Free Web NovelChapter 23: A Stranger In My Tent
Kane returned to his tent, even though he hadn’t wanted to come back alone. He had almost changed his mind and gone back to spend the night in her tent, but that wouldn’t have been right... not with the fact that the tribe would talk.
Besides, it had to do with obeying her instructions. Arianna had told him she wanted to spend the night alone and it was best to honor her request.
"You called for me, Your Highness," Cassius said, entering the tent with his head bowed.
As soon as Kane saw him, his brows arched in a tight, frowning line. There was so much he wanted to do at this minute, but he was holding himself back. "Why didn’t you keep my message confidential? The entire tribe knows now that I sent Ragnar to investigate my wife."
Cassius was speechless. He seemed entirely confused and unaware of such a thing. "I didn’t tell anyone except Ragnar, Your Highness."
"Are you trying to say my cousin has a loud mouth?" Kane’s jaw tightened as he glared at him.
"Not at all," his commander lowered his gaze. "Ragnar must have mentioned it to his mother and sibling, but I never did, Your Highness."
"Then you failed to communicate properly," Kane said, finally loosening up. He removed the animal skin he wore over his chest. "Next time, make sure the person treats my message as strictly confidential and does not spread it. If I wanted it to be a public announcement, I would have gathered the entire tribe and told them about it myself."
"Forgive me, Your Highness," Cassius apologized immediately. He assured him that nothing like this would ever happen again in the future.
"Good, Cassius. Make sure that you supervise the wolves at the border since Ragnar isn’t around to do it."
"Understood, Your Highness. Is there anything else you want me to do?"
Kane turned around and faced him. "Station guards at my wife’s tent tonight. I want her to feel safe."
Cassius was surprised. He couldn’t control the words that came rushing out. "Is she not spending the night here?"
"No, and stop asking foolish questions. Come on, go deploy the guards immediately."
"As you wish," Cassius bowed and left.
Kane was relieved that he was gone and hadn’t pressed any further. That was the main difference between Cassius and Ragnar.
Cassius knew exactly when to stop if asked, but Ragnar wouldn’t. In fact, Ragnar would have tried to use the fact that he was Kane’s cousin just to pry for answers.
After Cassius left, Kane washed his face and went into the inner washroom. He could still scent the perfume and ointment his wife had used in here.
She had bathed here earlier this morning and even now, her natural scent intoxicated him.
Kane was beginning to wonder if it was because she was a human and that was why he caught her scent so easily.
It wasn’t supposed to be so. They weren’t mates, so he wasn’t supposed to get such an overwhelming amount of her scent.
He stripped himself of all his clothes and sat down in the bath, trying his best not to think about her, but his silly mind failed him.
Kane couldn’t forget earlier, nor the first night of their marriage. She was wild and had left him hungry with everything she had done. He bit his lip as he leaned his head back and smiled.
With his eyes shut, memories flooded in. Arianna was not just beautiful, but bold and fearless.
No matter what her reason was, he was still surprised that she had married him.
No other woman would dare to walk that path. He had even told her to leave this morning but she hadn’t.
If she truly meant it... if she was truly loyal with no mischievous plans, then he would make her the happiest woman on earth.
It was going to be difficult, but he wouldn’t mind choosing her over his fated mate. It was a decision that shouldn’t be made, but he would take that risk just to make her happy.
"You love her," his wolf kept banging inside his head.
"I doubt it," Kane told him. He knew all too well that it wasn’t really love.
"What then is love, fool?"
He chuckled, scooping up water in his hands and splashing it over his face. Kane relaxed back, his head leaning against the edge.
Then, his nostrils caught a scent, clearly indicating that he was no longer alone in the tent.
When he quickly opened his eyes, he found his cousin standing at the entrance, watching him. His heart skipped a beat.
Kane quickly sat up, feeling a bit embarrassed. If it were another lady standing there, he wouldn’t care about his nakedness, but her?
No way!
"Samantha, what are you doing here?" Kane asked, his brows furrowed in confusion. His shock level was much higher than his anger. He couldn’t bring himself to look at her properly.
"I-I came..."
"Wait for me outside," he interrupted, hoping she would leave immediately.
"Mother asked that I come..."
"I said wait in the other room," Kane commanded, his voice raising sharply. He didn’t want a scene that would draw Arianna to his tent.
Samantha bowed and left. A wave of relief washed over him, and he stayed in the water for a little longer. What had just happened was crazy. Why would she just walk into his tent and come straight into his inner room? What if he had been with his wife?
It didn’t sit well with him at all, because Samantha had never done anything like this before. He had to put a stop to it and warn her never to do it again.
Kane got out of the water, reached for a cloth hanging nearby, and wiped his face with it. It reeked of his dear wife.
She must have used the same cloth to clean up earlier, and now he couldn’t take his nose away from it. He inhaled deeply, wishing she were right next to him so he could bury his face in her neck.
A cold shiver ran through his spine, hitting his loins. Kane knew better; it was wise for him to stop feeling the way he was feeling, because there would be no turning back if he dared to satisfy his urges.
He set the cloth aside and took another, tying it securely around his waist.
Back in the bedroom, Samantha stood waiting. As Kane walked in, he noticed the way her eyes followed his every move. He knew the best thing would have been to send her away before even starting this conversation.
"Next time, don’t come into my inner tent without my permission, do you understand?"
"I didn’t mean to, Your Highness," she said. "Forgive me for such an intrusion."
"Just don’t do it next time... in fact, if any of you must come into my tent, whether I am around or not, make sure that you request permission before entering," Kane told her firmly. "I am a married man now. You can’t expect things to remain the same."
"Sure, Your Highness."
"Now, what was so urgent that it couldn’t wait?"
