Page 28 of How to Seduce a Slender

Then it went quiet again, and Smith blinked back into existence beside her. She glanced at him, finding him back in his relaxed, elongated position once more.

“Did you just kill something?” She could barely utter words above a hoarse whisper.

“Are you afraid?” He twisted his head, empty sockets of glowing white staring through her. But Melody couldn’t answer him...because it was complicated. She was scared, but at the same time, she’d never felt safer. So, she returned to her drawing. Because she wasn’t afraid of him.

Melody knew for a fact she didn’t fear Smith. They passed an eternity in the Endless Wood with only the soft scratching of her pencil between them. Even as the trees breathed and low moans floated along the frosty breeze, Melody never felt safer.

It’d been so long since she’d felt safe.

Chapter Ten

Smith

Alighttaptohis shoulder roused Smith from his feast. His belly was stuffed. Slowly, one tendril at a time, Smith withdrew himself from Melody. She lay peacefully, curled up in a ball within his arms. They’d started innocently holding hands, knees knocked together. And yet he’d opened his eyes to see her curled up against him, face in his sternum, arms draped around his torso, and cheek pressed against the inside of his bicep. His bare hands were buried against the warm plush of her skin. One wrapped around the nap of her neck, the other brushing the back of her thigh where her nightgown bunched up. Smith inhaled deeply through his nose, drowning in gilded amber, cherries, and a hint of creamy vanilla. He hadn’t been close enough to smell it on her before...and the more it filled his lungs, the less he wanted to pull away.

“Smith.”

“Hmm,” He hummed, slipping back from his slumbering werewolf. Agatha smiled at him as she motioned for him to pull away further. He glanced around, finding the amber light of sunset illuminating the curtains. They’d slept through the whole day. Agatha pulled out a tray of fruits, crusty pastries filled with steaming surprises, and a goblet of water. “Right, thank you, Agatha.”

“I figured she should rouse enough to eat something lest she wither away,” Agatha teased, setting it upon the bedside table. “Plus, Lord Rosemont wants to see you in his office.”

Right.Smith exhaled heavily, glancing down to the woman beginning to stir. He couldn’t help brushing away her wild mane away from her cheeks to see the peaceful look blessing her sweet features.It worked.It had worked. He’d fed upon her. He didn’t hurt her. She was not screaming in terror. No furniture was thrown in his direction.Get out! Get out! You beast! You hungry monster!All of those shrieking words played softer at the back of his head as he stood to the side of the bed.

Belly full for the first time in hundreds of years, he left with a whisper in her ear, “I’ll see you soon.”

Smith straightened his suit with a zap of electricity before galloping down the stairs of the manor. Agatha’s soft murmur of words drifted away behind him. The creaking of the house preparing to rest filled the air around them. He shouldn’t have fed on her so long, she would be up all night. They would have to reset her sleep schedule. Or maybe she would want to go right back to sleep after eating something. For the meantime, he pulled his gloves back on his hands before entering Sebastian’s office.

A long room, much like Smith’s, full of shelves with bottles, parchments, tomes, and skulls. There were jars of eyes on ledges, fingers that were petrified in flowerpots, and an Austin at the center of the room trying to stitch something to a pair of britches he wasn’t wearing. A massive muslin cloth draped his massive lap as he patched up his pants.

“Did Agatha not offer to patch them?” Smith blurted out.

“No! She wants to tear them apart and make me new ones!” Austin huffed, sticking his tongue out to the side of one of his tusks.

“What is the harm in new britches, Austin?” Sebastian called while face first in a trunk. Rings of varying size, scrolls, and other miscellaneous sorcerer materials flew through the air as Sebastion rifled deeper. “Now, I know it’s in here somewhere.”

“Sir?” Smith snorted, stepping up beside the Lich.

“Because these are the good ones she made for town! We’re caretakers, not throwawayers! We take care of our things.” Austin sat the project aside before climbing to his feet. Smith gave the ogre his back for a moment of privacy. Sebastian roared with triumph at the same moment, stealing Smith’s attention away.

“Ah-ha!” He held up a tiny, purple velvet bound journal held together by the thinnest spine. Then Sebastian jerked to face Austin. “Dear boy, we do take care of our things, but you must also realize when a pair of britches is beyond patching. Some materials aren’t made to last.”

Austin frowned, staring down at the pants he’d buttoned around his large, pale waist. Massive stitches crossed patches of his flesh, keeping parts of him together. Smith furrowed his brow as Austin examined himself for a moment longer than the slender was comfortable with. “Austin?”

“Yeah, cottons not a durable material. It’s why we made armor from other stuffs...why we make friends out of other stuffs,” he murmured, nodding his head. Then his glowing, yellow pupils against a backdrop of red perked up to Smith. A smile curled around his tusks. “Smith! How’d it go? You sleep with Ms. Deathless yet.”

“Austin!” Smith turned into a burning tea kettle, steam escaping out of every orifice.

“What?” Austin shrugged. The teasing flicker in his eyes died as Austin glanced away quickly. There was something tugging at the ogre’s chest that Smith couldn’t pinpoint. Austin was never one to fall to stints of melancholy. However, there it was, plain as could be on his pale face.When did I stop noticing things like that?Smith prided himself on knowing everything about everyone in the house. The only way to serve the house best was to be on top of everything.Was…Austin keeping secrets?“Sir, I’m going to go get started warming up the pipes since you found the book. Do we know what base we want?”

“Mmm, that’s a glorious question. Why don’t you pick the base, my good sir.” Sebastian stiffened, having clearly caught the exact same thing that Smith did.

Austin punched the air. “Yes! I won’t let you down.”

“You never do, my boy,” Sebastian breathed as the ogre galloped out of the room.

Immediately Smith and Sebastian faced each other, blurting out at the same time. “You saw that?”

Smith spun around at the hip, staring out the doorway before ripping back to face Sebastian. “There is something definitely sad about him, sir.”

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