“Much as I'd enjoy the free show, I believe now is a good time to inform you that you're not alone.”

My heart shot up to lodge in my throat as I spun to face deeper into the cave. Apparently, my previous estimate of its size was wrong. There was enough space for two people––and the person I shared it with?

She was grinning like the cat that got the canary.

Steel-gray eyes crinkled with good-natured teasing to match the impish smile curving across her lips. A mace sat snugly in her palm, ready if necessary, but other than that, she was unarmed. Long, honey-golden hair pooled around her waist where she sat, leaning against the cave wall. When another flash of lightning lit up the symbol stitched into her long brown travel cloak, I groaned.

A cleric. I'd almost stripped in front of a cleric, and a complete stranger on top of that. I could already hear Beatrice now…

“I said to get a girlfriend, not disrobe in front of the first woman you meet!”

Heat surged through my face, and I bowed, hoping the shadows would hide the vibrant blush making its way to my ears. “I am so sorry, I didn't see you there. I would never––”

She laughed, the sound bouncing off the walls of the cave as she waved my stuttered apology aside. “Like I said, I would've enjoyed the free show, but I had you pegged as someone who'd be embarrassed about that kind of thing. If the vibrant red your face is turning is any indication, I'd say I was right on that front.”

I nodded and straightened, rubbing a hand over my face in hopes of wiping away the flush. “You would be very correct… Is it really that noticeable?”

She shot me a pitying smile. “You look like you're trying to impersonate a Pepper Crab with how red you are. You're doing a good job of it, if that's any consolation.”

Her tone remained teasing, and the longer she stared, eyes taking in every detail of my soaked frame, the more it felt like she could see through me.

Appreciation painted her features and, despite the embarrassment still writhing in my chest, pride sparked to life. I wasn't the best to look at, but if her stare was anything to go by, she liked what she saw.

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…Why did I have to meet her in the most embarrassing way possible though? Almost stripping? She had to think I was some kind of heathen or pervert.

Then again, she was the one who'd been staring the entire time we talked. My hair was all but plastered to my skin, a stray drop of water trailing down my neck before stopping against the soaked fabric of my shirt.

Her eyes followed it and trekked lower. Heat followed her gaze, like a physical caress, and I tugged at my shirt, trying and failing to make it stick less. It snapped with a wet noise and I flushed.

“Why are you staring?” I asked, fighting the urge to keep tugging at my soaked shirt. It wouldn't do any good.

Spirits above and below, why hadn't I worn my under armor, if not my full plate mail? It would have felt awful on my still-healing arms, but at least then I'd have another layer against that piercing gaze.

Though, I hadn't exactly planned to meet a woman in a cave when I'd chosen my clothing today…

She tipped her head slightly to the left, drawing me back to the present. “Because it's not every day a man stumbles into my temporary camp, nearly strips, then turns every shade of red before apologizing as if he'll be struck down instantly if he doesn't.” She shrugged. “You've made quite the impression.”

That didn't help the blush still warming everything north of my shoulders. Neither did the continued weight of her stare. She wasn't staring at my chest now, but somehow this look was more intense. It took me apart piece by piece, as if I were a fascinating puzzle she needed to work out. When the feeling of being stripped bare became too much, I cleared my throat.

“It's definitely not my best, as far as first impressions go. Can we start over and pretend that never happened?”

Please, spare me some of my dignity.

She must have read the thought from my face, because she sighed. “I suppose, though I'd like it noted that I'm agreeing reluctantly. You seem like the type who's fun to tease.”

Then, under her breath, she added, “Stopping you from stripping had better count as my good act of the year, though. What a waste.”

Her eyes flicked pointedly over the dips and grooves of my chest where the soaked shirt clung, the slightest hints of appreciation warming her eyes. I tugged at my collar and pretended not to hear the last bit.

Under other circumstances, having a beautiful woman staring at me like that would be a nice change. The women in Dawncrest were either taken already, not interested in a man with five siblings to take care of, or taken but looking for someone to cheat on their husbands with.

To say I wasn't interested was the understatement of the century.

She wouldn't be staring if she knew I have five siblings to take care of.

The warm glow her attention brought doused under a wave of disappointment, before I shoved it all aside. It didn't matter. I was on a quest and we’d likely be parting ways once the storm settled down again. I could hardly abandon my new quest to pursue a woman, even if she was interested once she learned about the others.

I straightened, ignoring the spiky ball of feelings sitting heavy in my chest. It would go away if I ignored it long enough. It always did.

In the meantime, I had other things to focus on. Like the pouting woman not two yards away from me. I'd have time to sulk in private later.