After we washed up, I led her to the bedroom. “Are you sure you don’t want to sleep in a t-shirt instead of that costume? It doesn’t seem like it would be comfortable.”
Chloe flushed pink. “I’ll be fine.”
I got the impression she didn’t want to sleep without any pants on.
And it’s not like I could blame her. The woman was getting in bed with a stranger. It must feel uncomfortable for her. And maybe even a little intimidating.
But if she was worried about what I might do to her in the bed, she wasn’t showing it. Chloe seemed content and sleepy.
She crawled right on and shimmied under the covers, taking my pillow and wrapping her arm around half of it.
I grabbed a pair of sweatpants and folded them into a square for me to use as a pillow tonight. Then I grabbed another pair of sweatpants and, on second thought, an old t-shirt, too.
Normally I slept as naked as the day I was brought onto this earth, but tonight I’d cover myself up for her sake.
Sliding into the bed felt stranger than I’d expected.
This wasintimate.
“Do you need anything else? Is it comfortable enough?” I asked as I flicked off the nightstand lamp.
Night descended on us, black as pitch, with the storm raging outside.
Quietly she said, “This is comfy. You have a nice bed. Thanks again for letting me stay here. This must be strange for you.”
“For me? I think it’s probably stranger for you.”
“Not for me. It feels perfect. I really like your place. It feels so grounded.”
“Grounded?”
“Like part of nature. I like that it smells like the woods.”
“You mean the wood-smoke smell? Normally, I have a fire going. I got carried away talking to you and forgot to get one started.”
“But it’s so warm in here.”
“I went to the expense of installing central heat and air. I like it warm in the winter. I work outside a lot.”
“What do you do for work?”
I could see how this was going. We were going to end up talking all night long.
“I mostly do construction for a small, local company. But that’s a warm-weather gig. In the winter I supplement my funds with whatever work comes along. I hang Christmas lights, then take them back down for people. Shovel snow off driveways after storms. And sometimes I take tourists out on hunting trips. We do some snow-camping, and let the city guys feel like real men for a weekend.”
She laughed. “You’ve got quite an opinion of city people. Do I fit in that category?”
“You? You don’t fit any categories. You’re… kind of unique.”
Chloe’s eyes sought me out in the dark, and she rustled under the covers, shifting to face me. “You really think that?”
“Yeah. You have a certain… quiet about you I’m not sure I’ve experienced before. It’s… comfortable being around you.”
“Is that rare for you? Feeling comfortable around people?”
She was digging deep. I still didn’t know why I’d let her in so much in the first place. But I couldn’t seem to stop myself.
“Yeah. I think so. I’m comfortable around people I’ve known my whole life. My uncle, my friends. But so many people are into things I couldn’t give a rat’s ass about.”
