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Suddenly, just as quickly as it all began, it stops. The bed stills, and Luci’s hold on me loosens as his body goes limp.

“Luci?” I whisper after a few seconds of complete silence.

He doesn’t answer.

I feel for his wrist and press my fingers against it, but I can find now pulse. Nervously, I reach out to place my hand flat on his chest. My own heart beating so hard that I can hardly think.

Still, nothing.

He’s dead. He has to be dead.

My heart literally stalls in my chest as I start to hyperventilate.

Panic truly sets in as I come to terms with what this might mean. They’re going to kill me. There’s no way they’d believe he just up and died on top of me.

Oh my god.

“Evi.”

Thud.

I have to clutch my chest at the pain of my heart restarting in my chest.

“You’re alive?”

“Yes, but I need your help if I’m going to stay that way.”

I can’t help but note how rough and weary his voice sounds.

“What should I do?”

“I need heat.”

“Should I run you a bath or hot shower?”

“No,” he says, his voice suddenly harsh. “No water. I need dry heat.”

“I-I don’t understand,” I say, though I’m pretty sure I know exactly what he’s asking of me.

“Your body, Evi. I need your body heat.”

“Why?”

He doesn’t have time to answer before his body seizes again, and a wave of guilt washes over me for not helping him when he asked. I know I don’t owe this man anything, but I don’t think I could live with myself if I let him die.

When he finally still again, I’ve made up my mind.

“Can you move further onto the bed?”

“I think so.”

Luci grunts as he shifts his body fully onto the bed, and I let out a small sigh of relief to finally have access to my legs again.

“Should I lie next to you or …” I trail off.

“I need you to remove my clothes,” he says through gritted teeth, as though he’s struggling to maintain control of his body.

Forcing myself not to askwhy, I pull the blanket off me as I move to feel for him in the dark. For once, I’m thankful for the pitch-black room and that neither of us can see anything. My hands find his torso, and I run them over his body in search of the buttons.


Tags: Alice Wilde Romance