Wren of the East *Complete*

Chapter 6: Discussions

Rustling woke me from my dreamless sleep. I sat up in the bed and pulled the blanket around me to fight off the chill of the morning air. I looked around the room and found Farrow. He was sitting at a table by an unopened window. He was reading a scroll, and his mouth was turned down.

I tucked my knees to my chest, cradled them in my arms, and rested my head against them. I watched Farrow as he read over the scroll. The frown set deeper the more he read. Finally, he rested his head in his hand and tossed the scroll on the table. He looked up, and surprise filled his face.

"I didn't realize you were awake. I didn't wake you, did I?"

"I thought I heard birds, so the rustling pulled me from my sleep."

Farrow stood and stretched. He wore only breeches, and I could see his upper body better than in the night. His body reflected years of training and fighting. Of the three royals of each kingdom, he was the only one to go into war himself.

He came over to the bed and slid across it. He pulled the blanket away from my body and ran his fingers down my spine.

"I didn't mean to wake you. I knew that the last few weeks have caused you to be weary from travel. That aside, last night was emotional."

I looked away from him. "It was not something I would have liked for you to see. I felt weak and vulnerable at that moment."

He stopped rubbing my back. "You have the right to be vulnerable, but I wouldn't say that you were weak. My mother told me that a woman giving herself to a man in that way is a gift. We do not deserve to claim a woman's virginity. It is the one thing she possesses that is hers. She made sure that I understood that. So I treated you like it was a gift you were giving me."

He rolled to his back and looked at the ceiling. I turned to look at him. He had his eyes closed, and his face was blank.

"Your mother is a wise woman."

The slight smile that formed was sad. "She was. It was a shame my father didn't marry her, but he did not want to share his kingdom."

"They weren't married?"

"No, my mother was one of my father's many concubines. She was the first to give him a son. I have numerous sisters. None have titles, and most have been given to lords as rewards. When he delivered them to their husbands or the lords' harems, I promised them I wouldn't treat my wife like my father treated their mothers. That and I wouldn't give my daughters away so easily."

"Do you have daughters?" Of course, I knew that he was bound to have one or two concubines with an empire.

"No children. No concubines." He turned his head to look at me and started rubbing my lower back. "I had concubines when I was young, to teach me. My mother didn't want me to be inexperienced and hurt a woman. My father was not gentle, and his women had scars. So she didn't want me to be like that."

"Again, a wise woman. I appreciate her kindness as it was passed to you. I do not think another man would have comforted me as you did." I reached behind me, moved his arm, and laid beside him.

Farrow rolled to his side to face me. His features were relaxed, giving him a softer appearance. I reached out and ran my hand over his face like I had wanted to in the hall. Instead, he took my hand and pressed it to the side of his face closing his eyes. I had not expected this man to be gentle and kind. Though we were behind closed doors, and maybe this was only for my benefit.

"I didn't think I would have a bride that was like you. But, I must admit, it was difficult to control myself when you were in the bath and confronted me. Your strength impressed me, and your beauty left me wanting. It would have been easy for me to take you then and there, but I didn't because I wanted you to trust me. To believe that I can control my nature and keep from doing you harm."

"I hope it is my strength that leads to your undoing. I do not hold value in my beauty. So many women are more beautiful than I consider myself, so I want to be strong. I want my strength and intelligence to be invaluable to you. I want to be the Empress you are expecting me to be."

He squeezed my hand. "My Empress, I believe you are going to have a chance this morning to prove that. We have a meeting with the merchant guilds and the governing lords. I will have you at my side, and I expect you to make that voice of yours heard."

Farrow rolled away from me and offered his hand. "Let's clean ourselves up and prepare for the verbal war ahead."

I grasped his hand and was surprised when he pulled me into his arms and stood holding me. He hugged my body to his chest, and I enjoyed the warmth he emitted. I was wondering what type of man Farrow truly was, the complicated man of rumors or the one that was holding me in his arms. Time would tell which I had taken for a husband.