Imperfect (Disappeared #1)

Chapter Seven

Theodosia approached cautiously and looked up. Her vision adjusted and she saw what looked like a bed hanging in the tree.

"You live up there?" She smiled. "I've always wanted to sleep in a tree! How wonderful. You're so lucky and you don't even know it, do you?"

Ahuil just looked perplexed. "You don't live in a tree?"

She laughed despite herself and then covered her mouth. "No, silly. My mother would faint if she even saw me climbing a tree." 

"I should have known. No one who wears that much fabric goes up trees on a regular basis."

Theodosia snorted, embarrassed. The comment should have sounded impertinent but from him it was funny. "Well, yes, climbing is not usually part of my daily routine. But I suppose I shall manage."

And up she went, carefully so her skirts wouldn't tangle. The ladder was shaky but she navigated it without too much difficulty. Eventually, she pulled herself up onto what could only be described as a bed. It was wide and could accommodate three people. Cushions and quilts made out of scraps of colorful fabric made the space quite comfortable.

Ahuil pulled himself up and switched on a lamp that was suspended on a hanging platform nearby. Theodosia took off her bonnet and overcoat and laid them on a branch. Then she sat awkwardly near the top of the bed, her skirts spread around her, and surveyed her lodgings. They were in the treetops, surrounded by hanging vines and thick branches. A soft mist settled around them but it wasn't damp or cold. It was more like a softly scented cloud of perfume. 

Ahuil sat next to her and played nervously with a pillow. "I never really have anyone up here. It's kind of my private space." 

"Why is that?"

He shrugged. "I can be a bit of a hermit. And I'm busy. I don't live in a settlement, so I have to do everything for myself. Takes up a lot of time."

Theodosia nodded but she was only half listening. As she looked around, the reality of their future sleeping arrangements dawned on her. Him. Her. In this bed.

Ahuil was waving in front of her face to get her attention. "Where are you? You look like you just thought of something awful." It was all Theodosia could do to shake her head. 

He moved over, fished around in a little hole in the tree and pulled out apples and bread. "I just realized that I didn't even offer you any food. More evidence I don't entertain often." He spread a cloth in front of her and put the food on it like an offering, then scratched the back of his head. "Kind of a bad dinner. Promise I'll make it up to you at breakfast."

She picked up a piece of fruit but her once ravenous hunger had suddenly vanished. Neither her nurse nor her governess or mother had ever taught her how to explain the impropriety of sharing a bed with an unmarried man. She opened her mouth to speak, shut it promptly, blushed hotly, looked at him again with resolve and then took a miserable bite of apple.

"Are you not feeling well? Maybe you shouldn't eat." He moved toward her to grab a hunk of bread and she instinctively shrank back. He froze.

"I'm not ill," she said miserably, looking at the apple as if it might save her from this impossibly embarrassing situation. She had never thought herself a prude but, well, some things were just not done. 

Ahuil fingered the bread as he frowned, looking away. "Have I done something wrong?"

She took a deep breath. "Where I come from, it is improper to sleep in a man's bed. Nor does one ever have to explain how scandalous it is. I find myself in a very awkward situation indeed." She took a big bite of the apple and sighed in relief as food finally entered her system.