3

Jenny forced her eyes open and used her arms to push herself up into a sitting position. The floor on which she lay on was a soft pale blue carpeting. The blue was unlike any other she had seen before; it was like clear sparkling ice yet as blue as a summer’s sky. Julian came out off another room and smiled warmly at her.

Tears pricked her eyes and she looked around the room silently, there was a large comfortable looking settee seated in front of a large widescreen T.V. she looked at him questioningly about this item but he shook his head – he would tell her what it was for later.

“Welcome home,” he said gently reaching out to help her up, “would you like me to show you the rest of your home?”

“This is not my home,” she snapped before she could stop herself. Something crossed into Julian’s eyes, something she had never seen before – hurt. A pang of guilt twisted her heart and she looked down at the floor sadly. “I’m sorry…”

“It’s okay,” he said pulling her up and enveloping her in his arms, “you’re just upset…I know that and I’m sorry. But this is how things should be, you and I together.” She buried her head into his vest as she felt a lump fill her throat, but she wouldn’t let herself cry. What’s done is done…she would just have to find a way to escape. “Jenny there is no way to escape,” Julian whispered soothingly stroking her hair, “please just accept this.”

“You know I can’t do that,” she said quietly, “I don’t belong here, no matter what you say.” Julian sighed but didn’t say anything; instead he continued to stroke her hair.

“Let me show you around,” he said eventually, “you’ll change your mind once you’ve seen the place.” Jenny opened her mouth to protest but Julian silenced her with a kiss. His lips were like a butterfly’s wings against her own and it sent small electric shocks coursing through her. She leaned in to kiss him back but pulled away at the last moment; Tommy. She couldn’t betray him. The first thing she noticed was that they must be in a log cabin; the walls were round and wood – as if made of logs. It gave a warm winter romance feel to the whole place, one she didn’t think she’d be comfortable with if she was trying to resist him.

The bottom floor had three rooms, the front door led onto the rectangular sitting room while at the back there was a wall with two doors; one of which led to a kitchen while the second led into a cosy yet elegant dining room. The walls were painted a romantic red colour and candles adorned the walls and the centre of the deep rich mahogany table. Mahogany chairs with red and gold upholstery were seated around the table. Slowly Julian slipped a hand around her waist and kissed her neck, Jenny almost gave into him – the atmosphere of the room certainly demanded that sort of behaviour but she just couldn’t get Tom or her friends out of her mind.

“Julian stop it,” she begged him stepping out of his grip and rubbing the spot on her neck where he’d been kissing her. She saw a flash in his eyes, like lightning flickering over a blue dawn sky and she shuddered. But even if he lost his temper she wouldn’t give in, she wasn’t giving in to his seduction so she wouldn’t give into his bullying! As if reading her mind he wordlessly took her hand and pulled her back into the sitting room and up the stairs.

The first room he showed her was a study; bookcases were crammed against the two side walls while a window occupied the back wall and a roaring fireplace on either side of the door on the front wall. It had a warm cosy feel to it and Jenny couldn’t resist walking over to the books and looking at them. In the middle of the room was an oak desk with stationary on it and drawers going down the sides, all of which were locked she was told. Comfortable looking chairs sat beside the bookcases while the windowsill itself was cushioned with a deep royal blue cushion seat. The window showed a view of violent snowstorms raging across a deserted land – although it was no wonder it was deserted with this violent storm. Jenny also noted that this was the only window in the whole place that she’d noticed.

“I use magic to keep the rooms lighted, as the day goes on they’ll dim to show the hour and at night they’ll go off completely. You can use ordinary lights then,” he said flicking a light switch nearby, she realised then that it was night here and she dreaded going to sleep.

The second room was a bathroom with ocean blue tiles that sent a water like glow across the room making it shimmer and give it an underwater feel. This room was the only one that could make you think this wasn’t a log cabin, the walls were straight and tiled rather than the curved wooden logs in all the other rooms. A large Jacuzzi like bath took up the centre and Jenny couldn’t help but blush as she saw the look on Julian’s face.

The bedroom made her gasp; it was large, richly furnished and just so beautiful. In the middle of the wall to the left was a large king-sized four-poster bed with black velvet curtains and black sheets edged with a gold and silver intricate pattern. On either side of the bed were small cabinets with a lamp on them, the lamps had black shades with a pattern of gold and silver symbols on it. On closer inspection she noticed that the symbols were the runes which she’d become so familiar with over the past year during the games. A sort of lounging-settee was propped against the back wall and it looked comfortable and inviting. To her right was a make-up table and a wardrobe.

“It’s late we should get to sleep,” Julian said towing her over to the bed and sitting her down on it as he promptly removed his shirt. Jenny blushed a deep red and tried her best not to stare, but he was so well made…his muscles were chiselled and well defined. They were perfect!

“I’ll sleep on the se-“

“No,” Julian said pushing her back onto the bed gently and sitting beside her. He took her hands gently and brushed his lips along them sending small chills coursing through her body. “We can just sleep; nothing has to happen between us until you are absolutely ready for something to happen.” He caressed her face gently holding her eyes with his as he smiled at her.

“And if I’m never ready?” She asked him just about managing to will herself to pull her face free from his caress. “Because I will never want to have any sort of relationship with you Julian – I love Tommy and I cannot betray him in that way.”

“But you can betray me?” When Jenny opened her mouth to protest her he placed a hand over it silencing her. “You’re sworn mine Jenny, when you made that promise it was irrevocable. Even when I died you were still mine, I never expected to be resurrected though…would you have rather known you were mine even though I was dead? I wanted you to be happy, but if you had that hanging over your head would you have been?”

“Yes!”

“Jenny.” He spoke with a firm voice with a small warning tone to it; Jenny bit her lip and looked down at her feet. Would she have been alright with it? Of course not. She would have told Tommy she was fine, she’d have lied to him to keep him happy…but secretly she’d have been looking over her shoulder. What if the impossible happened? What if he was somehow brought back and he came to claim her? Could she have really lived everyday of her life like that? Would she have been able to stand at an alter to wed Tom when at the back of her mind she was being reminded she was already promised to someone, as good as married to Julian.

“No.” She answered shaking her head and blinking back tears. The realisation of how she’d never truly been free since she’d made that promise hit her, could she really have married Tom or anyone else for that matter knowing that she belonged to another man? She let him wrap his arms around her and she buried her face into his shoulder, his shirt was surprisingly soft and comforting against her cheek. “I wish I’d never made that promise,” she whispered tearfully thinking about how much trouble it had caused since. But at the time it’d seemed like such a good idea…surely there’d have been another way?