Home is a Treasure Beyond Price

Chapter 17

Cadence surveyed the tiny interior of the cottage with a jaundiced eye. It was empty save for a narrow bed, a small table and bench, a rickety larder, and the hearth. <I will—> He glanced sidelong at Nick and began again. "I will sleep on the floor," she said, sounding resigned.
Nick continued sweeping up the dead leaves that had gotten in through the gap under the door. He avoided looking at the empty space on the left-hand side of the cottage. There used to be a bed there, but it had been torn apart for kindling two winters ago when he'd been too sick to go out for firewood. "You've got a perfectly comfortable cave you can sleep in."
"I'll sleep on the floor there as well," Cadence muttered, as she dropped her pack by the wall.
It didn't take Nick long to set the cottage to rights. He stopped by whenever he went to the market, because always in the back of his mind was the awareness that his position with Cadence was only temporary. While he put away their provisions, Cadence came in from outside with an armload of firewood. The cottage immediately shrunk to about half its original size... or at least it felt that way. Nick was very aware of Cadence's solid presence as he knelt by the fireplace, fine linen shirt stretched across her muscles flexing as she stacked the firewood.
"I can do that," Nick snapped, irritated at Cadence for being so attractive, and at himself for noticing.
"You're doing something else right now," Cadence said, without looking up from the fireplace.
Nick closed the larder door harder than necessary and turned around. "If you want to stay here, then you should damned well respect the wishes of your host."
"That presumes that I am here as a guest." Cadence sounded distracted as she struck sparks off a flint. When the kindling caught the flame, she dusted off her hands and stood. From her pack, she produced several glow globes which she proceeded to place in strategic locations around the room, providing a light source for them both to work with.
With a building sense of outrage, Nick watched Cadence rearranging things to her convenience. "If you aren't here as my guest," he said, "then what are you here as?"
Cadence paused in the middle of placing a glow globe on a low-hanging beam and threw him a shifty look over her shoulder. "You'll only get angry if I tell you."
"I told you," Nick bit out, "I am not treasure. Don't you have a hoard somewhere? Why aren't you off guarding it? Why me?"
"I've never had treasure that was ambulatory before," Cadence said as she turned to face Nick. "This isn't easy for me either. You hold your life so cheaply that you offered yourself up to be eaten by a dragon." Cadence raked her fingers through her long brown hair. "Just last night, I found you half-frozen. Do you know how hard it is for me letting you out of my sight right now? It goes against every instinct in my body to leave you unprotected—you attract calamity like light attracts moths."
"I didn't ask you to protect me. I didn't ask for any of this." He jabbed a finger at Cadence. "You were the one who decided I was your—your treasure. And then you lied to me because you thought it'd be amusing."
He turned his back on Cadence and walked out of the cottage, furious at Cadence, furious at himself for caring too much, furious at the whole stupid situation. Because each time Cadence spoke of him as a possession, it was one more hurt Nick had to hide. He wanted to be so much more than that to Cadence.
The door opened behind him.
"You'd better not be out here guarding me," Nick said to the night sky.
"I'm sorry."
"Please," he said, exhausted all of a sudden, "go inside." There was nothing more to say since everything had been said; Cadence had given her explanations, and made her apologies. Now there was only anger. And hurt.
A quiet sigh, then Cadence did as she was asked and went back into the cottage, closing the door carefully behind her. Nick stood alone in the little clearing around his cottage, and stared up at the cold and distant stars.