The floor. That was the only safe place to look.
“That’s a pretty gown. You look beautiful in green.”
She glanced up. He had turned toward the mirror again and was finishing his shave. She winced as he scraped the sharp blade up his throat.
He rinsed the blade off in a bowl of water, then glanced at her. “I like your hair loose like that.”
Oh. She tucked her hair behind her ears. In her hurry, she’d forgotten to braid it.
He made another swipe up his throat. “Was there something you wanted?”
Her gaze drifted to his broad shoulders and muscular back. His spine caused an interesting valley at the small of his back. And his rump seemed wonderfully firm.
“Gwen?”
She looked up and discovered him watching her in the mirror. Good goddesses, he’d seen her ogling him. “There’s a … a rumor going around.”
“About the Chameleon?” He finished shaving his neck, then returned to his jawline. “It’s true. Brody confirmed that he’s the one who murdered Romak. But he’s no longer in the castle. Brody and Dimitri searched everywhere.”
“I know about that. Brody told us last night. He’s sleeping in the workroom.”
“There’s no bed there.” Silas rinsed his face with water, then grabbed a towel to dry himself.
“I made a pallet for him. He had to switch back to a dog, because he can’t keep his human form for more than a few hours each day.”
“Really?”
Gwennore winced. Her nervousness was causing her to say things that she shouldn’t. Brody was rather sensitive about the witch’s curse that kept him from being human for most of his life.
“Can you hand me some underpants?” Silas’s mouth twitched. “You know where they are.”
She nabbed a pair off a shelf and tossed them to him. Unfortunately, they didn’t quite reach him, and when he lunged forward to grab them, his towel slipped.
With a gasp, Gwennore spun around. “I need to be going.” She sidestepped toward the open doorway.
“You never told me why you’re here.”
She tried not to think about him standing naked behind her. “The servant who saw us yesterday misinterpreted things, and now everyone believes that we’re…”
“Copulating?”
Making love. She paused in the doorway. “I think it would be for the best if you made it clear to everyone that we’re not … lovers.”
He placed a palm against the wall next to her and leaned forward to look at her. “We could be.”
She blinked a few times, struggling against a desire to drop her gaze. When she did, she saw he had put on the underpants.
“Disappointed?” he asked softly.
Her cheeks grew warm. “Of course not.”
“I’m ready to take them off. And it wouldn’t take me long to remove your gown.”
She scoffed. “I’m not making love to a man I’ve known for less than a week.”
“Ah.” His eyes twinkled as he leaned toward her. “You said love instead of copulate. I wonder why.”
She winced inwardly.
“So how much time do you need?” His mouth curled up. “A week and a half?”
His gorgeous smile and beguiling voice made her heart ache, yearning for the impossible. “Is this a joke to you?”
His smile faded. “No. I’m quite serious. And if you ever say yes, you had better be serious, too, for I won’t be able to let you go. We’ll be more than lovers. We’ll be man and wife.”
She gasped. Marriage? “You—you can’t say that. You’re the heir to the throne.”
“I’m aware of that.”
“Don’t you know what people are saying? They think I’m killing the queen! If I ever marry you, they’ll say I murdered my way to the throne!” She stepped through the open doorway.
“Gwen.” He reached out to stop her.
“They’re already questioning your sanity. I’ll question it, too, if you refuse to accept that a relationship between us is impossible.” She slammed the door shut.
Marriage? How could he even contemplate something that would cause him so much trouble?
She slipped on a pair of shoes and dashed to the workroom.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Gwennore nibbled on a piece of bread while her mind replayed her last conversation with Silas for the hundredth time. He couldn’t have been serious. What man proposed marriage in less than a week?
She sighed. To be honest with herself, she had to admit that she’d fallen for him very quickly, too. And she still didn’t know if he was actually a dragon.
“Gwen?” Annika waved a hand in her face to get her attention. “What do you think of my great idea?”
“Oh.” She glanced at Annika and Margosha, who were sitting with her, eating breakfast in the workroom. Brody had scampered off in dog form the minute she’d opened the door. She assumed he was spying around the castle. “It sounds good to me.”
Margosha snorted, while Annika rolled her eyes.
“I suggested making a tonic out of horse dung,” Annika muttered. “What’s going on with you?”
Gwennore set the slice of bread on her plate. “People are saying Silas and I are back together.”
“Really?” Annika smirked. “Did you jump his bones?”
Gwennore shook her head. “It’s not amusing. Because of me, people are questioning his sanity, and that puts his inheritance at risk. They’re also saying it’s not the curse that’s killing the queen, but me.”
Margosha winced. “Don’t pay any attention to them. There will always be cruel and nasty people.”
Annika pounded a fist on the table. “They had better not let me hear them spouting that crap! I’ll punch their faces in.”
Gwennore smiled. “Thank—”
The door burst open, and Olenka ran inside.
“My lady!” She dashed toward Gwennore and flung her arms around her. “Have you heard the news?”
“You mean the rumors?” Gwennore asked as she rose to her feet.
“It’s not a rumor. It’s true!” Olenka reached into her gown’s pocket and pulled out a velvet bag. “I won!” She shook the bag to make a clinking noise. “Fifteen pieces of gold!”
“What?”
With a laugh, Olenka nudged Gwennore with her elbow. “You silly goose, acting like you don’t know.” She glanced
