AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Seems so.” Bert barely follows our conversation. He’s become one with his chair and turns a page in his book.
Drake picks up a bowl and hands it to me.
“Eat,” he orders. “You’ve had a hard night.”
The ceramic fills my palm with warmth, while the steam carries the savory aromas of the stew to my nose. Without warning, my stomach rumbles.
With a laugh, Drake sits back on the couch, cradling his bowl in his massive hand. Dipping a spoon in the thick mixture of meat and vegetables, he blows at the surface to cool off the stew before taking a bite. I join him on the couch, tucking my legs beneath me as I take another sniff.
“It smells heavenly. Thank you.” It doesn’t take long to empty my bowl. With a yawn, I stretch.
Bert lifts his nose out of his book and glances at me. “You ready to hit the sack?”
“I can’t thank you enough for your hospitality.”
“Drake,” Bert says. “Why don’t you show your city girl to your room?”
Drake stands. His towering presence causes me to catch my breath. He collects our bowls and carries them into the kitchen. My whiskey glass sits on the side table, empty.
I took my time drinking it, savoring the sweet burn. My face feels flushed from the alcohol, a welcome change from the burning sensation of near frostbite.
A strange twisting knots my stomach when Drake returns. I don’t understand why my pulse quickens or my breathing hitches, but something about him unsettles me on a gut level.
“Come,” he says, and then heads down the hall to the first door on the left.
Opening the door, he gestures for me to go inside. I step through and stop short at a pair of twin beds.
Surely Drake won’t be sleeping in the same room as me?
He waits while I approach the far bed and crawl under the covers. Once I pull the sheets up to my neck, he flicks off the light and closes the door.
That’s when I realize the man literally ‘put me to bed.’
Warm and soft, the flannel bedsheets suck me into a blissfully relaxed state where thoughts of moose, snow, and wolves become a distant memory. In their place, images of a man with raven hair, and even blacker eyes, fill my dreams.
BACON
Ihave no idea when I fell asleep or even when Drake went to bed. He isn’t in the room when I wake, but he clearly slept in the other twin bed. The sheets are a rumpled mess, and there is a clear indentation of his head on the pillow.
I shared a room with a man I barely know and lived to talk about it. This weird feeling inside of me, the one that says I wish something had happened last night, doesn’t belong to me.
I’m sensible, not reckless. Meaning, I don’t hop into bed with strangers. Although, it seems I evidently sleep in the same room with one.
Emphasis on sleep.
My approach to relationships, quoting Scott, is ponderous.
Relationship?
Boy, does that feel way too soon.
Impulsive is not an adjective to describe me, but damn if I don’t want to be a bit reckless with Drake.
A man I know nothing about.
I did look for a ring around his finger last night. No ring. No indentation of a recently removed ring. That doesn’t mean he’s available, but at least there’s no wife, or a recent ex-wife to deal with.
His stares feel interested. He wouldn’t check me out like that if he isn’t open for something to happen.
