Soren stood up from the wet floor, his thighs lifting her whole weight out of the tub without a single stumble, the water dripping from his clothes in a steady, heavy patter against the stones as he carried her through the narrow doorway into the dark bedroom.
The tub stayed behind them in the steam, the water still rocking against the copper sides in the empty alcove.
The high sleeping chamber had gone completely dark while they were in the water, the evening light swallowed up by the thick, ink-black night that had settled over the western towers.
Only the two small tallow candles on the hearth-shelf were still burning, their low flames throwing long, jagged shadows across the heavy oak beams of the ceiling.
He laid her down in the middle of the wide feather mattress, the white sheets cold against her wet skin for a single second before his own body came down over her like a heavy wool cloak.
