I jump out of bed and stride towards the connecting door, but the noise has stopped. I hesitate at the door. There are no more noises. Just as I start to move away from the door, I hear it again. A high-pitched shriek. I fling open the door and burst into Cindy’s bedroom.
Cindy’s bedside lamp is on and I blink a few times against the bright light after the darkness of my own room. She’s sitting up on the bed, her knees drawn to her chest and her arms wrapped around them. She’s rocking back and forth gently and her face is as white as the sheets around her. Her eyes swing around towards me. They are wide with utter terror. If I had not seen it I could never have believed that such a strong and confident woman like her could look like that. A cold horror grips my belly. I never want to see her like this again.
“It’s ok,” I say quickly. “It’s just me. I heard you …”
I don’t get to finish the sentence before she bolts out of the bed and sprints towards me. She throws herself against me and I instinctively wrap my arms around her. As she clings to me I feel her body shaking. She’s only wearing a thin nightdress and her skin feels cold. Her breath comes shallow and fast. I look around the room. There are no noises and nothing in the room. I won’t tell her she is imagining it, but as far as I can see she is in no danger.
“Shh, it’s ok,” I whisper against her hair. It smells of coconut or strawberries. I can’t help but suddenly become aware of all her curves pressed against me. I ignore the lust inside of me. I have to come to terms with the fact that I will always want this woman, no matter what the circumstances are. Even when she is this terrified!
“What happened?” I ask her gently.
She takes a shaking breath.
“I heard it again, Alex. My name. From the bathroom. I’m not imagining it, Alex. And it wasn’t a dream.”
I don’t bother telling her it’s just the pipes or the floorboards whispering. I know she doesn’t believe that. And I’m starting to think it’s not the pipes either, but I also don’t think it was supernatural. This house has been standing here for a half-century with not a single report of a ghost before Cindy came to it.
“Why didn’t you come to my room?”
She pulls away from me and I see a little of her fighting spirit come back to her. “You made it quite clear that wasn’t an option.”
“Yeah well, sometimes I say shit I don’t mean.”
“Yeah, well, I didn’t know that.”
“Now you do.”
She bites her bottom lip and my cock stirs. I clear my throat. “I’ll go take a look in the bathroom.”
She nods gratefully and I can feel her eyes on me as I cross the room. I push the bathroom door open and turn on the light. There’s nothing and no one there of course.
“It’s all clear.” I turn the light off and walk back towards her.
“Did you mean it?” she asks. “When you said I should have come to you?”
“Of course,” I say.
“Good.” She smiles tentatively, then turns away and quickly walks into my room. She really doesn’t want to stay in her room for one second longer than necessary. Whatever noises she’s hearing are terrifying her a lot more than I first thought. She’s way too stubborn to change her mind and come to my room if she wasn’t scared out of her mind.
I follow her into my room and shut the connecting door. Cindy has turned a lamp on and she’s sitting on my bed. Her back is against the headboard and her legs are beneath the sheet. That’s a good thing. I don’t need those legs calling out to me.
I want to fuck her so bad, I can feel my skin tingling where her skin touched mine, but I don’t want her to think she can’t come to me unless she’s willing to put out.
“I’ll take the couch,” I say.
“I think we’re past that, Alex. Just get in the bed,” she says. “We’re adults. We can sleep in the same bed without making it weird.”
Well, count me out of your adult games. It will be very weird to get in bed with Cindy and not have sex with her.
“It’s okay. I’m happy with the couch.” I turn away from her and start walking towards the lounge. The sense of déjà vu is crushing.
“I should have come to you this morning,” she says.
I stop walking and smile. The last time this happened … “Well you didn’t,” I reply, turning slowly towards her. She is smiling softly. The yellow light of the lamp has turned her hair to spun gold and her eyes gleam like blue sapphires.