The Wolf Lord's Mate

Chapter Twenty-Nine

"To bed?" I stuttered out, shifting away from his touch.

"You've had a long ride," Nathaniel reached back through the door for the bag, "You did well for your first time, my darling, I'm very proud of you."

I flushed at his praise and glanced away, daring to venture further into the cabin. I sank into one of the plush chairs, moving to unlace my boots, but Nathaniel appeared before I could take them off, nudging my hands away as he kneeled down in front of me.

"Nathaniel," I protested, "What are you doing?"

"Helping my mate, what does it look like?" Nathaniel shot me an innocent look from under his brow. He made quick work of my laces, gently slipping my feet from the confines of my boots. His large hand encircled both of my ankles, placing my feet on the floor with the same delicate touch one might use to handle a piece of fine china.

"You're quite mad, did you know that?" I flexed my toes against the wood floor.

"Mad for you." Nathaniel flashed me a grin, and I couldn't help the frown that pushed onto my lips.

"You have to stop saying things like that."

"Would you rather I lie?" Sweeping up my boots, Nathaniel stood up to his full height, practically towering over me.

"I would rather you not say anything either way."

"I will let you move at your own pace," Nathaniel sighed, "But I will not suppress my affection for you—especially when we are alone."

I didn't respond, watching as Nathaniel placed my boots by the door next to a pair that were presumably his own. My boots looked positively tiny next to his, so delicate and feminine in comparison. The pair by the door were quite different to the ones he was wearing—a pair of tall leather riders that were well-worn and seemed to be the sort that were perpetually muddy, no matter the weather. I couldn't help but wonder how often he came here, to escape away for a little while from the pressures of being Lord.

"How old were you when you built this place?" I asked, curling my legs underneath me and sinking deeper into the plush chair.

"I had only just turned eighteen," Nathaniel rummaged for something in his bag, "It was just after my parents passed away—I suppose I needed something to distract my mind, something tactile and physical to keep me occupied while I grieved."

"Both of your parents passed at the same time?" When I had lost Mother, it had been an indescribable grief. I had never known my own father, and therefore did not know him enough to grieve him, but I could not imagine carrying the pain of losing Mother twice over.

"My mother passed first—she was injured on a hunt and couldn't recover." Nathaniel paused, glancing up at me, "My father only lasted a few weeks without her."

Patty had said something similar about her brother and his mate, about how they could not survive without each other. How strong a bond must be between two people to still affect them even in death; one mate pulling the other with them over to the other side. I could not imagine a love that strong. It was a terrifying thought, to be so attached, and yet—there was something in the devotion of it that made me ache. To wonder what it would be like to be loved so thoroughly that the stopping of my own heart would signal the stopping of another.

"I became Lord after he died, and although I had been well prepared for the title, I was still quite young. Things were—difficult, to say the least. I focused my attention on my greatest dream and comfort," Nathaniel's gaze burned, those emerald irises searing into mine, "Which was the thought of making my future mate happy."

"That's very—" My words escaped me, the beat of my heart quickening in my chest from the intensity of Nathaniel's gaze, "—noble." I swallowed, gathering myself as I glanced away.

"Noble—I suppose." Nathaniel cleared his throat, pulling a wrapped parcel from the bag, "I brought food from Patty for supper, but tomorrow I will catch us something. I would like to prepare a meal for you."

"You can cook?" I asked.

"I can do many things, my darling," Nathaniel shot me a wink, "Let me get you fed and then you can rest. Would you rather bathe tonight or tomorrow? It'll be dark soon." The sun was already half-down, but bathing seemed to be the least of my worries. It was the resting that I was concerned about, as I had yet to see the Lord's bedroom.

"Tomorrow would be best for bathing, I think," I said, a sudden surge of anxious energy coursing through me, "I don't quite feel like tripping around in the dark—I don't exactly have your eye sight."

"Tomorrow then." Nathaniel nodded, unwrapped a few hunks of bread and meat, and placing them on plates for us.

"Do you bathe in the stream?" I rose from the plush chair, needing to move after being pinned so thoroughly by Nathaniel's gaze. I assumed there was no running water at the cabin, but it was a a new luxury of the Manor that I had already become far too accustomed to.

"There's a hot spring not far from here—you'll enjoy it." Nathaniel motioned me over towards a small wooden table tucked against the wall, the make simple but sturdy. There are only two chairs, I noticed, pulling one out as Nathaniel took the other. This whole place had been built for the purpose of sharing it with his mate, every detail designed for two people. Designed for him.

Designed for me.

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