There was a beat of silence. The kind that made my stomach dip a little. I overstepped. Of course he'd let me be. Healways respected my space, and I fully expected him to pull away.
But instead of getting up, he leaned back in to settle more fully beside me until we were lying down. One hand slipped around my waist, the other moved carefully toward my face. "Hold still a second."
His fingers found the edge of my glasses and gently pulled them off. I blinked at the sudden blur and watched as he leaned over me to set them on the nightstand. The movement drew him in so close that I could feel the warmth of his breath against my cheek, and it sent a flicker of awareness through me. I didn't dare move.
Then he nestled in close again and wrapped both arms around me. "Get some sleep," he whispered. "I'll be here when you wake up."
My eyes fluttered shut again. For the first time in months, I let myself fully relax. Not just go limp from exhaustion, but actuallyrest. Every breath slowed a little more. The buzz in my head quieted.
I didn't feel the need to brace for the next thing to go wrong. I didn't flinch at every movement in the shadows. I just lay there, held in the calm of his arms, and let it all go.
Eli
29
A quiet, familiar hum filtered in through the walls as the town began to wake up. I stirred against the mattress, eyes blinking open to the dim early light that seeped through the window. With the curtains pulled, the room was quite dark, but I could still make out the clock on the wall.
A little after seven. Normally, I'd be up by now. Today, it felt too early.
I started to move but stopped when I felt a warm weight against me. Rowan still lay curled in close, his breathing slow and even. His head rested near my shoulder, and one hand still loosely gripped at my shirt. My arm had gone a bit numb underneath him, but I didn't dare move it. Not when he looked this peaceful.
Last night came back in fragments. The nightmare. His sleep talking. The way his voice cracked when he told me what he saw. The only reason I'd even heard him was because I wasn't yet asleep myself. I'd been lying wide awake on the sofa, but the moment I heard his voice through the door, I knew something was wrong.
I glanced down at him again. There might have still been a little tension in his shoulders, but nothing like before. His face looked softer, and the creases in his brow had eased. Hell, he almost looked younger like this.
I reached up slowly to brush back a bit of hair that had fallen into his eyes. My fingers barely grazed his skin, careful not to startle him. Then, without really thinking, I dipped my head to press a light kiss to the top of his head.
It was quick. So light that he probably wouldn't have noticed it even if he was awake. But I didn't want to disturb him. I just wanted him to know that he was safe. That I was here.
Rowan didn't stir. If he was having any kind of dream, at least it didn't turn on him this time. I let my head drop back against the pillow, content to stay exactly where I was.
Except for my arm.
It had gone from comfortably numb to sharp pins and needles over the past few minutes. I winced as I tried to adjust it just a little to coax the blood flow back. It proved a tricky thing to do without waking him up.
He mumbled something I couldn't make out and shifted in his sleep. Instead of turning over or pulling away, he somehow burrowed himself in even deeper – into the blanketsandinto me. Some kind of instinct drove him straight to the warmest point of contact.
I huffed a quiet laugh under my breath and flexed my fingers a bit to chase out the worst of the tingling. Once I could feel my hand again, I adjusted my position to wrap both arms around him properly. It wasn't the most comfortable setup, but I was fine with it if it meant Rowan could rest more easily.
I must have drifted because the next time I blinked awake, the room had brightened a little. The soft, hazy kind of light that filtered in on a cloudy morning. I glanced at the clock again. Almost 8:30.
Then I figured out what woke me up this time. Rowan was starting to move around just a little bit.
I stayed still, watching as he eased back from where he'd been curled up so tightly against me. His nose scrunched a littlebit, and he brought a hand up to rub at his face before letting it fall back down. His eyes opened a minute later, hazy and unfocused, and his blank stare said he might fall asleep all over again.
"Morning," I said quietly.
His gaze lifted to my face, but it didn't quite find mine right away. There was a beat where I could almost see the slow realisation set in of where he was and how close we still were.
Then his eyes widened a bit, and he quickly glanced away to stare at the pillow. His face went red almost instantly. I could see the flush climbing up his neck and to his ears.
Yep. He was awake now.
A quiet snort of laughter slipped out before I could stop it. I sat up and scrubbed a hand through my hair, not even bothering to hide the grin tugging at the corners of my mouth. I didn't call out his predicament, though. He already looked like he might die of embarrassment without my help.
Instead, I stretched a little and said casually, "Looks like you slept better. That's the most relaxed I've seen you in a while."
To his credit, Rowan made a valiant attempt to play it cool. "Yeah..." was all he bothered to say, and it didn't come out much louder than the sound of the bed sheets rustling as he adjusted them around himself. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing.
