Elaine set the plate of desserts down beside the bed with unusual care, as if the little pastries were made of glass and might shatter if she breathed too hard.
I was already reaching for one before she had even stepped back, and the first bite filled my mouth with sweet cream and honeyed fruit, warm enough to loosen the tightness in my shoulders before I could stop myself.
There were tiny tartlets with glazed berries on top, soft sponge cakes dusted in sugar, and a slice of almond pastry that tasted rich and buttery on my tongue.
I ate too quickly, almost ravenous from the long stretch of healing and boredom, and only after a few bites did... I slow down and give her a suspicious look.
"Where did you find these from?"
Her eyes stayed on me for a second before she answered. "I found them from the chefs. You like them, right?"
I brushed a crumb from the corner of my mouth with the back of my hand and gave a small, reluctant nod. "Yes. I do like them."
A faint smile appeared on her face, small and private, like she had been waiting for that answer. "Thank god."
That only made me warier. I set the half-eaten tart down and looked at her more directly. "Why are you trying so hard to be good to me? I still don’t like you as my husband."
Her smile faded, though she didn’t seem insulted. If anything, she looked tired in a way that made her face seem older than usual. "I know."
"You should find someone else," I said flatly. "We are going to divorce anyway."
Elaine’s eyes moved away from mine for a moment. "Your injuries are good?"
"They have healed," I said. "Enough."
She nodded once, then asked, "Do you want to play cards?"
I gave her a small, doubtful look. "Do you want to play with me?"
"Yes."
I let out a short breath through my nose. "Last time, you yelled at me when I asked you to play."
Her jaw tightened. "I am sorry."
I studied her face carefully. "Are you?"
This time she met my eyes without flinching. There was something softer there than I expected, something quiet and uncertain. "Let’s change it then. I want to play with you."
Before I could ask... what her words meant, her larger hands slid under my arms and around my waist, and she lifted me up in one smooth motion as if I weighed very little.
I yelped at once. "Elaine, put me down!"
"No."
"What is wrong with you?" I twisted in her grip, my feet hanging helplessly for a second before I kicked again, more offended than effective. "You are being difficult!"
She adjusted her hold without looking troubled at all. "I am too easy for you."
I glared at her and hit her back with the flat of my hand, more embarrassed than threatening. "You are not!"
Elaine gave a sharp little smack to my backside, not hard enough to hurt, but enough to stop me cold in complete outrage.
I stared at her. "You spanked me?!"
Her eyes stayed steady on mine. "Can you keep quiet?"
My face turned hot at once. "How dare you—"
"If you don’t keep quiet," she said, voice low and calm, "I will do a lot of things with you."
I stared at her in disbelief. "What...?"
"Yes."
The word landed with too much confidence, and my ears burned even hotter.
"I am not your wife!"
"You are legally married to me," she said evenly.
"We will divorce!"
"Not now."
"But one day I will!"
"We will see."
I narrowed my eyes at her, still rigid in her arms. "What do you mean by that?"
Elaine looked at me for a long moment, then carried me a few steps and set me down in the chair near the window before I could protest again. She even pulled it out properly, like this was some ordinary, polite thing between us.
"I mean," she said, one hand resting on the back of the chair, "that you are still here. And so am I."
"That is not an answer."
"It is the only one I have right now."
I looked away, annoyed, and reached for the deck of cards she had already placed on the table. "You are impossible."
"And you are still eating my desserts," she replied.
I muttered under my breath and took another bite of the tart. It was too sweet, and I hated how much I liked it.
Elaine sat down opposite me, and for a while the room settled into a strange quiet broken only by the soft shuffle of cards and the faint crackle of the fire. Still, the silence did not last long.
"If you win," she said, gathering the cards into a neat stack, "I will stop bothering you for the rest of the day."
I looked at her sharply. "And if you win?"
"You play another round."
"That is not a fair bet."
"I never said it was."
I gave her a long, annoyed look. "You really have gotten worse."
A faint, almost amused expression touched her mouth. "You are only noticing now?"
I should have ignored that, but I muttered, "Just deal the cards."
She did.
And as much as I wanted to stay annoyed, I began to notice things as the game went on. Elaine was trying very hard not to rush me. She waited when I was slow to pick up a card.
"What should I pick?" I whispered.
She moved the deck a little closer whenever my hands hesitated.
"Pick whatever you want."
She never laughed when I made a mistake, though I was sure she could have. More than once, I caught her looking at my face instead of the table, as if she cared more about my expression than the game itself.
It made me uneasy in a way I didn’t like.
"What are you looking at?" I asked after a while.
She blinked once. "You."
"That was obvious."
"I know."
I frowned, "Then why?"