Chapter 66: Don’t run from me

"Are you?"

Andrew gently cupped her face between his palms, searching her eyes with a soft expression. "Did I scare you? It’s not a serious wound, and I don’t even feel any pain now. The healing process has probably already closed the tissue."

Caroline reached up, her fingertips lightly brushing the white bandage wrapped around his head while her gaze remained fixed on his. "Tell me exactly how it happened."

"I let my guard down, and he stabbed me with the knife thinking it would hurt me. But it didn’t," Andrew replied with a proud smirk, raising a hand toward his head. "Though right now, the only thing bothering me is how much it’s itching."

"Let’s wash your hair, then," Caroline said. She stepped back and walked past him into the washroom to prepare things.

Andrew followed her into the washroom, finding her standing by the sink as she looked down at a bottle of hair shampoo.

"Are we taking a bath?" he asked, a faint trace of amusement in his voice.

"No. The wound on your head cannot touch water yet," Caroline replied without looking up.

"It will be fine if I keep it covered," Andrew countered, stepping closer. He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, resting his chin comfortably on her shoulder. "You look troubled. Is it because I failed to bring Victor back alive?"

"No. Who cares about him?" Caroline turned in his arms to face him. "And I am not upset about that. I just feel terrible that you were hurt. It should never have happened." She pressed the shampoo bottle into his hand. "Since both of your hands are working, wash your own hair."

She tried to brush past him toward the exit, but his fingers shot out, catching her wrist. Before she could react, he pulled her back smoothly, her back coming to a soft stop against the tiled wall. His thumb brushed lightly across her lower lip, his gaze holding hers completely.

"Don’t run from me," he murmured. "It wasn’t your fault that I took the hit."

"I am not running," she replied.

"Then what is that look on your face?" Andrew frowned, his thumb gently caressing her cheek. He brought his lips down to hers, keeping the kiss slow.

Caroline responded in kind, her lips parting as she realized she wanted him just as much. His free hand traced down her bare arm, resting firmly on her waist as he pressed closer against her. Her hands instinctively shifted from his biceps up to his broad shoulders, feeling the tight, solid muscle beneath her palms.

"Ah!" She let out a sharp gasp of pain when he suddenly nipped her lower lip. Without pulling back, he trailed a line of warm kisses along her jawline before pausing at her earlobe to give it a quick, sharp bite.

Caroline pushed him away and said, "You should wash your hair." She breathed hard before dashing out of his sight.

"What happened to her?" Andrew muttered, looking down at the shampoo bottle.

Disregarding the warning, he washed up anyway and stepped out of the washroom half-naked, a towel riding low on his waist and exposing his V-lines.

Caroline swallowed hard and quickly looked away. "I told you not to wash your body yet. The physician is going to scold you."

She tried to slide off the bed, but Andrew blocked her path, trapping her between his body and the mattress. Small droplets of water fell from the ends of his damp hair onto her neck, making her grip the bedsheets tightly.

"Why did you avoid me earlier?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I didn’t," she replied.

She felt his knee nudge gently between her thighs, parting them. The next moment, his hands gripped her waist, lifting her slightly. He pressed his face briefly against her stomach before moving upward, stopping just inches from her face.

"You did. You ran away because you are blaming yourself," Andrew answered. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, nipping lightly against her skin. She let out a small yelp as he murmured against her, "If you try to escape from me again, I will leave marks all over your body."

She swallowed hard when his deep burgundy eyes locked onto hers. "It bothers me when you act like that."

"Your bandage needs to be changed. I don’t want you to catch an infection," Caroline stated, trying to push him away as she stood up.

Before she could step back, he caught her wrist and pulled, causing her to fall straight down across his lap. She tried to shift away, but his arm held her fast.

"I won’t catch anything. Just stay," he murmured, his eyes closed. "Did my mother say something to you while I was asleep?"

"No," Caroline lied. "I am just concerned. I don’t want you to get sick. I know you are an Alpha, but now that I am your wife, it is only natural for me to worry about my husband."

His grip loosened, allowing her to finally stand. "I can change the bandage for you, but I do not know where the first-aid kit is kept."

"Ask a servant to fetch it," Andrew replied.

Caroline hummed in acknowledgment and stepped out of the room. A few minutes later, she returned carrying the first-aid kit. She found that he had pulled on a pair of dark trousers, but had left his chest bare.

She sat before him, carefully cleaning the edges of the wound with a cotton pad and gently blowing on the skin to ease the sting.

"Our honeymoon phase has been cut short. Can we extend it for a while?" Andrew asked suddenly, breaking the quiet.

"Don’t you have work to do?" she asked with an amused smile.

"I have thousands of people working under me. I think I am allowed to enjoy my honeymoon," Andrew replied. "Now that your innocence is proven, we could travel the world together."

"Hmm. We could," Caroline murmured, pressing a fresh bandage securely over the wound.

She discarded the used cotton in the bin, closed the kit, and sat down right in front of him. "Put on your shirt."

"It’s hot in here," Andrew replied with a smirk.