Page 72 of Night for Unsung Desires

A stabbing pain races through my body, and I feel dizzy. I feel my dry throat and a tightness in my chest, which makes me feel as if I have a heavy hangover. Or like I was hit by a landslide.

Slowly, I open my eyes, and only then do I realize why my chest feels so tight.

Andrea is lying next to me. Her head leans against my stomach and she has one hand wrapped around my body. Her copper-colored hair is strewn across the sheets, and her lips are slightly ajar.

She’s wearing one of my dark T-shirts and tight pants, but she’s taken off her sneakers. She looks exhausted, but still so simple and beautiful, and it stirs my heart.

Slowly, I move my hand to stroke her cheek.

Andrea opens her eyes.

"Damien... are you really awake?"

She looks up at me with her amazing blue eyes, bright and clear. The rims of her orbs are red with tears, and her lips are slightly parched and cracked being bitten.

I look at her, taking in the features of her face as I caress her. "What’s not obvious?"

My voice sounds hoarse, and my throat feels dry. Suddenly, a terrible thirst comes over me.

Andrea seems to sense it. Slowly, she stands up, holding out a glass for me to drink. "You've been sleeping for the past three days," she tells me.

"What day is it?"

"Sunday," she says as she sits back down on the bed. She looks at me as if she's afraid I'm going to disappear.

Self-hatred burns inside of me, furious that I caused her so much pain.

"I'm okay," I promise her, cradling her cheek in my palm.

She starts to cry.

"Damien...I thought I lost you."

She settles against my side and hugs me, still shaking. With what little strength I possess, I pull her to me and bury my nose in her perfumed hair, kissing her forehead.

"That's not going to happen," I promise her.

Slowly, the memories from before begin to trickle into my mind. Once again, Andrea seems to be able to read the tension in my body.

Her head separates from my chest, and she looks up at me. Tears create paths on her cheeks, trailing down to her chin.

"Brandon has been arrested," she announces.

"Good."

My voice is cold with hatred, thinking about how close that asshole came to achieving his goal of hurting Andrea.

She sits back down on the bed, and wipes her tears.

After sniffling, she begins to explains. "It was him all along, Damien."

"I know. He confessed it to me," I tell her.

She nods. "Ethan showed me. It was all recorded on the mansion's security cameras." She looks at me and, for a moment, a spark of understanding crosses her face. "You did it on purpose, didn't you? You made him confess, because you knew it would all be on tape."

"I had to protect you," I assure as I caress her cheek.

She wraps my hand between hers. "The plot between Brandon and my mother has been uncovered. Brandon is facing over twenty years in prison, according to the evidence."

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