The weight of what happened hits me hard, and all of a sudden, I’m tired. I guess now that the adrenaline has stopped pumping, my body’s decided it’s had enough. Like he can read my mind, Lucas leads me through a door into an adjoining bedroom. It’s big and nicely furnished with a king-sized bed. The bed looks like the answer to a prayer, the sheets softer than anything I’ve ever felt though I haven’t touched them yet.
“I don’t know if I’ll be able to get any sleep,” I fret, eyeing the pajamas at the foot of the bed.
“Celia must’ve left them here for you while you were in the bath,” he explains. “My sister.”
“That’s nice of her. I didn’t know you had a sister.”
“She’s my brother’s wife.”
“Oh. Okay.” At least now I know who I heard downstairs.
I slip into the nightshirt and shorts she left for me. They’re comfortable and the right size, or close enough. The sheets are cool and soft, just as I suspected, and they smell of lilacs. I suck in a deep breath and soak in as much of it as I can before touching my head to the pillow. Lucas brings the covers up to my chest before stepping away from the bed. Panic clings to me at the thought of him leaving.
“Wait.” I lift my head and reach for him. “You’re not leaving me, are you?”
“Of course I’m not.” He pulls his shirt over his head, and my pulse slows again. “I’m getting undressed and crawling into bed with you.”
It’s not ten seconds before he’s sliding in beside me, one arm under my shoulders so he can turn my body toward his, and I’m so glad. He’s my life raft in the middle of an endless, stormy ocean. He’s all I have to hold, the only way I can keep my head above water.
“Thank you,” I whisper into the darkness, my cheek against his bare chest.
He holds me close, stroking my hair, and his heart’s steady beating begins to lull me to sleep before he murmurs his answer. “I didn’t do anything but bring you here. You saved yourself.”
I guess I did. But who’s going to save me from what comes next?