Obsessed to Hate Him-Chapter 42: Back Together

Chapter 42: Back Together
KIAN
I thought that shutting Lain off would help me contain my lust. But it appears that my planning backfired. I am growing more and more attached to Lain. It is like he has bound me with a string and is pulling me toward him.
Three weeks of resisting him. Three weeks of resisting that need to touch him randomly like I used to. Three weeks of resisting the urge to annoy the shit out of him. And after three weeks of nothing, I am as miserable as someone can manage to be.
But one thing is obvious: Lain seemed a little bothered about how I behaved for the last three weeks, but he thought better of it and didn’t voice it. Typical Lain. It made me just as pleased as I was pissed at myself.
"We are staying here?" Lain scans the cottage up and down with a judgmental look on his face.
"Yes." I guide the horde of Huskies to the backyard where their shelter is. "This is the best around the area."
Lain follows after me with an unpleased expression embedded in his adorable face. "You call a wooden, absolutely run-down cottage ’the best’?"
"Come on, it is not that bad." I settle the Huskies in their shelter.
The wooden cottage is pretty small, and its roof, veranda, and windowsill have collected a thick layer of snow. I just hope the fireplace isn’t the same. There is a small set of wooden stairs leading up to the front door of the cottage as its foundation is a little high up the ground. The stairs are too under the blanket of white snow though it has seemingly been cleaned a little while ago. The snow has been shoveled out of the front porch as well but it is collecting snow pretty speedily.
"I don’t think so." Lain huffs, his warm breath turning into white mist from the lack of warmth as he speaks. Lain’s face is flushed, seemingly from the freezing weather. He looks like a potato sack from all the heavy layers of clothing. And it makes him breathtakingly adorable. I need to tamp down the urge to pinch those red cheeks of his as he scowls.
I assess him with pure amusement in my eyes. He looks like a bundle of cuteness.
"What are you looking at?" He looks down his nose at me despite him being at least good six inches shorter than me.
I tear my eyes away from him, covering my mouth with my hand so that he won’t see the smug grin spreading across my face. I shake my head. "Nothing."
He huffs again. "Let’s go inside. I can’t stand to be outside anymore. It is freakishly cold here."
"You don’t like cold?" I ask—even though I already know the answer—as I circle the house and come to the front steps of it, followed by a penguin-like Lain. Our footsteps are imprinted on the snow-coated ground as we move around in our snow boots.
Lain isn’t particularly fond of cold weather. He has been cranky ever since we came here.
"I don’t hate it. But I don’t like it either." A frown creases Lain’s smooth forehead, "The cold under gets on my nerves."
I bite the underside of my cheek to keep myself from crackling. He is cute when he is all moody and grumpy.
We enter the house. It has a warm and cozy interior, though it is a little too small for four people to live in. There is a housekeeper who lives a few blocks away from here. He will take care of our food and cleaning service. He is getting paid for that. There are two bedrooms in the house, both situated on the second floor. The fire in the fireplace is doing a great job of keeping the place from freezing.
"You like it?" I look over my shoulder to Lain who scrutinizes the living room and the open kitchen.
"It is small." He says.
"Stop complaining." I chide, and he just only scowls in response.
Jennifer and Fred have yet to arrive. I am assuming Jennifer is having a great time driving the sleigh down the mountain. This small village is located in the middle of three snowy mountains, and the cult is just several kilometers away from here. This place is a very remote area, but I chose it for its proximity to the cult headquarters. Makes it easier for me to investigate it.
***
"I am not sharing my room," Jennifer says adamantly as she crosses her arms over her chest.
"Stop throwing tantrums." I sneer, "It doesn’t suit you."
"I don’t give a shit." She snarls, "I am a woman and I am rooming with neither of you guys."
"I am your goddamned nephew, Jennifer." My lips are thinning.
"Doesn’t matter. You are a man." She refuses to budge.
I give her a disgruntled look.
We have decided to go to the cult tomorrow since the night is already falling by the time we are settling down. But there is a problem. The lack of bedrooms.
Jennifer refuses to share. I am taking another bedroom as it is obvious. I can’t let Lain sleep alone downstairs, who knows if he will run away again, and I will be damned if I have to look for him here. Other than that I am pretty sure that this guy sneaked out of the fortress that day when I caught him half naked in the bathroom. I don’t have enough evidence and witnesses to prove my theory, though I know it because Lain implied it, and his eyes challenged me. I can’t take risks anymore.
At this point, I am not even sure why I am doing this. Am I doing this for the Kingdom that I show it to be? Partly. But originally, I am doing this because...I know his disappearance will spiral me. And we don’t talk about it.
So the room arrangement is simple: Jennifer takes the first bedroom. Lain and I are taking the second one. Fred is sleeping in the living room.
So we are back together, huh?