“Why not?” Chara frowned, her lips tugging down at the corners as she stared intently at me, studying me. “Didn’t you have a good time last night?”
“It has nothing to do with that. I just don’t think repeating last night is a good idea,” I said, trying to pacify her.
Chara cocked her head to the side, studying me. “I don’t understand why you don’t think it’s a good idea,” she whined.Instead of jabbing me in the chest again with her sharp fingernail, she pinched the corner of my collar with her thumb and forefinger, rubbing the soft material of my tunic between her fingers. “If we both enjoyed ourselves last night, I don’t understand why we can’t enjoy ourselves again tonight.” Her tone was low and sultry, but instead of seductive, it only made me want to recoil from her. And when I did, brushing her hands off my collar, her eyes narrowed and her stare intensified.
“I’m busy tonight,” I made up an excuse, my mind immediately going to the dinner I had agreed with Daewon. While I was sure it would take up the entirety of my evening, something I looked forward to, I doubted it would bleed into the night. Especially the time of night that such intimate relations took place.
“Really?” She asked, her tone indicating that she didn’t believe me. “What’s keeping you so busy?”
“The Chief has some work for me,” I told her, lying through my teeth.
“Well, that’s just not done,” Chara tutted. “You must speak to the Chief and get him to move the time of the task. He surely can’t expect you to work throughout the night. You’ve not even been back on land for one day yet. Why has he got you working so hard already? It’s not fair.”
“I don’t mind.” I shrugged nonchalantly. “I’m actually looking forward to it. It’s some work out on the boat.”
“Maybe I could come watch…” her voice trailed off suggestively. “And then, after you’re finished with whatever Chief has you doing, we could head back to your hut. Or maybe we could stay on the boat. Whatever you prefer.”
I shook my head and took a step back from her. “That’s not a good idea. I’ll be really tired when I get back.”
“I’m more than happy to do all the work while you lay on your back,” she offered, and this was where I drew the line. Charathought she was slowly knocking down my barriers and seducing her way into my bed, but she was only making me the most uncomfortable I had ever felt.
“I don’t think you understand what I’ve been trying to say several times now,” I sighed heavily, the frustration seeping through my pores. “I know I slept with you last night, Chara, but I wish not to sleep with you again. Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy myself as much as you think I did.”
“But you–” she started, but her words were swallowed by a shriek as she abruptly jumped away from me.
I would have laughed if her reaction hadn’t caught me off guard. Instead, I glanced down to spy what she had jumped from, and I couldn’t hold back the laughter any longer as I spotted the feline now settled on the ground between us.
Wherever Kis was, Astrid wasn’t far to follow.
The thought brought a grin to my face, one not missed by Chara who was seething at the trickle of blood that stained the bottom of her dress. Ignoring her, I turned my head and glanced around, eagerly looking for Kis’ owner.
“What are you laughing at?” Chara shrieked at me, a horrified expression on her face as she continued staring down at her leg. When she lifted the bottom of her dress to get a better look at the damage, I couldn’t help but laugh harder as I spotted a rip that wasn’t there before. “Do something!”
“Do what?”
“Kick it! Scare it! Anything! I don’t care what you do. Just do something! This cat attacked me!”
The last thing I intended to do was kick Kis, scare her or do anything else that would piss off her owner any more than I already had. Because let’s be honest, Astrid was always pissed off at me for some reason.
When I glanced down at the majestic, stuck-up creature, I couldn’t help but snicker at the dissatisfied expression she sentme, as if to say,try it and see what I do to you.The way she was sitting on the ground and leisurely licking away at her paw, you’d think that she owned this spot, and we were the rude intruders who were disturbing her peace.
“Oh, hush,” a familiar voice sounded from my right. “Kis has never attacked anyone before. Why would she start now?”
When Astrid looked at me, her dark locks in disarray from rushing over here, my breath audibly hitched. She wore a deep blue dress today. It was tight around the bust and waist and then flowed like a waterfall to the ground. She had a grey woollen scarf wrapped around her neck and shoulders to keep her warm from the light gusts of wind that plagued this time of year, and I couldn’t help but think how the colour complimented her beautifully.
“Then how do you explain this?” Chara demanded, gesturing to her leg that had stopped bleeding, but the faint red had trickled down and stained the bottom of her dress. The stain was so small I was sure it would come out in one wash, but Chara seemed hell-bent on making a big deal out of this.
“Explain what?” Astrid asked, looking puzzled as she bent down to pick up Kis. The way she held the cat protectively in her arms, draping her scarf over Kis, it was like she expected Chara to attack the feline, and honestly, with how fired up Chara was, I didn’t blame her for being cautious.
“This!” Chara screeched and lifted her dress a little higher.
“Oh, don’t be such a drama queen, Chara. That’s barely even a scratch,” Astrid huffed and rolled her eyes. Instead of punishing Kis as Chara hoped, Astrid produced a treat from under her scarf for her.
Just like Kis, Astrid was a force to be reckoned with. Like cat, like owner.
“If it’s barely a scratch, then why did I bleed?”
“It sounds like you have thin skin to me.”