CHAPTER 89: PERFECT. . .

"Huh?" Jenna blinked, struggling to understand Rhane’s words. She searched his face for the usual grin of teasing which she’d lately gotten used to, but there was none. And so the joke went over Jenna’s head and out of the window.

Rhane’s smirk faltered, but his eyes danced with mirth. He swallowed softly when Jenna bit her lower lip anxiously, waiting for him to reply. Taking two steps closer to Jenna, his gaze softened, replaced by a softer look as he reached to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

"Dreams don’t lie, sunflower." He grabbed a handful and rubbed gently, his eyes roaming around Jenna’s hair down to her face.

Jenna furrowed her brows, narrowing her eyes at him. "I didn’t know you now interpret dreams."

Rhane smirked, letting go of her hair. He took a step back and stood straight. "What in the world or hell can’t I be for Jenna just to make her mine?" he asked, more to himself in a low voice.

"I’ll have to meet those greedy old men and women again today," Rhane turned around and began walking towards the bathroom.

Jenna subconsciously stood up when he began walking, using the bedcover to wrap her body from head down. "Why do you always meet with the council?"

Rhane turned his head to the side but didn’t stop walking. "Should I take that as you caring about things happening in my life?" he asked, with a tug on his lips that didn’t pass as a full smile.

"Ehm." Jenna cleared her throat, pausing in her steps for a second as she scratched her neck. "I mean, I need to know if you’re a fugitive of the crown or something. The council always go to places dangerous men are found."

"And haven’t we established that particular fact?" Rhane picked a dry towel on his way, then reached for the doorknob. Holding it steady, he turned to look at Jenna, who was still casually trotting behind him. He tilted his head, wondering if she knew where he was going or was just too immersed in the conversation to notice.

Jenna twitched her lips. "Are you really that evil?"

"Depends on your view of that. I consider myself a man who wouldn’t tolerate disrespect to myself or my loved ones." Rhane replied, twisting the knob. He pushed the door that led to the bathroom open but didn’t enter immediately as Jenna had muttered something.

"What did you say?"

Jenna rolled her eyes before saying, "You killed a man! A man that did nothing."

"Do you wish to join the council now, love?" Rhane asked. Without waiting for an answer, he continued, "Barging in uninvited is disrespect at its peak. Sometimes, My lady, disrespect doesn’t need words, action speaks enough." He didn’t wait to hear Jenna’s response; he entered the bathroom with a knowing smile.

"But he—" Jenna ran after him, walking like a duck with her body wrapped in a cloth. "He just entered through the window, he might have been innocent. Maybe lost his way or something."

The smile on Rhane’s lips faded, he turned to look at Jenna. "I don’t wish to believe you’re that dumb, sweet."

Jenna frowned, her lips puckered forward with annoyance. She clenched her fists tightly, ready to retort, but Rhane beat her to it.

"Not to worry, you’re allowed to have zero survival instincts from time to time. I’ll do the work for us." Rhane turned on the short tap on the side, then pulled his stool close and sat down. He began washing his face.

Jenna seethed, torn between insult and the treacherous flip of her stomach as she watched Rhane wash his face, bare ivory skin glossy with water. Her mouth parted as if to speak, then closed again.

"Why are you washing there and not using the bathing tub?" Jenna pointed at the tiny tap, letting curiosity win over her lust and pride.

"This?" Rhane pointed at the tap, lifting his face that now dripped with wet strands of hair and water pearls. "I found it during my trades overseas. Most times when they don’t use the tub, they use this... You want to try?" He stood up, pointing at the stool for Jenna to sit on.

Jenna pressed her lips, her leg moved but she stopped halfway. "I won’t be the one to give the servants hard work so early in the morning. Cleaning the- where is the water?"

"There is none. Now come here and let me show you." Rhane moved two of his fingers, signalling for Jenna to continue walking, and she did.

Sitting down on the stool, Jenna’s eyes darted around for where the water Rhane had used was going. She’d noticed that in Rhane’s mansion most of the dresses, accessories, and even decorations were unique. It wasn’t what Jenna found in an everyday house, not even in her own. And most of the rest she recognized were the most prized goods from distant kingdoms that could only be found in palaces.

Even her father didn’t have the opportunity to get a personal hold of goods like this, but here Rhane had them at every corner of his house and used them freely. It made Jenna want to know more about Rhane, partly her curiosity as a woman and mostly as a merchant.

"Give me your hand," Rhane instructed. He waited for Jenna to bring forward her hand, then he took it and guided her gently to hold the tap.

Despite being something he could easily tell her to do, with Jenna being a quick learner she could do it. Rhane didn’t wish to let the moment slip him by, having to hold Jenna’s hand and watch her listen to him with rapt attention and curiosity. It was enough to make Rhane’s chest swell like he was saving his kingdom.

Using his hand to cover Jenna’s own, he turned the tap on. Rhane didn’t let go; he turned it off and did it again for Jenna to learn. Then he let her hand go, giving her space to try.

In all, Jenna’s eyes moved with the water, looking for where it was going, but it entered through something else connected to the tap. She kept trying to turn the tap, then leaning to check where the water went through.

Rhane pressed his lips, trying to stop himself from laughing. At the moment Jenna looked like a curious little girl, moving up and down, even pressing her ear close to listen.

"Do you like it that much?" Rhane asked, with his hand on his waist.

Jenna raised her face. "How does it work?" Her attention returned to the tap as she turned the cap round, watching the water flow with so much fascination.

"Well," Rhane began, tugging at his trousers before crouching on his heels. "Think of it as a well turned sideways. I had a trench dug beneath this room and set a clay pipe to draw water from the main tub. The pipe rises here, and this handle lets me command the flow. As for the waste—" he tapped the bowl, "—another pipe carries it away, out beyond the walls, into a pit I buried far from the stream. You don’t foul the river that feeds you, sunflower. Not if you want to keep drinking from it."

And Rhane meant his words even literally, thinking of how Gerald could be so stupid as to hurt someone as innocent and kind as Jenna.

"How did you think of it?" Jenna turned the tap on again.

Rhane pressed her hand down on the tap to stop her movement. "I saw some merchant friends use it during one of my travels. They wouldn’t sell it to me, so I made mine using what I remember. My room is the only one with it for now. This isn’t as perfect as what they have over there, but it works so..."

Jenna’s eyes lit up with admiration and amazement for Rhane before she turned her attention back to the object. "This is perfect, really perfect."

"I agree," Rhane replied, looking at the side of Jenna’s face. "So perfect for me," he muttered softly.