and close my eyes.
“Have you ever flown before, Little Mouse?”
“Mice normally stay on the ground unless a hawk picks it up,” I said, eyeing the edge of the roof. "This mouse included."
Dorran’s chuckle vibrated my cheek. “Well, I’ve been called worse.”
He bent at the knees, tightened his arms around my body, and leaped into the sky. My breath hitched in my throat, but against my better judgment, I forced my eyes open.
It was like watching streaks of lights racing around you, and the highest of highs surged you.
When we landed, I was clutching him so hard that my arms began to shake. Dorran stepped back, and I realized he’d landed on a balcony. We were outside of his room as he’d said.
The iron designs of the railing matched what was around the castle. The moonlight illuminated Dorran’s smug face. The atmosphere was quiet, and untouched by anything too human. I couldn't explain it.
“We’re here,” I whispered.
He nodded.
“How will Toby tell us if my stepmother comes?”
Dorran turned toward the double glass doors of his window. “He has stern orders to knock her out and put her in bed. She’ll think it’s a dream.”
A bubble of laughter slipped from me. I stepped into a room bigger than the top floor of our house. “Well, after her attempt at …” I trailed off, looking at the detailed moldings. It was meant for a royal. The high-vaulted ceilings and the custom-built four-post bed.
I stopped in the middle of the floor, staring at the lavish bedroom suite, and the desk in the corner of the room. A stream of light beamed in from the cracked bathroom door.
Unable to stop myself, I pushed it open and stared at the huge bathroom. The countertop was white marble, and the sinks a charcoal black. The tub was claw-foot but bigger to accommodate his size.
The waterfall shower ... my heart melted at the thought of using it. I loved those things. I’d only ever used one once at a hotel, and it was magical.
Dorran stepped in behind me. “You a fan of the bathroom?”
I nodded. “I love a good bathroom,” I mumbled. "It's the one place I'm left alone at my house. It's the silence and the warmth that I love. The bathroom is a safe place for me."
He tilted his head to the side. “What were you saying? About your stepmother's attempt at what?”