XVII - Contributions

She couldn't stop thinking about that hug. Boy was she glad she asked for one. It was certainly the best hug she had ever had the pleasure of receiving before, maybe even the best.

And not only that, when at last she finally did get to sleep during the nights following the storm incident, she had some rather strange dreams.

It was during the storm, only Max wasn't there, and sometimes she was on the boat and other times she was just floating in the water. Waves crashed all around her, rain pouring down and the wind howling so loud she could barely think.

And then, just when all seemed lost, the clouds parted and the sun shone down and he arrived - Orm.

"It's okay." he said in his strong voice. "I've got you, you're safe now." There he was, bathed in golden light, it igniting his already golden hair - and suddenly, everything was okay.

That was always when she woke up, after being rescued, like a princess and her prince charming.

Prince charming? Well, he was a King... King Charming?

He was also always shirtless, like she had seen the day she had come home and he had just been wearing the towel around his waist. That image seemed imprinted on her brain. It was a good image, though, you couldn't deny it. She couldn't deny it.

She kept feeling that surge of relief she had felt when he had shown up, after pushing the boat back to the docks. How glad she had been to have him there, instead of Max.

And then he replaced Max altogether. She was no longer on a disastrous date with Max, but on a lovely date with Orm...

Now her dreams were turning into day dreams.

She leaned back and closed her laptop, rubbing her hands over her face. She needed a break, clearly. Actually, a nice, soothing bath sounded great right about now.

She headed to her room where she shed her clothes and wrapped a towel around her body to head across the hall for the bathroom. The door was closed so Orm must be in there. She waited patiently, tying her hair up in a knot on top of her head to avoid it getting wet. Then there was a click and the door popped open to reveal-

Orm. Shimmering with water and bare chested, glowing in the sunlight spilling in from the window, a real life version of her dream.

Oh boy, this was not helping her state, nor her dreams, from running wild.

He seemed surprised to find her standing there. "Pardon me."

"No, you're fine!" she yelped.

"Do you need in the bathroom? I was just bathing."

"Yeah, but that's okay, I can wait."

"No, no, I'm all finished, it's all yours."

The hallway was skinny, so they were practically chest-to-chest. They fumbled to step around each other.

"Okay, thanks," she squeaked, gripping her towel around herself, and scurried inside, shutting the door behind her.

Orm's fresh seawater scent lingered in the bathroom, not helping her racing thoughts. She was definitely going to need that soothing - and calming - bath now.

"So I've been thinking..." After a lengthy bath - where if it helped her state was debatable - Tatiana came into the kitchen to start dinner. Orm was sitting on the couch, and they exchanged a shy smile. "Are you sure you want to invest in my project, with your money I mean?"

"Of course. I wouldn't have offered had I not meant it."

"Right, okay, thank you, again, more on that later. So, now that you're financially involved in my work, and this living arrangement seems to be an ongoing one-"

"I can move on if you need." He had no idea where he would go, but he didn't wish to inconvenience her, especially after how kind and generous she had been to him. However, he was not keen on leaving here - leaving her - either.

"Oh no, you don't have to leave, I just think we need to treat this as more of a true housemate situation. Like, if you're going to stay, I think it's only fair that you help contribute around the house."

His brow furrowed. "How do you mean?"

"Like the shopping, like for groceries, and the cooking and cleaning. You were my guest in the beginning and I was happy to host, but now we have more of an established relationship - and by relationship I mean work partnership, of course, and living arrangement and-" Stop talking! her brain was screaming. "-Starting with tonight: I was going to start on dinner, and was hoping you would help."

She caught the flash of panic that surged across his blue gaze, and then how he masked it with a confident gait. He practically jumped up from the couch. "I will help you cook right now."

"Sounds good."

She washed up a couple of tomatoes and lay them on the cutting board with a knife while he stood back, watching. "If you can chop these into chunks, we'll add them to the salad."

"Yes..."

She got started on the main course, chicken souvlaki. Meanwhile Orm was still trying to figure out which angle was best to start cutting the tomato.

She kept casting glances over at him to see how it was going, and if he met her eyes, he would just smile. If he gripped the knife any tighter, the handle would snap.

"How's it going over there, my sous-chef?"

He heaved a heavy sigh, setting the knife down in defeat. "I don't know how to cook." Poor guy, he looked so deflated, and a tad embarrassed.

She tried not to smirk. "I wondered, seeing as you are a king and all. I figured you didn't do many chores, if any."

So she had already figured it out, she had just been waiting for him to reveal it. "You are correct. I've been served my whole life."

"Well, they say there's no time like the present. And you do seem like a quick study."

"I am."

"Good." She demonstrated the chopping. "See, like this." Then she handed the knife over to him. "You try now."

He started out slowly, and a little shakily. Then he stopped and looked to her, standing stiffly. Receiving a smile and encouraging nod, he continued. The knife slipped and hit his finger. "Ow! I didn't realize cooking was so dangerous!"

"It can be. You just have to practice. Keep trying."

He was a good sport and tried again, wary now though of the slipping knife.

"Here, like this-" She stepped forward and - rather boldly - nestled her tiny body against his large, solid form and wrapped her arms around him from behind, holding his hands with the knife and tomato. "Chop slowly like this. No need to rush it." She guided his hand down and up, cutting thick red slices that she then cut into chunks. "Okay, now you try with the second one."

She drew back and watched as he repeated the movements. "There you go!"

"Really?"

"Yes, you're doing great!" He smiled so big and proudly she couldn't help but laugh. "Keep going, just like that."

She returned to the chicken, and soon - maybe not as quickly as if she had been preparing the meal herself - they had dinner prepared and on the table.

"Let's have some wine to celebrate your achievements." She grabbed a bottle. Pop! went the cork. "Opa!" She poured them both a glass. "Cheers, to your first cooking experience. And see, doesn't it feel nice to eat a meal you prepared."

"It is rewarding," he admitted. "But you still did all the work."

"You helped," she insisted.

"You are a good teacher."

"Thank you! And then we can clean up the dishes together afterwards. It's also quicker when you have someone else helping out."

"I've always been so privileged. I've never focused on such mundane things."

"They are mundane, but they're everyday life things. And thankfully I like cooking, so it doesn't always seem like so much work. Cleaning isn't so fun, but you can put on some good music, or help each other out, and it makes it better."

"You have a good outlook on such things."

"Well, thank you. I try. You can't avoid them, so you might as well try to make them more enjoyable."

"Thank you, Tatiana," he said suddenly, and with such sincerity. "For everything."

She smiled back. "Thank you, Orm."

This was really fun to write ;)

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :)