The King's comment on his name, insults to his household embittered Nathaniel. Granted, he had been sleeping with the Queen of Ferelden off and on for the last ten years; the King might be perturbed. But to be treated like a pariah for the misdeeds of his father, followed by Caoilainn's permanence to the end of their trysts left a bad taste in Nathaniel's mouth. Regardless of the honesty of his happiness for Caoilainn, her dismissal of him was aggravating.
The look he gave to Alistair on the way out of Caoilainn's tent was intended to rile and by the expression on the King's face, it was successful.
Night fell and approaching rain made the air heavy, humid. Though most people were already sleeping, the tension of an army preparing for battle hummed throughout the encampment. Alive, the army was anxious for war and dreading the reality that death may await any of them within the next few days.
Nathaniel returned to his tent without another thought of the events of the day. Muscles ached despite his well-trained sinew; his body worn from the scouting mission. I'm too old for this.
Before he entered, he sensed eyes on him; movement, quiet and sly sneaking around the nearby trees.
"What do you want, Hale?" His tone was impatient, annoyed with the young woman. General exhaustion combined with the events of the evening, Alistair's insult, and Caoilainn's severance put him in a sour mood.
"Wanted to show you something," her voice was obstinate. Nathaniel turned around to face her, and she stood with her hands on her hips, frowning. "But if you're in a bad fucking mood…" she trailed off, offering bait for him to inquire.
He sighed, torn between the comfort of his bedroll calling his name on the other side of the tent flap and satisfying the desire of the young huntress. She was a vibrant and pleasant distraction. Intrigued in spite of his exhaustion, lured by the mischievous fire in Hale's eyes, he humored her. "All right, show me."
Familiar hunger rumbled somewhere deep inside.
She took his hand and dragged him away, into the thick forest of the Emerald Graves. Their eyes adjusted to the darkness. The pair hiked over rocks and fallen trees, making careful and deliberate steps through the uneven terrain until Hale stopped and turned to face him. The light of the large Inquisition encampment was visible in the distance. Moonlight from between the clouds drifting slowly through the starry night sky, shone down through the trees onto her face. Cascading silver light, twinkling the brightness of the lively, green pools that stared up at him. Her gaze filled with intent and fervor.
He realized why she brought him here a moment before she leaned in. His hands raised to her shoulders, pushing her back ever so gently.
"Hale," he said, breathy and tired. Though his appetite gnawed at the back of his mind, hungry for the meal Hale was offering, he withheld.
"Come on," Hale mirrored, her tone coated with impatient irritation. Her hands again found her hips. "I know you want me."
"I do," he confessed, a smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "That's not the problem."
She stared back, brow cocked in inquiry.
"The problem is I know I will want more. I didn't like seeing you hurt the other day, huntress." He referred to her injury from falling from the tree, and more specifically the way it hampered her spirit.
A condescending smile spread across Hale's face, the white of her canines distinct in the moonlight. "Listen arsehole, I've been through a lot of shite in my day. And here I am, putting my life on the line, same as you."
The pending battle loomed over their shoulders. Nate was well aware of the violent fire it lit in himself; he assumed the same for the huntress.
"I'm not one for commitment and I don't want to be the one that hurts you," he interrupted and clarified his concern. Since as far as Nate knew he was incapable of relationships, he made it a general rule to avoid them. But as he processed, he realized he cared for the persistent young woman, in spite of his attempts to stay away. This conversation would not occur otherwise. Of all the women to care for, a 19-year-old Dalish girl from the Alienage with a mouth like a sailor. Father would be so proud.
"Neither am I. Don't flatter yerself. You ain't gonna break my pretty little heart." She leaned in and whispered in his ear. "Ploughing don't mean we gotta get married." Her lips brushed against his ear and she bit the bottom of his earlobe, pulling the skin down before releasing. It was a bold move he was not expecting. "Maybe you're scared I'll break your heart, old man."
He growled at the sensation, his senses activated, craving her more and staying the urge to pin her against a tree and take her right there. Old man. The countless times Caoilainn had called him that ran through his mind. It surged his voracity with ire.
"I'll make you pay for that," he grumbled, smirking and stepping toward the huntress.
Hale laughed. "That's only if you can catch me," she smiled, flashing her canines again before she turned on her heels and ran further from the encampment. Swiftly rushing through the trees, he watched the huntress gain distance.
Nate sighed again before he pursued. His own speed quickly returning, unhampered by his tiredness, rather reawakened with a second-wind of energy. Ground gained, moving closer, he chased her. Breath steadied as he ran, taking long inhales and slowed exhales to extend his stamina. Like a wolf targeting his next meal, preying upon the huntress to sate his appetite, Nate hunted. He starved for her far longer and far more intensely than he had craved any other woman.
As he neared, the sound of her breath was audible. Rain fell, creating a light shower that dripped on the tops of the trees, mirroring the silvery night. Water slid off of the leaves overhead and onto their heated bodies.
She must have felt how close he was. She stopped and turned around. The lights from camp nowhere in sight. They locked eyes, oblivious to the dampness, their faces glistening by the night sky reflected in the soft shower. Grinning, she stepped backwards, baiting him. Her wet and slender body luring him closer. Nate's pace slowed, hair drenched, sticking to his face, his chest heaved as he moved in on her.
When there was nothing but an arm's length between them, she halted. Trapped at bay between Nathaniel and a tree until he pinned her against it. His hands found her hips, applying pressure, overwhelming his prey. He met her mouth with his own. Igniting the fire between them, colliding with a growl. She whimpered under his pressure, delightfully weak to his hunger. His lips parted hers and their tongues crashed while he pushed her against the tree. Her body lifted, feet barely on the ground and her hands found his hair, ardently holding the sides of his face. The passionate rise and fall of her chest, drenched from the rain fall. They paused for air. She moaned as she caught her breath. He grinned, panting.
"Call me an old man again and see what happens," he tested. Hard, his bulge pressed against his breeches. It was uncomfortable, irritating. Motivating.
"Mmm, let me finish what I started the other night… old man," she said breathy, panting. Her hands slid between their bodies to unbuckle the belt over his armor.
He didn't give her the space, rather he pushed against her harder. "No," he murmured gruffly. It's my turn. He grabbed her narrow wrists with one hand and lifted them over her head. With his other hand, he took his time unbuckling her belt, leaning his head in to kiss her. Patient, slowed, his lips touched hers, his tongue sensually gliding in, teasing the young and ambitious energy of the Elf. Releasing her wrists, they fell to his shoulders as his hand carefully wrapped around her neck. The faintest pressure pushed against her, holding her still. He bit her lip and tugged as her belt dropped to the ground.
His hand moved from her waist to her thigh. Lifting her long, lithe leg up to his side, resting it on his hip while he unlaced her boot.
Hale, wrought nearly speechless, whined, "Lieutenant."
The pent desire he felt for her finally unleashed, no longer tamed, now freed to claim her.
"Milady," he purred as he pulled off her boot and lowered her leg, following the same pattern with the other leg.
She felt like putty in his hands; his certainty, sureness with the way he moved enraptured Hale. It was clear he had a plan for her though she was unsure what. The fuck is he doing to me? Her body yearned for him, aching all over from head to toe, generating from her core and spreading outward. Their hearts pounded against one another as the rain fell, cleansing and cooling their heated frames.
Nate lowered her leg and dropped her other boot to the ground. His large hands reached to either side of her breeches, aggressively yanking open the laces. With a growl, her long, clever fingers dragged across his skin, through his hair. Her head leaned in and kissed his neck. Ravenous and wild, she bit him, then sucked at the red blotch of teeth marks she left. He pulled her breeches down her hips until she shimmied them off, followed by her small clothes. The air found her heat, so moist, magnified by the humidity brushing against her beneath her tabard.
Before she could think, Nate lifted her again. Her feet no longer touched the ground. Her hands rested around his head which was level with her waist. Lifted this high, she grabbed nearby branches to support her. Her shoulders pressed against the tree.
"Say my name," Nate murmured before he pushed her up higher, moving her legs around, over his shoulders. Stepping away from the tree as her torso stretched; his head between her thighs, his hands rested against the tree beneath her back. Though she was tall for an Elf, her legs long, the huntress was light and easy to hold.
She coyly glanced down her chest to lock eyes with the man gazing up at her; the man breathing against her heat, his eyes cunning, ready. Textures of leather, coarse fabric and chainmail caressed her rear. "Oh gods… Maker… fucking Andraste." She'd never prayed to any deities but now she muttered their names in nervous succession.
Nathaniel leaned in, his breath closer to her. Tongue curious, skilled, teasing her folds. She squirmed, pleasantly tortured by his stubble, and the patch of hair under his lower lip. Gasping, blithely hissing in response to his technique, she felt the smile on his lips as his head nestled in her slickness. Her stomach was tight, tense and trusting, amazed with the fantasy brought to life.
Though Nate swelled against his breeches, keenly aware of his beckoning needs, his mouth-watered for the beautiful creature resting on his shoulders in anticipation. His mouth played with her, coaxing a moan. He laughed, humming into her drenched folds, savoring her flavor. Supporting her body, he looked up to catch her staring at him in wonderment. He paused and gently repeated his order. "Say my name, milady." His tongue returned to tactful, targeted flicks against her pearl.
"Lieutenant!" She whined.
He continued for a few moments. Lapping at her, appreciating the convulsions of her legs; her hands trembling as they grasped the branches overhead. The muscles in her arms flexed, her belly taut as she held on to the tree, rocking her hips into him.
He paused again. Licking up from the center to her nub before pulling away. Her honey covered his face; she saw the moisture glistening in the silver light. "Say. My. Name."
His gaze lingered, eyes piercing her from below as he returned to his meal, exploring every valley of her heat with his tongue. His nose slid against her bundle, his clever tongue teasing her entrance, then thrusting into her core. She gasped, then giggled through a moan, "fucking... whoreson." Her hips continued to roll against his face. She felt his smile joined by a grumbling chuckle.
But his tongue continued until he felt her muscles tightening, her panting shorter, moans louder and more frequent. He stopped again, pulling away from her wetness and grinning. "Hale, say my name or I'll stop," he rasped before returning to her pink.
Voracious, hungered, he growled into her as his tongue entered. The hum radiated from his chest and vibrated his lips against her slick, creamy flesh. Her legs tightened again, her moans quick and short, rising in octaves as he continued. Helpless laughs escaped her. "Oh fuck," she whimpered. "Oh Nathaniel," her whines escalated and her body stilled. Her thighs clung to him and her head tilted back, resting on the tree as she watched him, "Nate. Nate. Nate…" She gasped and held her breath, arching her back as her hips writhed toward him. She lost all other sensation aside from overwhelming release. His skilled tongue continued through her peak; she sighed a relieved shudder.
Delicately, he moved her legs out from over him, guiding them around his waist. He pressed her into the tree, supporting her weight against it while he wiped his face with his hand.
Cheeks tinged with pink up to the tips of her ears, flushed with excitement, Hale's mouth curled into a smile. She pulled him in for a kiss. The taste of herself clung to his lips. Pushing, desperate for more, urging him to continue and fueling her fire, she moaned into his mouth. Their tongues sloppy, famished to taste each other.
Nathaniel's hand found her bare thighs, nails drug against the soft skin. She purred and bit his lip, harder this time, provoking a grunt in response.
The messy kiss between them cleansed in the rain as they pulled apart. Soaked through their armor, bodies shivering from the chill and enticement.
"I want you," she groaned, blinking the droplets off her lashes. The rain shower lightened.
"I want you in my tent," he replied, smirking. "... naked, on my bedroll."
Her legs tightened, locked around his lower-back. A sly grin and a seductive brow glanced to her items on the ground. His expression mirrored hers, their thoughts in unison. Nate's strength and stature held her close; he leaned so she could pick up her clothes without letting go.
Trudging on damp earth, his steady steps took them back through the forest.
Hale's stomach, eager and excited, twisted as they walked. The cool air that followed the rain tingled her legs. Nathaniel's arms held under her bottom.
Whispers drifted from her mouth, teasing his ear between nips at the lobe, her tongue explored the ridges with tact. He struggled to keep his eyes open, senses tingling, his groin craving the huntress who clung to him.
"I'm going to plough you harder than you've ever been ploughed," she remarked with a playful, sultry threat.
Nathaniel laughed. "I'm almost certain I'm the one who's supposed to say that." The desire to kiss her, to bite back and make her moan swelled within him but his task required him to focus on the path he followed. "I'll make you scream so loud you wake the encampment," he replied to her cockiness with his own.
She held tighter, shivering, the nerves on her legs standing on end with the cold. "You'd like to think that," she talked back. "I'll make you forget everyone you've had before me."
"I'm counting on it," Nathaniel smirked as they neared the quiet encampment and whispered, "milady."
Cheeks flushed as her chin lifted, she realized the bold statement she made would include the Warden Commander.
Frantic nips and kisses resumed on his neck and ears until Nathaniel found his tent. As soon as he entered, Hale dropped her items on the floor. Balancing herself with his frame, she hopped off and bent to remove her tabard from overhead. She teased her wet hair so that it didn't stick to her skin.
Though their shadows would cascade the tent walls, he wanted to see her. Valuing the sight of the huntress, he lit a new candle and placed it in the corner of his tent. He removed the tie from his black hair, letting it hang at one length at his shoulders.
Nearly naked in front of him, save for her bra and the fabric she wrapped around her breasts, Hale stepped closer. In a similar fashion to the night she had been injured, she removed the fabric, taunting him one layer at a time. Nate watched intently, gluttonously devouring the spectacle she was giving him, removing his boots without breaking his gaze.
The wrap came off, revealing her barely covered breasts, full, unbound, and waiting; her nipples hard, visible through the thin cloth of her bra. She quickly removed that too.
A snarl rolled somewhere in his belly as he beheld the sight of Hale naked. Maker, he admitted to himself, never one to call upon the supposed god prior. Hips curved quaint compared to the abundance of her breasts, and small, simple tattoos decorated her body. He had noticed a few the night Philippa healed her, but he let his eyes greedily wander, appreciating the way they marked her skin.
His gaze made its way up to hers. A tempting smirk looked back at him, testing, inviting. Simultaneously, they stepped toward each other. His hands found her hips, warm despite the chill; her arms wrapped around his neck. Their lips found each other and her head tilted to welcome him. Crashing, gasping, their mouths opened, tongues twirled.
Her kiss continued as her hurried hands moved to his belt, unfastening it and letting it fall to the floor. Nate broke from the kiss to remove his tabard, throwing it on the floor near hers. Together they unlaced his breeches. Impatient and greedy lips met again, kissing until his pants were loose enough to remove. A groan escaped him as he shifted out of his breeches, his length freed from the discomfort. Pants dropped to the ground along with his small clothes before he kicked them off to to the pile they collected.
Her eyes grew larger, her eagerness alight with intensity as she observed him. His physique, lean and muscular, pale compared to hers and covered in far more scars- perfect in her eyes. Hard, large, she had seen his shaft before and it called to her as it had then, but louder this time. More tempting. Promising to be more succulent. She licked her lips.
Those green eyes, twinkling as they stared at his length and her face shaped by red, messy tresses and long, elegantly pointed ears forced his hunger to grow. The crass young woman, talented, intelligent despite her lack of formal education, awed him in the dim light of his tent.
Green eyes met gray. Candlelight danced across their bodies, naked, they gazed at each other in loaded silence.
Until his hand weaved into her tousled locks. He pulled her closer for another heated kiss, locked, impassioned, and filled with heated moans. Hale reached for his member, and when he groaned loudly she used the break in their kiss to lean away, letting go of him. She pushed against his shoulders, forcing him to step back toward his bedroll. Her lips parted and she smirked.
He smiled back, attracted to her brevity. Knees bent and he laid on his back over layers of sheets and blankets. She stepped over him, one foot between his legs, looking down her lean body, challenging his ravenous stare.
Compelled and ardent, her knees met the bedroll as she sat on his thigh. He felt her heat against him, making him groan. She licked her lips again and grabbed his length. Soft kisses on the head given while she peered up at him. Her grin coquettish but her eyes sharp and resolute.
Those lips, capable and willing to produce incredibly rude and inappropriate words, were now delicate and deliberate in the way they framed the head of his shaft. He shuddered as she enclosed him, her spit hot and plentiful. Her lips tightened, sucking as she lowered. Her tongue traced trails along his length.
"Hale," he rasped, watching her bob up and down on him. His fingers laced through her hair, following the motions of her head. Her long digits sheathed him, gripping and sliding up and down in sync with her mouth. Her other hand found his balls, tempting, massaging them.
"Hale," he murmured through rough moans, trying to catch her attention. His hand pulled at her hair, gently at first. "Huntress," he said again, but she ignored him and continued. He pulled harder, and she grumbled with playful laughter; her mouth buzzing on him. He tugged even harder, but she clung, hungry for his length, only releasing when his force required it.
A sinful grin spread on her face as she wiped her mouth with her hand.
"I want to be inside of you," Nathaniel said, informing her, releasing her hair and pushing himself up on his forearms.
Her brow raised, and she shifted so that she kneeled over his waist while she pushed his shoulders back. "This is the part where I fuck you senseless, Lieutenant," she taunted as she lowered herself over him, her hands resting on his torso.
He chuckled in reply, eating up the wondrous spectacle she was to behold.
Her heat, slick- So fucking wet- slid on top of him. She smiled as she moved her moisture, provoking his length with her folds. Every time she slid forward, he was closer to her entrance. Each time she slid back, her eyes closed, delighted at the feel of him rubbing her bundle. His hands found her hips as she glided.
"You're teasing me," he grumbled, watching her between heavy blinks.
"Am I?" She replied just as she angled her hips for him to enter. He watched her intently, straining to keep his eyes focused at the sight of Hale, her small frame, her exquisite breasts above as she sank down onto him. The shadow of her body danced on the tent wall beside her, copying her movements as it flickered intensely.
"Damn," he shuddered as she enveloped him in her heat. She rocked on top of him, her head tilting to the side. Cascading against her chest, the long side of her hair draped down from her head, made even more beautiful by the silhouette of the tips of her ears. He absorbed the sight of her blissful moves on top of him, admiring the grinding of her perfection with him inside. Singing soft moans with her eyes closed, she smiled pleasurably each time she opened them to meet his gaze. Tactfully guiding her hips with voracity, moving faster, moaning louder. Nathaniel's groans matched.
Shameless even though they were in a crowded encampment, neither held much concern with being overheard.
Nate's hand traveled to her wetness as she moved, finding the bundle of nerves, swollen and pulsing within her folds with his thumb. Gasping, Hale's gaze shot to his. She bit her lip, riding him as his finger worked her.
She moaned, escalating, his hips rolled up against hers, matching her force with his. It was too much. The way he found her from the inside, combined with pressure he applied from his thumb making small circles. She tightened.
Hale felt fantastic, he groaned, his balls rising, he focused on her while she was unable to move. He could have brought himself to finish already, but decided if there was ever a time to take advantage of Grey Warden stamina, this was it. Pushing into her with his hips and relentlessly massaging her pearl. Body spasmed, mouth gaped open, eyes closed as she convulsed.
"Nate!" She called. Music to his ears.
His circles slowed as she regained the ability to move. She stared down at him in amazement and he smirked. Pushing up from his forearms, he sat upright; his legs bent and she sat between them. His arms wrapped around her.
Hale bound one arm around his neck and the other she used to support herself. Their bodies pressed against each other, now damp from sweat and not the rain. Her breasts pushed against the bottom of his chin.
While they moved in unison, moaning together, she gasped each time he reached further inside. She watched him, intrigued with the ways he worked her and how she starved for this connection. Her eyebrows furrowed, pleading for more of him. He's fucking brilliant.
Breasts, supple, round rested right in front of him. Nathaniel's hand cupped one, pushing, massaging as his mouth found her nipple. He sucked, thirst for the pink and tender flesh, hard with arousal at his touch. Biting down, he tugged her nipple as his other hand laced in her thick tresses, gripping harder, rougher than when she sucked him. It coaxed a giggling moan from her as her head tilted back. She enjoyed pain, he confirmed. She's perfect.
Trust sparked her drive; trust in the Lieutenant's obvious skill and willingness to see what he had in store for her. It motivated her to keep going, to keep up with him, to allow him to continue to provoke one climax after another.
They went faster, harder. He felt her body tightening again and heard the changes in her moans each time he thrust. She was nearing another orgasm, so he centered his attention, pulling it from her as he brought her face to meet his. A passionate kiss, their lips collided. He smirked as she froze on him, her body seizing as he pressed his mouth to hers. Unable to control herself, her mouth fell open, and she whined, reaching the top. She rested for just a moment before matching his rocking with hers. He's playing me like a damn fiddle. Remember to call him old man more often.
He had to slow down or he wouldn't make it much longer. She surrounded him, hugging him, her core gripping at his length each time they moved. Impassioned, the feast they shared, gorging themselves on pleasure, would end soon. He considered the release. Taking a break and going again, wanting to give it to her every way he knew how. But after days of scouting, he knew once he finished he would sleep deeply. He wanted the same for Hale. He also wanted to make sure she remembered this night.
So he slowed his motion and cradled her head, lowering her frame down to the bedroll with care. He rolled her to the side. Appreciating the shape of her silhouette, he ran his hand, large and calloused, along the curve of her hips, her bottom. Hale purred seductively and adjusted to lay on her arm, extending it beyond her head.
Nestling behind her, feeling the warmth of her rear inviting him. She reached behind her, too impatient to wait, wanting more, searching for him. He came closer and guided his length to her entrance. Her wet heat available from the way she laid with her knees bent. Slowly filling her, Nate sank in. His shudder was echoed by her whimper. Arch angled, back curving to increase the room he had to reach her. He stretched out on his arm on the side he laid along the length of her body, legs curving to match hers, his other arm came around to massage her breast.
An undefinable moving pile of their melded shadows projected, flickering on the tent wall by the light of the nearly spent candle.
Gratified moans fell from her as he endured, intimately finding her from the inside. He moved patiently, poignantly, reaching further, pulling her closer.
His fingers brushed her extended hand. They both paused, hearts together skipping a beat, uncertain if the act of hand-holding was beyond their agreement- until he laced his fingers with hers.
Sharing a sigh, her hips rolled against him harder, matching his tempo as it quickened.
Losing control again, her moans changed. Her body clenched with each thrust. She neared another climax, and he wanted her to have it. It built, compiling with each thrust he made, climbing. He was aware of his own pressure building, waiting for release. But he continued to thrust, determined for her to finish again before him. Her cries grew louder, and she gasped between.
"Say my name," he whispered into her ear.
She heard the smirk in his voice, felt his breath on her skin, and her senses couldn't take it. She finished. "Nathaniel... fucking…. Howe," Hale sang with each moan, until she held her breath. Incited by the skilled thrusts of his length, her body seized through wave after wave of the climax he provoked.
The lustful sound of his name, something he never heard from Caoilainn, sung void of denigration to his household; Hale's cry brought a smile to Nate's face. He held her through her peak, cradling her wanton body as she shook.
The candle went out. Hale's cry, along with the sudden darkness stirred his depravity, reawakening his sinful appetite. His hand moved to fondle her throat, and she extended, giving him more to grope at the sensitive skin. Careful, conscious, but unabashed at applying pressure; he adored the feel of her swallowing against his palm. He pushed his hips further, harder and faster, as he held her neck back. Her ears tempted him, their gracious points within reach of his mouth. He blew into one, licking and biting while he thrust.
He was close and more than ready to take permission to release. Prepared to spill, swelled with yearning, Nate grasped Hale's hand tighter and pulled her body closer. Her free hand reached behind her , finding his hair, weaving her fingers into it as she moaned.
He neared; his muscles twitched and tightened. "Hale," he rasped, stretching out her name in a long groan, his face buried in her tresses. He thrust hard, and again, pulsing into her. She whimpered with him as he finished, spending every last drop of himself inside.
Indulged and satisfied, they stayed joined, unmoving for a long moment. Nate tucked her hair behind the point of her ear. They sighed together, catching their breath as their heart rates slowed.
Leaning away, Hale slid off and Nate shuddered. She stood and found her damp attire, locating her small clothes and cleaning herself with them. Comfort waited for Nate in the layers of his bedroll. He found it and studied Hale, curious, waiting for her to join him.
She grabbed her breeches from the pile of clothes and adjusted them to find the waist.
"What are you doing?" He asked, his brow furrowed.
She looked annoyed at the question, her brow cocked. "Um… putting my clothes on so I don't have to walk through camp with my arse out." Though she felt something she couldn't quite understand for the Lieutenant, she had no desire to pretend this interaction was more than just fun. Her past sexual encounters never included spending the night.
Nate snorted. "Why don't you sleep here?" He glanced at the small, but empty spot next to him in the bedroll. Mainly to avoid awkward goodbyes the next morning, sharing his bed was not something Nate offered his other companions aside from Caoilainn. He couldn't ignore Hale as an exception to the rule. All the rules.
"Don't wanna get in trouble," she responded. Her expression reflected her opinion that the answer was obvious. "Sorry friend, but you ain't worth a reprimand."
"Yes I am," he smirked. "But you won't get in trouble, I promise. I wish I could say the same for myself."
"Oh, shut it," she grinned down at him and called his bluff. Her pants fell to the ground as her hands found her hips. "You can do whatever and whoever you want, Lieutenant." Adventurous and brimming with curiosity, she opted to join him. Whatever drew her to Nathaniel prevailed.
"That's usually true," he shrugged, making space for her as she crawled into bed with him. "The camp will talk, you know. I'm sure everyone heard us."
"Let them," Hale said through a yawn. "I don't give a flying fuck what people say." She snuggled into him, resting on her side with her back to his chest, similar to the position they finished.
"I believe that," Nate grinned. Sleep beckoned him. With this lovely creature, the huntress, naked and nestled next to him, their legs entwined, he was certain the rest would be superb. It would be well needed before the march for battle that awaited them at dawn.