Page 53 of Hideaway Heart

My head could be buried between her thighs already.

Stifling a groan, I rubbed my face with both hands as the power flickered, then went off again. And this time, it didn’t come back on.

The bathroom door opened a moment later. “Xander?”

Immediately I moved toward her worried voice. “I’m here.”

“It’s so dark. I can’t see.”

“I’ve got you.” Trained as a combat swimmer, I was used to navigating in total darkness. Reaching the bathroom doorway, I took her by the arm. “You okay?”

“Yeah, it just took me by surprise. And I don’t—I don’tlovethunderstorms. I’m actually a little afraid of them.”

“Yeah?” I led her across the hall into the bedroom.

“As a kid, I used to sleep in Kevin’s room during the bad ones.”

“He let you sleep in his bed?”

“No, he made me sleep on the floor.”

I laughed. “Did he at least give you a sleeping bag?”

“Nope. Just a pillow and a blanket. But it was still better than being in my room alone.”

I glanced at the bed. Swallowed hard. “Do you want me to sleep on the floor in here?”

“You’d do that?”

Realizing I still held her arm, I took my hands off her warm skin. “Sure.”

“There’s not much room.”

“It’s more room than I have on the couch.”

She paused. “Do you want to just sleep in the bed?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Xander, come on. Don’t you trust me?”

“I trust you. Myself? Not so much.”

She laughed softly. “Okay, fine. You want the floor, it’s all yours.”

“Give me a minute. I’ll be right back.”

I left the room and made my way out to the living room in the dark, my heart racing. Was she nuts? I couldn’t sleep in her bed. It was hard enough keeping my tongue in my mouth when she was standing next to me, fully clothed. How was I supposed to behave when she was lying beside me, wearing next to nothing?

Fuck no. It was out of the question.

My eyes had adjusted well enough to find my duffel bag and root through it for some sweatpants. After trading my jeans for the sweats, I grabbed the little leather pouch with my toothbrush in it and used the bathroom. When I came out, the door to her bedroom was open, but I knocked anyway.

“You can come in,” she called softly.

I entered the room and stood at the foot of the bed. She was already under the sheets, and my entire body yearned to join her, to hold her close during the storm. Take her mind off it with an orgasm or two. “Can you spare a pillow?”

“Of course.” She sat up and handed me one. “There’s an extra blanket in the closet.”