Chapter 66
Emma sat down on an ornate, high-back chair and tried to ignore the throbbing in her feet. Bloody hell, she was knackered. All she wanted was a hot bath, followed by a soft bed to sleep in for a week. She rested her arm on the table and supported her head, which felt too heavy to hold up. Long fingers slid into her hair. "Why don't you go to our room, and I'll say our goodbyes." Emma sat up, momentarily revitalised by the thought of bed, and smiled at Aedan's suggestion. He tipped her chin and bent down to press a kiss to her lips. "Don't go to sleep before I get there, Angel. We need to have a long overdue talk." Emma tensed up and managed a stiff nod. "I know."
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A dwarf smiled as she scurried in with a large bucket of hot water which she emptied into a large stone bath built into the corner of the room. "Do you need a hand?" Emma asked, unused to being waited on by anyone. The woman laughed. "Ah, now that's kind of you, lass. But no need, you just relax." Emma almost laughed – relax? How the hell could she relax when she was trying to think of a way to explain what had happened to her without Aedan thinking she was completely crazy?
She started pacing up and down the spacious room and decided to practice what she was going to say. "Okay, it's like this. I'm an alien!" Hmm, no. That would just confuse things even more; she'd have to explain about aliens. "So, you know how you have books? Well, your world is like one of those." She cringed; yeah, that wouldn't go down very well. She didn't think anyone would appreciate being told that they were living in a fictional world. She stopped and thought about that. Really, who was she to say this world was fictional? Somehow, she was living in Thedas, so it was as real as her own world, right? She rubbed a hand over her tired eyes as the start of a headache emerged in the centre of her forehead.
"Your bath is ready, miss." The dwarf smiled and left the room. Emma continued pacing and running through various scenarios, stopping only when the door opened to reveal a tried looking Aedan. Forgetting her concerns for the moment, she met him half-way and started undoing his armour. "Emma, are you trying to distract me?" he asked with a chuckle. She smiled but shook her head. "Not this time, love. I'm helping you undress so that you can get in the bath."
He pulled her close. "And will you be joining me?"
She grinned and twined her arms around his neck, giving in to her need for a taste of him. He moaned at the pressure of her soft lips and opened up to her, sliding his tongue against hers. As his wild taste sunk into her, she groaned and pulled him closer, slipping her hands into his hair and tugging hungrily.
He growled and started walking her towards the bed, one hand on her ass and the other at her waist, guiding her backwards. Suddenly, she remembered the talk they needed to have and it killed her arousal faster than a bucket of ice water ever could. She broke the kiss and dug in her heels as she gently pushed him back. "We need to talk first, right?" Aedan stared at her blankly for a second, and she waited for her words to penetrate the fog of lust wrapped around his brain. He blew out a long breath as he tried to get his desire under control. "Right." He moved over to a bench and sat down. "It might be best if we move away from the bed because I'm about two seconds away from pulling all your clothes off and fucking you." A pulse of arousal shot through her sex at his coarse words and she decided that maybe he was right and they should sit a little apart to avoid temptation, so she grabbed a wooden chair and pulled it over to sit in front of him.
"So…," Aedan began.
Emma fidgeted with her hair. "So…"
Nothing more was said. A minute or two passed and she had an urge to laugh; she was never good with awkward silences. Instead, she pulled in a breath and decided to get the ball rolling, otherwise, they would be sitting here all night. "So, this is going to sound crazy, but basically, I'm from a different world, and at the moment I'm trapped between both worlds because I had an accident in my world." She saw him flinch as she referred to the other world as her world. She reached over and took his hand. "I just meant that's the world I was born into. I don't want to go back there as I consider this world to be my home now."
He kept hold of her hand and traced her fingers with one of his own. "You said you had an accident?"
"Yeah, I think I got struck by lightning."
"Are you unconscious in your world? Is that how you're able to be here too?" He looked up at her, and she was worried by his unreadable expression. Emma managed to croak out a few words. "It seems that way, however, I'm not really sure what happened."
"How does this all tie in with your knowledge of our lives and the missions we carry out?"
Shit! She'd really hoped he wouldn't ask that question. She racked her brains trying to come up with a reasonable explanation, but nothing jumped out at her, and all she could think of was her previous explanation about using a book as an example. She lifted her head and the room span as a wave of dizziness hit her. She knew it was due to nerves and the way her heart was trip-hammering against her ribs. "What's your favourite book?"
He raised a brow at the sudden change of subject. "Garahel's story. Why do you ask?"
She smiled. "That is a great book. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a part of that story?"
He grinned. "Of course. When I was a child I was forever playing the part of Garahel, and my brother was the Archdemon."She met his gaze and held it as she waited for the penny to drop. His eyes widened and his skin turned ashen. "Are you saying I'm a character in a book? That's absurd!" He stood quickly, dropping her hand and moving away.
Her heart sunk at his withdrawal. Although she knew it was a lot to take in, she hadn't thought he'd pull away like that. She stood too and turned to face him. "I know how it sounds, Aedan, but really, is it so bad? To you, Garahel was a character in a book, but you know he really existed. This is the same thing." All right, she might be stretching the truth a bit, but she needed to soften the blow in some way. He looked up at her words, his expression thoughtful. "Okay, I can see that but this is just… it's a lot to take in."
She nodded sadly, feeling the distance grow between them. "I understand." Suddenly she remembered something and darted over to her bag. She reached right down to the bottom and her fingers snagged against soft material. She pulled the item out and looked at the t-shirt she'd been wearing when she first arrived in Thedas. She quickly turned it inside out in order to hide the wording that proclaimed her as a Team Alistair supporter and walked back to Aedan. "Feel this." She handed him the piece of clothing. "Have you ever seen a top made in this style before? Or felt such material?"
He took the t-shirt and held it up as he felt the material between his finger and thumb. "No. I've never seen or felt anything like this." His hand brushed against a slightly rougher piece of cloth and he looked closely at it. "Why is this part harder? It feels like there's something underneath." Before she could move, he flicked the t-shirt and turned it back to its normal state. His hand ran over the words and Emma's breath caught in her throat. Oh, fuck! This was going to be damn near impossible to explain.
