"Ugh. Zev, get the bloody door," Alexa grumbled. A male voice grunted at her and she stuck her head under the pillow, shoving at the body curled around her. "Zevran! Get the bloody door before I kill whoever is pounding on it."
"S'nobody there," was the response.
"Then why's someone pounding on it?" she demanded.
"It's your head, my dear lady," the voice responded, the body stiffening. Alexa was rubbing her tongue over her teeth, making faces at how it tasted, when it occurred to her that the voice didn't have an accent. "Tell me, Alexa, how often do you wake up next Zevran."
She blinked, sorting through the alcohol induced haze from the previous night. "Alistair?"
"Yes, my love."
"What are you doing here?" She pulled her head out from under the pillow and squinted in the room. "Where is here? And where are my pants?"
"We're at the Gnawed Noble," Alistair told her. "You were drunk. Are you involved with Zevran?"
"Zev? No," she shook her head a little too violently then pressed her hands to her temples. "Maker… No. We…he cuddles me sometimes when I'm sad."
"I'm sure he does."
"He's not…we're not… Andraste's ass, Alistair," she grumped and buried her head under her pillow again, flinging an arm over his chest.
She muttered something that he couldn't quite understand, so he lifted up the corner of the pillow. "What was that?"
"I said quit being a jealous oaf and turn the bloody sodding lights off."
"You are rather grumpy this morning, aren't you," he questioned with a half smirk, letting the pillow drop over her face. He turned onto his side, letting his fingers dance across her hip. It had been ages since he had woken next to her and, if his memory was right, it was the first time they had ever slept in an actual bed together. "That's unfortunate, considering you will be spending your day in court."
"For what? I did nothing wrong. That bitch had it coming," she grumbled and stretched. Alistair's fingers trailed up her side, leaving a wake of gooseflesh as they moved higher and higher.
"Yeeeess…well," he cleared his throat. "I figured that as my betrothed, you should be properly paraded around."
"Betrothed?"
"Well you confessed your undying love and how you were so sorry you tortured the both of us by repeatedly running away and how you couldn't wait to be my wife and make it up to me for the rest of our lives by rubbing my feet and feeding me cheese."
"I said that?" Alexa looked confused and Alistair leaned to kiss the top of her head.
"Well maybe in not so many words. But definitely the wife and the feet rubbing and the cheese." He nodded, looking proud of himself.
"I suppose that would have been after you proposed," she mused.
"Oh no, you did that. You flung yourself at me. It was quite embarrassing."
"Alistair…" Alexa grumbled, arching an eyebrow at his ruse.
"How often do you wake next to Zevran?" he asked again, tone serious.
"Not often. Usually only when I miss you so much that I can't stand it," she answered truthfully.
"Well that's not fair," he complained. "Who do I have to hold when I miss you?"
"Well seeing as how I proposed last night, I guess we'll just have to hold each other."
Alistair broke out into a big grin. "Well. I think I can handle that."
"I think I can to. I…" she hesitated and sat up, trying to ignore the pounding in her skull. "I love you, Alistair. I never stopped. I never want to be without you again."
"Nor I you, my love. Nor I you."