CHAPTER 12
Sleep with me. The words play a salacious tune in my already dancing heart. A soft nod of acquiesce shifts my head from his solid chest as I gaze up at him through the darkness, his blazing eyes gleaming down at me.
I do want to sleep with him. Wishes do come true, apparently.
Without speaking further, Red closes the door to my bedroom and leads me toward his bedroom, still holding me on the small of my back. Oh, we're sleeping in his bed? I flush. It's even more exciting this way.
"I got you, Mia," Red whispers when I jump subtly upon another thunder strike. Damn it!
"I don't know why you're saying that, but I'm not scared." My hand is holding his arm tightly as I'm bragging my lies.
Stifling a laugh, Red remarks, "Yes, Madam. You're totally fine on your own. You are not scared at all."
"Really? You've learned sarcasm now?" I recoil, feeling safe despite the odds outside the house . . . happy even.
Why didn't the realtor warm me about this place? Yeah, it normally rains in Astoria but still— ugh! It's pouring harsher and it's getting chillier.
My silky nightdress barely holds my body warmth. I’m cold. Shutting the door behind us, Red uses his phone's flashlight to lead our way into the room.
"Lie down," he tells me, and it's now that he gets to see the provoking nature of my nightdress as he beholds a proper sight of me. “Oh God,” he mutters under his breath.
Fuck! I flush, embarrassed. The plunge V-neck of my dress doesn't do much in securing my fully erect teats from the cold and skin contact with Red. Oh wow! How easy I've become!
"Okay." I comply. Red takes a deep breath as I head towards the bed. Triumph rallies inside me with full content. "You coming?" I ask before lying down, gazing at him with my artful coquettish gaze.
"Yeah." Red turns the flashlight off and heads towards the other side of the room where a wooden closet is installed.
I can't see clearly but I think he's taking off his shorts. I hold the warm duvet tightly, imagining things I probably shouldn't for my own good. Instinctively, I press my thighs together. Holy cow!
The room lightens up from the now soundless thunder, and I see my Red approaching the bed in a pair of joggers with undetected color— maybe blue or black— still in his T-shirt. But I wonder for how long he can keep them, because I'm on fire.
What the heck, Mia! Have you turned into a sex predator?
"I thought you're sleepy," Red mocks as he climbs onto the bed. I move aside, drawing a bigger space for him while smiling. The bed is big enough for us both but I desire no distance between us.
"I am," I mutter, my eyes locked up with his. We're now lying on our sides, facing each other directly. "But it's a bit hard sleeping with you like this," I confess.
"Why?" Red asks gently, a small smile tugging his lips into a sexy grin.
Jeez, he’s so amused.
"Are you dumb or what?" I pout, and he chuckles lightly. "I want to—" It roars again, cutting me off. "Fuck it!" I growl, and my bodyguard starts laughing as I cover my face with the duvet.
"Come here," Red says and I roll toward him instantly. "Ah, you're so adorable." He scoots me in his arms, ignoring my accusing glance at the comment.
Isn’t adorable another form of vulnerability and clumsiness?
"I really hate lightning," I say, laying my head on his chest. What a nice place to be! I drink in his scent, the one I know by heart.
"Why? Are you just scared of it?" Red asks, sounding deeply interested to know.
"I was six when my dad got into an accident. He was a firefighter. That day it rained heavily, and the lightning was there, too. My mom received the news of him being hurt while saving a little girl from the fire. She left with my aunt to the hospital so it was just me and my two young brothers at home. The rain and its thunder wouldn't stop. It was terrible. I cried nonstop and I was so scared," I say, my heart cringing at the memory.
Red rubs my back smoothly and kisses my hair. "So that’s how it started; some kind of a trauma. I'm so sorry," he mutters. "But your father survived, right?"
"Yeah," I breathe, thinking of that night when everything got snatched away. "It's the same day my mom learned that he had another family. He had a woman and two kids, and my mom was actually the other woman."
"What?" Red snaps, shocked.
I huff at the memory, recalling the many nights where mom would sit at the corner of her bedroom crying. I hated my dad . . . and maybe I still do. He stole my mom's faith and happiness. Sophie doesn't believe in love, just as she doesn’t trust Patrick for me.
"Well, that's it. Whenever it rains and thunders, I always feel like something bad will happen," I say, my eyes already watery.
Without a word, Red pulls me even tighter to his side, engulfing me into a warm and securing embrace. I thaw in his nestle, immuring my face onto his chest as my safest place to be. I feel at home.
"Nothing bad will happen," he whispers, his tone promising. "As long as I'm alive I won't let anyone harm you."
Oh God! I'm too emotional right now. Tears spill down unchecked, and I shut my eyes meditating his words. Why is he so good? But will he stay in my life forever? The thought kills me inside.
"Hey," Red utters quietly, his fingers running smoothly through my hair. I hold my tongue, sniffling. "Mia?" he calls me, worried.
"I'm fine, Red." I catch a breath, lying to him. I'm not fine! I don't want to lose this moment . . . This moment I'm spending with him.
"Look at me," Red says. "Mia, look at me!" he demands this time, and I quickly abide.
"What?" My voice is hardly sound. Red flips me down so he's on top of me in a blink. "Huh?" I gasp, my body pinned down helplessly.
Holy hell! What a twist of events! My breath hitches.
"I don't want you to think of anything but this moment," he says, his tone domineering and cold, yet very hot . . . Such a turn on. "Do you understand?" His breath is libidinously heavy.
"Hmm." I nod gently. "Kiss me!" I blurt out, thinking out loud.
Beguiled, my sexy bodyguard grins down at me. Fuck! I flush multiple shades of red, my coyness patent.
"I was going to," he tells me, and he does exactly that.
In heartbeat I'm savoring the taste of his lips and that of wine. Mmm, yummy. I yank his neck, kissing him deeper, grinding my ass to fully feel his erection poking my sex. A sex predator I am— why denying?
"Fuck, Mia!" Red groans as he pulls back intoxicated. Tugging his T-shirt over his head, he mutters, "I'm taking you again!" His lips are back into mine, more ferocious than before.
I feel wasted as I wake in the morning. I can still hear the rain droplets on the roof. Jeez, what time is it? I scramble to open my eyes, and when I do it's a pair of beautiful sunrise I see in Red's eyes. I smile indulgently.
"Hi," he mutters. His smile is an oasis in the hot Sahara.
"Hi." My naked breasts crush on his bare chest. I kiss his pecks, making him flex, and slowly I trail down his sternum, and his breath quickens.
When I look up at him, he's almost lost, enticed.
"You're evil," he whispers, and I giggle. Leaning down, he steals a kiss on my lips and asks, "Did you sleep well?"
"Hmm," I hum, feeling like a baby, my head free from all the troubles in the world. "You?" I lift my leg and curl it across his hip. He grabs it and caresses my thigh.
"It was great. Are you hungry?" he quizzes.
"Very. Let me go and make something," I say with a yawn.
"No, stay in bed; I'll make breakfast," Red interludes and he sounds no-discussion. "You look tired." He lays another kiss on my lips and slowly frees my leg so he can move.
Jesus! Should I continue getting used to his tenderness? I gasp inwardly as I watch Red's glorious frame leaving the bed. Shirtless, pantsless, only a pair of briefs on him— I go jelly from inside to outside. He slips into his joggers and exits the room after flashing me a small smile.
I hug myself dreamily. I can't sleep as Red prefers me to, because I've got plenty in head now that I'm all alone. It's no longer raining, but it's damp outside. I slowly abandon the bed and quest for something to wear. I wonder where my nightdress is.
Flushing at how it left my body last night, I end up picking Red's T-shirt that's lying on the wooden floor. You'll do, baby. White and clean, smelling of Red— my favorite scent in the world— I throw it over my nudity and push my way back to my bedroom.
What a beautiful night I had. I grin from ear to ear until I find my cellphone buzzing on the bed the second I walk in. I scowl as I reach for it, but I fail to grab it on time as the call ends. Checking the history, my eyes widen to find ten missed calls from Patrick.
"Shit!" I snap, my heart beating as fast as though I've been running on a treadmill.
Oh my God! I quickly check for the time of each call, and they're only a few minutes or seconds apart. A sigh lurches from my lips, relieved somehow. And suddenly there's a text from him, and my finger touches it as quickly as it arrives.
*As much as I love you like crazy, you really know how to get on my nerves Mia! I want you out of that house immediately!
"Oh God," I breathe, shutting my eyes to calm my nerves. What if he knows? I probe, imagining the worst case scenario. "No, Mia, he doesn't know." I sigh deeply, my body quivering.