Cullen slept for another two days after that, waking up periodically for around an hour before being overcome by his tiredness again. Knowing he was healing well, the Inquisitor began to attend meetings again, leaving Skyhold for no more than a day at a time to make sure she could be back to check on the Commander's recovery and talk with him for a while.

Night after night, they slept next to each other, hardly touching. Solas mentioned only once to them both, separately, he felt Cullen was well enough to move back to his own quarters, but nothing came of it. Neither half of the pair shared the information with each other either.

So Evelyn wasn't surprised when she headed up to her quarters to find the man sound asleep, sat almost upright on her bed, his chest moving gently with the sounds of his breathing. He looked peaceful, more so than he had weeks before the stabbing.

A bowl and spoon not far from the bed, it looked to contain some kind of half-eaten soup.

Evelyn was glad to see him looking better, now he was able to eat and drink, his skin began to show its true complexion again. His dressings had been removed, leaving two dark pink lines on his stomach. They looked both tender and angry, still painful enough to prevent Cullen from being unable to wear a shirt. Thank the Maker for small mercies.

Evelyn didn't have the time to admire how handsome he looked after finally being able to brush his golden curls because she caught a strong whiff of burning and knew she had to get out of her leathers. Stupid Dragonling!

One lucky shot and it had ruined her armour as well as burning through to the skin, it was only a mild burn, one a topical potion could heal up in a few days.

Confident Cullen wouldn't wake anytime soon, she rooted through her drawers in search of something until her leathers could be repairs, she then approached her desk with her clothing with the intentions of tending her wounds and redressing.

But this time her confidence was misplaced. Dropping the top half of her leathers to the floor must have been what started Cullen awake.

He scanned the room, looking around for the source of the noise. His eyes almost immediately locked onto the Inquisitor as she perched on her desk, with her bare back facing him. He knew he had to turn away, but he couldn't.

Cullen was instantly transfixed by the divine figure before him. A goddess with skin so creamy he wanted to run his hands all over her, a figure so slender he could wrap his arms around her, a back that arched and moved with the grace and elegance of a dancer.

There was nothing he could find that described the woman in front of him. A delicate flower. A heavenly angel.

He found his heart thumping in his chest as he drank in the sight and allowed it to sink into his brain, there was nothing, no one more perfect than the Herald of Andraste.

His breath caught slightly when Evelyn twisted slightly to one side, exposing the slight curve of her breast. No matter how much he wanted to keep looking, Cullen forced himself to look away, she would be mortified if he saw any more.

She would already be horrified at him watching so much. He heard her hiss slightly and couldn't help but steal another glance.

Evelyn stood up and was tending to a small wound on her ribs, it didn't look serious but enough to warrant her opening a bottle stashed in her desk drawer. It was supposed to be for Cullen's wounds, but he didn't mind sharing if this was what he got to see.

Cullen had to hold his breath when Evelyn extended her arms, testing her manoeuvrability to make sure the wound wouldn't restrict her. Maker. Cullen could have lost it right there, she was so beautiful. Her body so divine. Just... divine.

Her legs were unbelievably long and the way those leathers clung to her hips, squeezing her backside into two perfectly formed firm circles. He could look at her for days and never get bored. He could watch her for days and never look at another woman for even a second.

Then Cullen began to panic. He quickly realised the whole outfit was to be removed and that was too much. He felt wrong for even looking.

His already pounding heart was suddenly thundering as he turned away and looked down at the bed, he had no idea what to do. Should he announce himself? Should he pretend to wake again, making himself look totally innocent?

In all his turmoil and confusion, Cullen briefly forgot his injury and his squirming caused a surge of pain to shoot through his body, momentarily paralysing him as he cried out.

That was enough to frighten the Inquisitor into grabbing the nearest thing she could throw on, which happened to be the Commander's overcoat. It was miles too big without all his armour, so she slung it over her head and pulled the back down, covering her modesty but exposing her back.

"Are you alright?" Evelyn asked as she turned to face the man, pain etched on his face as he held his side. Embarrassed by almost being caught short, she busied herself by grabbing one of the pain relieving potions and rushed to Cullen's side. "Here, this will help!" She said lifting the bottle to his lips and placing her free hand on the back of his head, helping tip his head back.

What was left of the bottle was gone quickly. This was his punishment for snooping, he was sure of it.

Cullen carefully pulled himself back upright, fiddling with the bed sheet to make sure he was covered too, only then he was sure could he speak to Evelyn.

"Sorry, I-" He was so flustered, he could hardly string a sentence together before he knew it he was blushing and rubbing the back of his neck. That told Evelyn everything she needed to know.

Her hands shot up to her face, hiding her own flushed skin as she sat beside Cullen on the bed. "I thought you wouldn't wake up yet. This is horrible-"

"-I'll go. Back to my quarters-" He interrupted, not wanting the Inquisitor to feel bad on his part. He was the one that shouldn't have looked, this was her room, after all, her privacy he invaded.

This time it was Evelyn who interrupted Cullen. The last thing she wanted was to make an injured man stagger out of the door because she had been so stupid. She wasn't even sure if he had attempted walking yet, it had been over a week since his attack and he hadn't moved from her bed."-I don't want that!" It came out too forceful, like leaving wasn't an option. Of course, it was an option, he was a grown man who wanted to get back to work. He could leave whenever he was ready.

For a minute the pair sat in an awkward silence, something they hadn't experienced yet. They'd been sleeping beside each other for a few nights now, so Evelyn had half expected an awkward conversation in the morning, but whenever she woke Cullen was still sleeping.

She felt him wake in the night sometimes, his body cramped and aching from laying in the same position but he couldn't move without hurting himself. He never woke for long but sometimes Evelyn could feel him just stroking her back and other times, she could hear him huff in pain, so she would sit up and play with his hair.

Something he really seemed to enjoy.

It took a little time for Cullen's heart to reach a slower pace, it might have gone back to normal had the Inquisitor not been sat so close, he could never unsee the things he saw just moments ago. And the fact she was wearing his fur definitely wasn't helping. "W-were you hurt?"

Evelyn finally looked up from her hands, a wry smile on her face when she thought about who won the battle in the end. "Just a dragonling, nothing serious." She said bravely, pushing the fabric away to reveal a hand-sized pink burn. Without thinking, Cullen's hand reached up, his fingers brushing the skin just south of the burn making her flinch but not pull away. "I put some Elfroot on it, but I can't reach all the way." She said absently, peeking down at her new affliction.

"I can do it!" Cullen said quickly, realising he was a little too hasty, he slowed down. He genuinely wanted to help. "You've done it for me."

She'd done that and so much more over the last few days, going above and beyond what friends do for another. She gave up her bed, her sanctuary and her freedom for him. Evelyn sat by while he slept, took note from Solas and Vivienne on the care he required, administered pain relief while he slept.

She did anything Cullen needed and even indulged in reading to him when he woke and could do nothing but lay in her bed. The reading definitely helped. Sometimes hearing her voice helped lull him back to sleep and sometimes it helped relieve the pain and boredom.

He wanted to do something that would help her in return.

Evelyn silently stood, returning to her desk for the potion she was using and the rag she used to dab the skin. She let Cullen adjust himself to a comfortable position before sitting back on the edge of the bed. Something about his strong hands touching her skin made her heart flutter but she remained strong, she couldn't let him know the effect he had on her.

They sat almost silently as the roles reversed and Cullen carefully tended to the Inquisitor, trying to be as gentle as possible. He couldn't stand the thought of hurting her. Every time she made a sound or a movement, he murmured an apology, trying not to break his concentration and risk hurting her further.

He was so deeply engrossed in caring for Evelyn, Cullen didn't even notice the ridiculous grin on her face. It was only when he recorked the bottle and looked up, he realised she'd been close to laughing the whole time. "What?"

Evelyn shook her head. "Nothing. I've just never seen you so focused."

Cullen frowned slightly, not sure if she was mocking him. "Is that bad?"

Evelyn smiled again, this time less of a grin and more of a genuine smile of happiness. "No. Definitely not!" She replied, very gently lifting a hand to brush away the frown. Without thinking, Cullen sighed, closed his eyes and leant into her hand. He had grown so used to her touch in the past few days, he could hardly imagine going back to normal, being in separate quarters and waking up alone.

That was probably why he was caught so off-guard when Evelyn leant in and pressed a faster-than-lighting kiss on his lips. His eyes popped open as she moved back, pulling her hand away.

Her kiss sparked an almost instant internal battle. Cullen was dumb-founded by her plant while practically desperate for her to do it again, he wanted her so badly but knew it would cause gossip all over the castle.

His brain spat out different scenarios every second, could they?

Should they?

Would the Inquisition be affected?

Was it acceptable? Professional?

Evelyn must have read his face better than a book because she moved so quickly, it couldn't have been anything else. She slid from her position on the bed, climbing over Cullen's outstretched legs so she sat over him, her knees either side of his hips carefully avoiding his waist through fear of knocking his injuries.

Both hands grabbed his face and lifted his head, daring him to look her in the eyes. And just like that, he had the answers.

Her stunning blue eyes flipped a switch in his brain and melted his heart, he lifted a hand to touch her always pristine hair as it fell over her shoulder, his other hand taking her waist the way he wanted to for weeks.

She was too beautiful to let go, she was every thing he wanted and more. Just the right amount of love and care and attitude mixed into one.

She always smelled like the sweetest fruits and her name, Maker, her name just rolled off his tongue. "Evelyn..."

That was enough for her.

She smiled as she brought her lips back down to meet his again, this time allowing Cullen to reciprocate.

Evelyn could feel him smiling back as they found a rhythm quickly, their lips grazing one another and their hearts pounding hard enough that when they drifted closer, chest-to-chest, they could feel each other beating.

Cullen's hands were so much softer than she ever imagined, feeling them glide down her shoulders and to her waist was amazing, he left trails of heat anywhere he went. For someone who spent his time ordering men around and swinging a sword, he was so compassionate and so gentle.

He was so instantly intuned, despite being a nervous wreck whenever she dropped a compliment his way.

His lips placed kisses like feathers, they were there, but almost not there. His whole demeanour left her spinning.

Evelyn allowed her hands to roam this time. Floating down from his face, sweeping down his neck to his broad shoulders. Mapping out every muscle in his back, feeling them flex and ripple as he wrapped his arms around her to pull her closer.

For those brief minutes, nothing else mattered in the world. They were just two people, exploring one another's hearts and trying to disregard everything that happened in the last week.

Wrapping themselves in each other's arms was enough, for now, they didn't need to rush things. They were adults, but they were allowing themselves to act like lovestruck teenagers while they could.

And it continued that way until Cullen hissed in pain, the sound pressed against Evelyn's lips spooked her for a moment but not nearly as much as when she realised, she was causing him that pain. In all the excitement of finally acknowledging their feelings, she'd gotten too close, her knee pushing into his wound making him grit his teeth.

"Oh, Cullen!" She cried, shifting her knee and attempting to pull away. "I'm sorry!"

It was apparent she wasn't going to get very far though. With one arm still locked tight around her waist, Cullen blindly reached to his right his eyes never leaving Evelyn's as he grabbed a pillow and stuffed it between her knee and his hip, preventing anything else getting remotely close to his new scars.

Comfortable in the knowledge he was relatively safe from harm, Cullen pulled Evelyn as close as he dared, letting one hand slip under his fur coat and the other ghosting her thigh before whispering one more time.

"Evelyn, you're so beau-"

She cut him off before he could finish.

Neither spoke for the rest of the night.