“Why don’t you lie down and close your eyes and see if that makes it any better?”
I gently maneuver her so she’s lying with her head in my lap as I play with her hair. I make sure to avoid the spot she’s got the bandage on. When she fell, she hit the edge of my desk before hitting the ground, which is probably why she doesn’t remember anything from right before. It also acted as a kind of break, so she didn’t hit the floor so hard or tense up, otherwise she would have more than a little bandage on her head to deal with.
I call my mom and sister to tell them we are heading back home. They’ve promised to meet me there and help me take care of Lumi tonight. They wanted to come to the hospital, but I told them that too many people might overwhelm her. I knew there was no way to keep Mom away after we got out, though.
Once we pull down the driveway, I gently wake her up, only long enough to make sure she actually is responsive and for me to slide out. I scoop her out and carry her into the house. Mom opens the door for us as I take her up to my room without even stopping. I watch as mom fusses over her before leaving, so I can help her out of her elf uniform and into one of my t-shirts.
I try to remind myself that my angel is vulnerable and doesn’t need me to be a pervert. Still, it doesn’t stop me from lovingly cataloguing every curve and dip of her beautiful body as I unwrap her. She’s better than Christmas and the most beautiful present I have ever been given by far. The best present is the trust she is putting in me as I help her step out of her skirt and work the stripped tights down her legs.
“You okay, angel?”
“We shouldn’t be doing this, Luka.” A worried frown mars her face before she tries to bring her hand back up to her head.
“I shouldn’t be taking care of you?”
“I don’t…I don’t think…”
“We’re friends, are we not, sweetheart?”
“Yes.”
“Then let me take care of you, sweet girl. Let me make sure you never have anything to worry about ever again.”
It comes out as a plea. I’m not above begging her. I’ll beg, pray, plead, whatever I have to do, as long as I'm able to keep this little elf that has come into my life and brought all her magic with her. My lips find hers, and before I can rethink what I’m doing, I’m taking her mouth with my own. This is not one of the little kisses that I normally drop on her upturned lips before leaving her. This kiss is different.
She gasps at the intensity, and I take my opportunity to enter her sweet cavern and explore. It takes her a minute, but she eventually starts kissing me back. It doesn’t take an expert to know she hasn’t ever let someone take her mouth before, but damned if she isn’t a quick learner. By the time I pull back, both of us are breathing like we just ran for our lives, and my restraint is thin and shaky at best. The only thing that keeps me from pushing my little angel down and taking her is the fact that she’s hurt. The reminder is enough for my stomach to turn and for me to take a step back.
I’m a monster.
“I shouldn’t have done that.”
As soon as the words are out of my mouth, I realize they are the wrong words to use. Lumi flinches back and tries to take a step away from me, only to be pulled up short by the edge of the bed. Hurt flashes in her eyes, and she won’t meet mine.
“I should go home.”
She is home. She just doesn’t realize it yet.
Chapter Seventeen
Lumi
What is wrong with me? I shouldn’t have kissed him. And he instantly regretted it. How awful must it have been to instantly regret it like that? Pretty awful if I had to guess.
What time is it even? I have to check in with the Agency before I go home, and all I want is to lie down and close my eyes again.
“Where’s my skirt? And why did you take my tights off?”
“Darling, you can’t be by yourself right now.” I stare at him, trying to make sense of what he is telling me, even as my head feels like it's going to explode. “You have to stay here for the night.”
“No. I can’t, Luka.”
“You have to.”
“You don’t understand. I can’t stay here.” Especially not after that embarrassing kiss.
“There’s nowhere else you're going, Lumi. Now, come on and help me with this top.” He holds the shirt up for me, and it’s only then that I realize I’ve been standing in front of him in nothingbut my bra and panties. I make an odd sound that is halfway between a yelp and a noise a small animal might make before being eaten.
I reach for the shirt, but he won’t let me have it. Instead, he uses it to pull me closer to him.
