Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 31042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31042 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
I get the feeling that, like me, she’s seen some things she wishes that she could forget.
"Yes," the word is a broken whisper on my lips.
"Then you know how I feel," she murmurs softly.
I don’t want to ask any more questions. Not if it’s making her this sad. But before I can figure out how to change the subject, she stands. “I’ll save my other questions for something special.”
I follow her into the warm cabin, the cheerful glow making me wonder what darkness my beautiful girl has seen. Will she ever trust me enough to share it with me?
We clean the kitchen together, and she’s quieter than usual. Normally, she spends the time telling me some interesting facts about her favorite horror movies. Tonight there’s nothing, and I never realized how loud silence could be until this moment.
After we’re done cleaning the kitchen, I stream her favorite TV show. She settles on the couch next to me. I want to tell her that she’s my favorite person to spend time with and that I’m glad she’s here, but the words don’t come.
Something about the TV show seems more upsetting than usual to her. She doesn’t frighten easily. In fact, I’d argue she’s one of the bravest people I know, but tonight she seems jittery and uncertain.
“We can watch something else,” I tell her when the show has ended.
She shakes her head and tells me that she’s going to hit the bed then leaves me alone. I’m left staring at the place where she used to sit. How is it that before her, I didn’t feel lonely, but now that I have her, I feel it in those moments when she’s not next to me?
Shaking my head, I fluff my pillows and fall into a dreamless sleep for several hours. It’s not until screams wake me from my sleep.
It’s a woman screaming, and it takes me a full thirty seconds to register that it’s not just any woman, it’s Sophie. Sophie is screaming in my bedroom. Bella cowers behind the couch.
I race to my bedroom and fling open the door. I’m fully expecting her to be in that white wedding gown again because she’s pranking me.
Instead, she’s curled up under a pile of blankets, screaming and crying. My heart breaks when I realize this isn’t her idea of a prank. She’s genuinely terrified in her sleep.
I reach for her shoulder, shaking her roughly until she’s opening her eyes. She clutches my arms, her nails digging into my skin. As my arms sting and bleed, I watch as the nightmare slowly recedes.
“You’re safe now,” I promise.
She lets out a noise that sounds like a strangled sob. “I thought I was back there.”
I have no idea where she thought she was, and her terror fills me with rage. Whatever she faced, I wish I could go back in time and rescue her. I’d make it so that she never had to go through something so awful.
“You’re OK now,” I reassure.
She’s breathing hard, sweaty and flushed as she stares up at me.
I’d give anything to hug her right now, but I don’t know what she came through or how to help her. I want to help her more than anything. “What do you need, Sophie?”
“Stay with me,” she croaks the words from a throat raw from screaming.
I join her on the bed, surprised when she snuggles close and puts her head on my t-shirt. Warmth and contentment flow through me as my hands seem to move on their own, rubbing up and down her back. I’m not sure which of us finds it more soothing.
For a long moment, I don’t say anything. Then I realize that maybe she’s just waiting on an invitation, the knowledge that I’ll listen to her. “I’m here if you want to talk about it.”
“Just hold me,” she pleads.
“I won’t ever let go,” I promise, and hold her until she’s softly snoring against my chest. I don’t know what caused my curvy girl’s nightmares, but I know that I want to be the one who’s always holding her through them.
It takes me hours to fall asleep, even after she’s softly snoring. She’s the most precious thing I’ve ever held. I’m afraid if I close my eyes, I’ll discover I’ve dreamed her up. Her apple scent, her lush hips, and her warmth are anchoring me in the present.
But eventually, I drift to sleep only to wake up hours later when she’s untangling her body from mine. Her naked thigh brushes against my hard-on, and I let out a soft moan. I didn’t expect to wake like this, with her body on top of mine. Even in sleep I want her.
She stills at my noise and glances up at me. In the morning glow, her face is pale and makeup free. I love all those colors she normally wears, but I love this look even more. I reach for her face, cupping it. “I love it when you’re bare.”