Аманда Хокинг - Switched

“I was worried about you.” I reached out and carefully touched his forehead. “You took quite the punch there.”

“Yeah, but I couldn’t get one in,” Rhys grumbled, looking down at the floor. “And I couldn’t stop him from taking you.”

“Yes, you did!” I insisted. “If you hadn’t there, they would’ve hauled me off before anybody had a chance to do anything about it. You kind of saved the day.”

“Yeah?” His blue eyes were hopeful when he looked at me.

“Definitely,” I smiled back at him.

“You know, back in the day, when a guy saved a Princess’s life, she would reward him with a kiss,” Rhys commented. His smile was light, but his eyes were serious. If Finn hadn’t been standing a few feet behind me, watching, I probably would’ve kissed him. But I didn’t want to do anything to spoil having Finn back, so I just shook my head and smiled. “Maybe when I slay the dragon. Then I’ll get a kiss?”

“I promise,” I agreed. “Would you settle for a hug?”

“A hug from you is never settling for anything,” Rhys assured me. I leaned over and hugged him tightly. A woman sitting next to us on the table looked aghast, and I realized the new Princess was openly hugging a mänsklig.

Things were really going to have change when I was Queen.

After Aurora healed up Finn, she suggested we both get rest. The room was still a disaster, but Tove insisted that he and his mother were taking care of everything. I wanted to protest and help more, but honestly, I was exhausted.

Tove said that we were safe, and all but demanded that I go to my room.

Naturally, Finn went with me, just in case it wasn’t completely safe. Before we even reached the stairs, Finn had taken my hand in his as we walked slowly to my room. Most of the way, I was silent, but when we got close to my door, I felt like I had to say something.

“So… are you and Tove like pals or something?” I was teasing, but I was curious. I had never really seen them even speak before, but there seemed to be a kind of familiarity with them.

“I’m a tracker,” Finn answered. “I tracked Tove. He’s a good kid.” He looked over at me, smiling a little. “I told him to keep an eye on you.”

“If you were so worried about me, why did you leave?” I asked more sharply than I meant to.

“Let’s not talk about that now,” Finn shook his head. We had stopped in front of my bedroom door, and there was something playful in his dark eyes.

“What should we talk about then?” I looked up at him.

“How beautiful you look in that dress.” Finn was facing me, looking me over appreciatively, and he put his hands on my sides.

I laughed, and then he was pushing me against the door. His body was so tight against me, I could barely breathe, and his mouth was searching mine.

He kissed me in the same frantic way he had before, and I loved it. I wrapped my arms around him, pressing him to me, and pushed myself against him eagerly. He reached around me, opening the door, and we tumbled into my room. He caught me before I actually fell, then lifted me easily into his arms and carried me. Gently, he tossed me onto the bed, and then lowered himself on top of me. His stubble tickled my neck and shoulders as he covered me in kisses.

Sitting back, he peeled off his jacket and hoodie, and I expected him to take off his tee shirt and pants, but he stopped, looking down at me. His black hair was slightly disheveled, but his expression was completely foreign to me.

He just stared at me.

“What?” I asked, feeling strangely embarrassed.

“You’re just so perfect,” Finn said, almost sadly.

“Oh, I am not,” I blushed and laughed. “You know I’m not.”

“You can’t see what I see.” He leaned over me again, his face right above mine, but not kissing me. He made like he was going to, but kissed my forehead and my cheeks, and then very tenderly, kiss my lips. “I just don’t want to disturb you.”

“How are you going to disturb me?” I asked.

“Mmm.” A smile played on his lips and then he sat up, climbing off of me. “You should go change into pajamas. That dress can’t be comfortable.”

“What do I need pajamas for?” I sat up, and I tried to sound flirty, but I knew there was a panicked edge to it. As soon as we’d come in here, I thought things were going to go much farther than pajamas would allow.

“I’ll stay with you tonight,” Finn tried to reassure me. “But nothing more can happen except for sleep.”

“Why?” I pressed.

“I’m here,” Finn looked at me intently. “Isn’t that enough?”

I nodded and carefully climbed out of the bed. I stood in front of him so he could unzip my dress, and I felt his hands linger on my skin. Truthfully, I didn’t understand what was going on, but I would be happy for anything I had with him. After I changed into my pajamas, I climbed back into bed with him.

He stayed sitting on the edge for a minute, then almost reluctantly, he came over to me. I curled up in his arms, burying my head in his chest, and he held me tightly to him. Gently, he kissed the top of my head. Nothing had ever felt better than being with him like that, and I tried to stay up so I could relish every minute, but eventually, my body gave out and passed out.

In the morning, I woke up to Elora coming in my room for the first time ever. She was wearing pants, something else I had never seen her in. They were very fashionable, but they were pants. I was still curled up in Finn’s arms, and she didn’t seem surprised or that offended by it. I thought I was finally making progress when I moved a little bit away from him to look at her.

“I trust you slept well.” Elora looked around the room, but not in a nervous way. She had just never been here before. “And I trust that Finn was a gentleman.”

“He always is,” I yawned.

He had started pulling away from me and getting out of the bed. I furrowed my brow but didn’t say anything. It wasn’t that shocking that she’d be upset that we were together, so I didn’t think that much of it when Finn started to gather up his jacket and sweater.

“Thank you for protecting my daughter,” Elora said without looking at him. He had paused at the doorway, and he looked back at me, his dark eyes looking more conflicted than I had ever seen them before. He nodded, then turned and walked out of my room, shutting the door behind him.

“Well, you took that much better than I thought you would,” I admitted, sitting up.

“He’s not coming back,” Elora finally turned to look at me.

“What?” I stared at the door in dismay.

“He saved your life, so I gave him last night to say goodbye to you,” Elora explained. “I will be transferring him out of here as soon as possible.”

“You mean he knew?” I gaped at her. He had known, and hadn’t let me in on it, and hadn’t tried to steal me away.

“Yes. I made the agreement with him last night,” Elora said.

“But… he saved my life!” I insisted, feeling that terrifying lump grow in my chest. The one that said I couldn’t possibly survive without Finn. “He should be here to protect me!”

“He is emotionally compromised and unsuitable for the job,” Elora explained flatly. “Not only that, if he stayed around, you would be banished from Förening. He doesn’t want that, and neither do I.” She sighed. “I shouldn’t even have given him last night, but… I don’t want to know what you did with him. Don’t tell me. Don’t tell anyone. Is that clear?”

“Nothing happened,” I shook my head. “But I want him back. He’s going to protect me better than anyone! If you want me alive, he’s the best bet!”

“Let me put it to you this way: he will do anything to keep you alive, Princess,” Elora looked at me evenly. “That means he would die to save you, without hesitation. Do you really want that? Do you really want him to die because of you?”