"How much alcohol are you bringing, Pap?" Gretchen yelled over her shoulder as packed the clothes Tessa gave her into her bag. "Not nearly enough," he said as he came into the room. "Did you get your medicine?" Gretchen closed

Gretchen carefully opened her bedroom door then peeked into the hallway. She didn't want to run into Damien, so she made sure he wasn't there before she left her room. Her heart pounded as she licked her lips and kept her eyes on his door while she crept swiftly down the hallway. Once she got to Haldir's room she knocked and sighed in relief as she heard his heavy footsteps approach from the other side.  Haldir closed the door behind him, then they started out towards the foyer. "Sleep well?" Gretchen twirled a curl around her finger as she searched the faces in front of her. "Like a very sedated baby. Thanks." "Maybe you should think about slowing down on that stuff. Tessa said you shouldn't be using it long term." "I will when I leave here. I don't want to keep everyone up all night with my screaming and shit. Although, I don't want to be doing that at Tessa's either, so..

 "Good morning, Gretchen, it's Hazel. Do you mind if I come in?" "Yeah.I'm awake. Come on in." Gretchen sat up in bed and stretched out her arms as Hazel came through the door then shut it behind her.  Hazel laid a stack of clothing on the chair by the bed, then sat down on the mattress and stretched out across it with her chin resting on her hand. She looked at Hazel then raised her brow. "So, what did you and Uncle Damien get into once Rhett and I left last night? I want every gory detail" Gretchen looked at her questioningly then last nights events slowly came back to her. She closed her eyes and sighed. "Oh, shit. Did that all actually happen? I take so much medicine at night to keep me from having nightmares that I completely forgot." Then, she slapped her hand on her forehead. "I'm such a goddamn idiot. I can't believe I did that. He must think I'm such an ass." "You and Damie

Damien laid in his bed and thought about the first night he and his wife were together. He snuck into her room and crawled in bed with her like he did with Gretchen tonight.  He knew the risks, but he didn't care. Nothing could have kept him away from her. From the instant their eyes met in the Great Hall, his whole being belonged to her. They disappeared together every chance they could to every secret place he knew of. Damien smiled to himself as he remembered her beautiful face and how her round, pregnant belly felt under his fingers. He traced the mark on his neck with his fingertips and the pain of their loss surged through his veins then washed through his body.  The last time he saw her, she was asleep next to their son. She had been up all night with him, and he didn't want to wake her. He kissed her cheek gently then the top of his son's head and quietly left the room.  As tears rolled down his ch

 Gretchen stood before the full length mirror in her room and looked herself over. Tessa's long white silk gown and matching robe  were a bit tight, but Gretchen was hoping to not be in them for long. She shook out her hair then scrunched it in her hands. Taking a deep breath and smoothing out her hair one last time, she said, "Ok. Here I come." As she left her room, Damien was already waiting in his doorway. He stood there bare chested with only his pants on. He took Gretchen's hand and pulled her inside his room, then shut the door.  "Do you always know what I'm thinking?" Damien nodded. "Most of the time. Like right now, I know you came to collect on my promise." Gretchen's lips pulled up into a sultry side grin as she stepped closer and put her hands on his chest. "True. I'm afraid I'm a slave to my hormones for the next week or so. I hope you don't mind. I can be kind of n