Page 60 of To Charm a Dark Prince

They descended several sets of stairs. When they reached a hallway that was warm and humid, she almost let out a breath of relief. The rest of the castle was so damn chilly all the time. The guard pushed open a metal door, and gestured for her to walk inside.

Was the Crystal kept down here? Or Mordred’s torture chamber?

But when she did, her jaw dropped. “Whoa…”

A giant indoor, below-ground pool wasn’t what she had been expecting. Steam rose from the water in curls, revealing that the opaque, greenish-white liquid was likely from a hot spring. Like that place in Iceland she’d seen photos of. The air smelled a little like sulfur.

The pool was about thirty feet wide and maybe twelve or so across, surrounded on all sides by elegant s-shaped columns made out of iron. The heat and the moisture of the room had turned them every shade of rust. The curling, asymmetrical shape was detailed over every inch with depictions of a wild hunt—dogs chasing lions chasing dragons chasing deer chasing creatures she didn’t even know the name of.

The floor was black marble, lined with white veins that spiderwebbed out across the surface. And around the very edge of the pool was a mosaic of various metals and semi-precious stones in a bizarre pattern.

The walls were covered with faded murals of scenes of battle and mystical animals. Fires burned in brass bowls that were arranged along the edge of the walls, lighting the room and providing even more heat. The whole space took her breath away.

The excess water ran over the edges into grooves in the ground. Sitting on the edge of the pool was a tray with soap, a cloth, and a jar of something she didn’t recognize. A towel was folded up beside that.

She had asked for a bath. She smiled faintly. “This is where the prince asked you to bring me?”

“Aye, my lady. I will be waiting outside if you need anything.” The guard shut the door behind him, leaving her alone in the steamy room.

Was this Mordred trying to buy forgiveness? Too bad she was still ticked. Stripping out of her dress, she folded it and put it on a bench by the wall, before walking over to the edge of the water and dipping her in. It was hot. Wonderfully so.

Climbing in, she groaned as the hot water rushed over her. It felt so damn good. The water was opaque and, scooping up some in her hand, she could see the little particles of whatever sediment it was in the natural spring floating about in it. Cool.

She dunked her head in and picked up the soap to start scrubbing herself down. She didn’t know how frequently she’d be allowed to do this.

She was halfway through soaping up her hair when the door clicked open. With a squeak, she lowered herself down to her neck in the water. “I—oh.” She froze. It wasn’t a guard.

Mordred walked in. “Mind if I join you?”

Gwen could only stammer uselessly. She was angry at him—but he had caught her entirely off guard.

“I will take that as a yes.” He gathered up the hem of his shirt and pulled it off over his head.

And at that point in time, all useful thought in Gwen’s head ceased. All except one thing, as she couldn’t help but stare at him.

I am in so much trouble.

EIGHTEEN

Mordred walked into the room, half expecting to find Gwendolyn sitting in the corner, steadfastly refusing to get into the water. He was pleased to find her in his hot spring, even if she was up to her neck. He wasn’t sure how her anger at him would change her ability to accept his gifts.

She was so wonderfully shy, even when she was glowering at him. It was so very much fun to watch her struggle with what he hoped was a mutual attraction between them, despite how annoyed she clearly was with him. The way she watched him as he stripped off his shirt gave him hope.

She sank an inch farther into the water. “Uh. Why’re you here?”

“For the same reason as you, I expect.” He smirked. “You know, Ihavealready seen you naked.”

“I know, but. Um.” She sighed, defeated. “I know.”

He shut his eyes and did that which he knew he needed to do. “I apologize for my behavior. I have not had to deal with those unaccustomed to my ways in a very long time. I fear I have rather become entrenched in my poor moods.”

Gwen went silent for a long time before nodding slightly. “Just try to knock it off. It’s hardly fair to me, seeing as I’m your prisoner.”

“If you prefer it to be a more level playing ground, that can be done.” He walked around to the side of the pool, delighting in how her eyes went wide at the sight of him.

“I—I mean—it’s—it’s fine—”

Laughing, he began to unlace his trousers. “Well, I plan on joining you anyway.”

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