And I knew it.
But I still wanted to stay here instead of opening my eyes.
Stefan and I were on the beach.He lay beside me, cool sunglasses on his handsome face.He slowly turned to me and smiled.
I grinned back.I wore the same white bikini I always did in these dreams.And I looked fantastic.
Stefan grabbed for me, but I was too fast for him.I jumped up and ran out to the sea.No one else was around.We had all of this to ourselves.I dipped my toe into the water, expecting it to be cold.Instead, it was warm.
Deliciously warm.
The sudden urge to—pee—came over me.
“No,” I mumbled, waking me up fully.I opened my eyes to see Stefan's bedroom.I couldn't help but smile at the absurdity of—me—being in a castle.And married to the man who owned it.No matter how temporarily.
And this bed was—oh, my gosh.The best thing ever.The sheets were divine.And the big comfy blanket on top was light and fluffy, but so warm all at the same time.
I never wanted to leave.I could live forever in this bed.
The only thing stopping me from reaching my goal was my stupid bladder.My eyes caught sight of the IV still in my hand.I gazed up to see an almost full bag on the pole.The nurse must've changed it recently.Which meant I'd had at least one bag so far.And from the time on the clock—possibly more.
I’d been asleep for hours and hours.
I grabbed some gauze from the bedside table and removed the catheter from my hand.There were some loose bandages beside the gauze.I opened one and stuck it to my hand.
Then I jumped out of bed and ran like my life depended on it to the bathroom.Once there—the relief I felt was astronomical.
The doctor was right.I had been dehydrated.But that was obviously no longer the case based on how long I sat here for.
Who knew a bladder could hold that much fluid?
After I finished, I looked at myself in the mirror.Not as zombie-scary as before.But still pretty scary.My hair was all floofy, going out in all directions.It was clean, though.Thank goodness.A braid was the only thing that would tame this craziness.
If there were hair elastics here, they’d be in one of the drawers.I searched and searched, but all I came up with was an elastic band that the pharmacy had used to hold the lubricant and vaginal cream together.Well, like my granny used to say, “Beggars can't be choosers.”
It didn't take me long to brush my hair and braid it into submission.I didn't cringe too badly when I tied the elastic around the end of my braid.Even if it damaged the ends, it didn't matter.I needed a trim anyway.
I stretched my arms up and yawned.No aches or pains.Hmm.Not even between my legs.I should use the cream the doctor sent over.But first—a shower to freshen up.I removed the fabulous gold nightie and hung it carefully over one of the towel racks.Something as nice as that shouldn't be on the floor.
Stefan's shower was ridiculous.In a good way.I wondered if he'd chosen the stone tiles surrounding me.They were perfect for this house.
Or this castle.
I turned on the water and smiled, just imagining using it every day.
That didn't compute inside my brain.
I probably spent too much in there.But could you blame me?It was lovely in here.
I used Stefan's soap.His manly soap.Maybe I'd search later to see if there was anything less woodsy around.
Not that it mattered.Soap was soap.And there were worse things in life than smelling like Stefan.
After I was done rinsing, I grabbed a fluffy white towel to dry off with.Whatever kind of laundry detergent Stefan's service used was amazing.I'd never felt such soft towels in my life.
All my stained, threadbare towels at home were from the charity stores.Not great—but the price was right.
My teeth felt a little furry.So, I flossed, brushed, and used mouthwash again.Then I went in search of something to wear.I wandered into the bedroom to the closet.Gosh, I loved how it smelled like Stefan in here.I took in a deep breath and smiled.
