“Only if you want to. I’d prefer it if you slept here, with me, but it’s your call.”
“So you can keep an eye on me?” He seemed so young at times, especially when he forgot to hide his vulnerability under his usual swagger.
“So we can keep each other company.”
He smiled at me and plugged in his phone while I went to change. When I returned a couple of minutes later dressed in sweats, a T-shirt, and a hoodie, he was sitting primly on the bench at the foot of the bed with his hands folded in his lap.
I asked, “Can I show you something?”
He said, “Sure,” but when I handed him the sweatshirt I was carrying, his expression turned suspicious. “If this thing you want to show me is outside with the scorpions, I’m changing my answer to no thank you.”
“It’s outside, but not at ground level.” He still looked skeptical, so I said, “Trust me, Jack. I think this is something you’re going to like.”
Ultimately his curiosity won out, and he put on the sweatshirt and followed me to the den at the back of the second floor. One wall was lined with bookshelves, and there was also a TV, a large sofa, and a built-in wet bar.
Jack made a bee-line for the books. He plucked one from the shelves and began reading the back cover, and I grinned and said, “That’s not actually what I wanted to show you, but if you want to, we can spend some time here when we come back inside.”
With that, I opened the sliding glass door at the back of the room and wheeled an upholstered chaise lounge out onto the large balcony. Jack followed me as far as the doorway, but he raised a brow and said, “It’s cold out there. Why not stay in this fabulous room, which has books and a couch and far less chance of anything horrible flying at us?”
“Scorpions don’t fly.”
“No shit, but moths do. I bet you get nice, big mutant ones out here in the desert.”
“We’ll be safe from the moths. I guarantee it.”
“How can you possibly guarantee that?”
“Because I’m planning to turn off every light in the house, so there won’t be anything to attract them.”
He looked even more skeptical. “So, your plan is not just to sit in the cold, but the cold and dark?”
I collected a blanket from the back of the couch, then went out onto the balcony and said, “Exactly. Come join me, and close the door behind you.”
I pulled my phone from my pocket and turned down the lights in the den. Then I got comfortable on the chaise with the blanket over me and waited. Jack stalled and grumbled for a minute before finally doing as I asked.
“Where am I supposed to sit? You’re taking up the whole fainting couch.”
“It’s a chaise, but sure, call it that if you want,” I said. “And I was thinking you’d sit on my lap, if that’s okay with you.”
He lifted a corner of the blanket and straddled me, and as he buried his face in my shoulder he said, “I didn’t know there’d be cuddling. Next time, lead off with that.”
“I will.”
I turned off all the lights before putting the phone beside us on the lounge chair. Then I wrapped my arms around him and let myself relax. After a moment, Jack raised his head and muttered, “It’s pitch black.”
“Yup.”
“I mean, like, alarmingly so.”
“You’re fine, doll face. I’ve got you.”
“Okay, but why are we out here recreating a scene from a horror movie?”
“I’ll show you in a minute,” I told him, as I held him securely. “We just need to give our eyes a little time to adjust.”
He tucked his head beneath my chin, and as I rubbed his back I could feel him start to relax. After a while, I kissed the top of his head. One of his hands slid to my face, and he patted all around it to get his bearings, which I thought was pretty funny. Once he located my mouth, he sat up a bit and kissed me. I grinned against his lips before deepening the kiss.
Then I said softly, “Turn around and look up at the sky, Jack.”