First: Spoils of War I: Surrender

PLEASE NOTE: I WENT BACK TO THE END OF CHAPTER 21 AND AM REWRITING FROM THAT POINT. 

Nikol was somehow not nearly as surprised as she ought to be when Aran brushed a kiss over her cheek. “Thank you for having rules,” he added quietly. “Let’s shower, mmm?”

He scooped her up in his arms before she could say anything and, very carefully, carried her upstairs and into the bathroom.  “The power is still pretty spotty,” he warned, “but we got the whole thing going with the town water – that was mostly just moving around some solar panels, turns out Ford is good with those – and I can make the water warm okay on my own.”

He set her down carefully and she undressed.  Her borrowed clothes were sticky with sweat and they stank; she was tempted to wear them right into the shower.  Continue reading →