Word Count: 1852

~Kiva

Well. I'm fucked.

"Ark...what-"

"You're sneaking out. Why?" He demands, his deadly calm tone and expression unsettling. There's a wrath deep within him that I may just become well accustomed with tonight.

I gesture stupidly at the door he now stands in front of. "I need some fresh air."

If anything, my stuttering is going to give me away.

His gaze sweeps over me. "You're all dressed up."

I look down at myself, at the nice coat and boots I've chosen to wear out into the snow. It's a conscious choice, admittedly, to try look nice for my mate.

I don't know why I bother, considering he's going to be wearing all black and a hood.

"Please just let me go," I sigh, defeated.

"You really think I'm going to allow you to go into the night, completely alone?" He folds his arms over his chest, tapping his fingers against his bicep impatiently.

I reach out, playfully pushing his shoulder. "I know you don't trust me, but I swear I'm not in too much danger."

He stares at me, unimpressed.

"Kiva..." He says my name like he's both scolding and seducing me.

He takes a few steps toward me, forcing me to match them back, wary of those strong arms and how easily they could stop me from making my daring escape out into the snow.

"You're advancing on me," I note apprehensively.

"Because I'm going to grab you, and I'm going to take you to your room and keep you in there the whole night." He tilts his head to the side, smiling bitterly.

A thrill shudders down my spine at the suggestive implication.

"As tempting as that sounds, I need to go. It's just to talk to Louis," I tell him, plastering on my own fake smile to appease him.

He raises a brow, each step toward me purposeful. "That's supposed to convince me?"

"Ark...please," I whisper, my back bumping against the door.

"Sorry Princess, I have to do my job."

He grabs me, throwing me over his shoulder with such ease it's chilling. I yelp, as he winds his arm around my legs, immediately stalking up the stairs.

"Ugh, Ark!" I protest, thumping on his back.

"Luckily for you, I'll keep this incident away from your father." He continues up the stairs through the dark, his strength both impressive and a little frightening.

"Really?"

He shoulders my bedroom door open, disregarding the snoozing guard half slumped over himself on the floor.

I wince as he dumps me on the bed. He doesn't back up though, forcing me to stay lying down unless I want a face full of his crotch.

"I'll only keep your secret if you tell me where you were heading?"

Bracing myself up on my elbows, I glower at him. "I can't."

"You will."

"You'll kill me," I grumble. What is the worst fate? Being subjected to all my least favourite exercises at training tomorrow or have my father strip away my every freedom?

Not that I have many to begin with...

"I'm sure your father would be far less lenient in his punishment then I will be," Ark states, stalking over to the window.

I watch him draw the curtain back gently, staring out across the frozen lawn to the forest. My heart falters in my chest as I silently pray my mate isn't within Ark's view.

"Fine," I sigh, drawing his attention back to me. "I was going out to see my mate."

I'm sure he already figures. No other excuse is going to get me out of his interrogation, so I may as well be honest.

He stares at me, cold and relentless.

I suck a breath through my teeth. "I know it's crazy, but he left a note and...I need to see him again."

The slightest crease draws between Ark's brow, his gaze passing over the room as if the note may reveal itself.

It is stuffed safely under my mattress, right beside my dagger. If it reaches for it, I'll slice his fingers off...

"I thought he vanished," he breathes quietly.

I sit up, brushing my damp hands down my thighs. "He did. Until now."

The more I tell Ark, the lower my chances are of ever seeing my mate again. I'm going to have to be more creative in getting out of this place.

"And you trust him?" Ark sounds more curious than confused or angry, so I suppose that's a good sign.

"No. But I need to try, right?" I give him a hopeless smile that he doesn't share.

"If he wishes to speak with you, he can come here and meet you before the King," he mutters.

I roll my eyes, flopping dramatically down onto the bed again. My father would gut the poor man. Being thrown into the prison would be too mild a punishment for daring to be mated to a royal.

"You know that will never happen," I say quietly.

His gazes assesses me as he nods slowly. "Exactly."

Suddenly, he sits down on the bed next to me, unlacing his boots. I frown, watching him quietly as he promptly kicks the boots off before he stands again.

"What are you doing?" I ask warily.

"Preparing to sleep," he responds, as if that's an entirely normal concept. I glance at my bed, and then back at him, images of what he would look like there flashing through my mind.

"Why?"

He gives a little shrug. "You think I'm about to leave this room after that escape attempt?"

I gape at him as he rids of his shirt, folding it up nicely.

My mouth dries at the sight of him.

The unfair part of living in a cold climate is that I rarely see Ark without his coat or jacket on. And now, he's standing without even a shirt, allowing me to study the intricate tattoos that pass from his arms down to his chest.

And that muscled abdomen...I think I may faint if I stare for much longer.

"Where will you sleep?" My voice sounds hoarse and pathetic.

"On the floor."

He crouches down, arranging the shirt so it acts as a pillow. My eyes widen, looking between my bed where I am expected to sleep, and him.

"That doesn't look comfortable," I note, watching him lie down on the floor.

He closes his eyes. "I've slept in war-zones. I'll be fine."

It's clear that he wants to go to sleep, but I'm not done talking to him. He busted my night with my mate, the least he can do is chat.

"Your past fascinates me," I say before I can think better of it.

"It's nothing exciting, I can assure you."

There is a sadness in his tone. Maybe it wasn't exciting, but I imagine he experienced far more than I ever had, and ever will.

Sighing, I shed my coat off, then my shoes before reaching for the waistband of my pants.

"Woah, what are you doing?" Ark questions, sitting up.

I frown, picking up the flimsy silk I usually sleep in. "Getting into my nightdress."

Ark looks more frightened than I've ever seen him. His dark hair rains over his eyes, his chest rising and falling in sudden panic.

"You shouldn't," he grits out, tone sharp.

"I don't want to sleep in these clothes." I'm confused. Does he not want me to be comfortable or something? He looks as though he's just seen a ghost...

With a frown embedded so deeply into his forehead, I fear it may be permanent, he slowly lies back down.

"Alright..."

"What is it?"  I question warily. Does he think we are under threat of another break-in tonight?

He shifts uncomfortably, and not because of his position on the floor. "I just don't think you getting undressed in front of me is a good idea."

Oh.

His eyes flutter closed as I stare down at him. He's so tense he hurts to look at.

Regardless, I pull my shirt off, watching his face to ensure those eyes don't open as I unclip my bra and stuff it under my bed.

"Why not?" I ask as I pull the nightdress over my head, then kick off my pants and underwear. The latter joins my bra in a concealed place away from Ark's eyes.

I see him swallow tightly. "Do you have any idea what I could do to you?"

My mouth falls open a little. No Ark, but I've thought about it.

"I...no."

He doesn't say anything, while I stand a few feet from him, pressing my thighs together. I can feel the most private part of me dampening, forcing me to turn and clamber into bed quickly.

Silence stretches between us as I switch the lamp off, tugging the duvet up to my chin.

"What if you're disappointed by who your mate turns out to be?" Ark asks softly.

Something deep in my soul cowers a little. I've thought about it...the disappointment, the fear that he isn't a good man. It doesn't haunt me though, but only because I don't let it.

I trust in whatever divine force paired my mate and I together.

"Is that possible? He's my mate," I remind him.

"You would be surprised."

"I need to speak to him in order to learn whether I like him or not," I say. I need to reveal his identity as well, which was tonight's plan, had it not been thwarted.

"Not happening," Ark mutters.

"Seriously?

I can hear him shift. "I'm doing a job, Kiva. My orders to keep you safe come before any semblance of a friendship you think we have."

He doesn't say it unkindly, although I can sense him purposely distancing himself from the moment we had earlier. I wonder if he fears his job security, or if he genuinely believes he could bring me harm by being intimate with me.

I sit up a little, grabbing a spare pillow before throwing it in his general direction.

"You are so unlikeable, you know that?" I growl, hearing the feathery mass strike his body. It's quietly followed by him arranging it under head.

"Sleep, brat."

I should probably just let him sleep cold, considering all the hell I've endured at his hand. Instead I lean forward, ball up my spare blanket and send it his way as well.

He mumbles a quiet thank you as I sink back into bed.

"Also, I'll hear the moment you step onto these floorboards if you choose to make the mistake of sneaking out again," he reminds me.

I pull a horrible face into the darkness. "Okay, whatever."

Stuffing my head into my pillow, I hear Ark let out a gentle breath, ready for sleep. Rolling over, I consider all the ways I'm going to get back at him...

But there is no wiping the soft smile off my face.

🤍••🤍

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! and as always it is available 10 chapters ahead on Radish!

THE DARKEST TEMPTATION— OUT NOW ON WATTPAD!!

~Midika 💜🐼