Page 59 of Reaper Unhinged
“I don’t want to go back to sleep. What if I try and walk off the pinnacle again? I mean, why would I do that?”
“I don’t know,” he said softly. “But you’ve been under a lot of stress. You almost died at Deadside, then you went to Purgatory and then Limbo. It’s a lot. Trauma can cause psychological problems.”
“So, I try and sleepwalk myself off a ledge?” I gave him an incredulous look. “I’m not suicidal.”
“I know.” He took my hand in his, his face earnest. “And I’m here now. I’ll make sure you’re safe.”
I wanted to say I could take care of myself, and maybe that was true when I was awake, but I obviously couldn’t be trusted when asleep, and something about Uri saying he’d keep me safe gave me warm fluffy vibes. The fact that his bare chest was staring me in the face didn’t help. I couldn’t stop looking at his golden skin and the way it stretched over his muscles.
“Drink the tea, and then you need to sleep.” He reached up and touched my cheek lightly. “You have dark circles under your eyes.”
His touch sent a shiver through me, but I masked it with an indignant look. “Not nice to point out a woman’s flaws.”
He gave me a half-smile. “I didn’t mean it that way. I think you’re beautiful, no matter what.” He ducked his head.
He thought I was beautiful? “Thank you.”
He peered up at me with a sheepish squint. “I…I didn’t mean to embarrass you.”
“You didn’t.” His eyes were speckled with golden flecks I’d never noticed before, and his pupils were super dark against the irises. They expanded so I could see myself in them. “Will you stay with me while I sleep.” My words came out as a husky whisper. I cleared my throat and sat back to clear my head. “I mean to watch over me?” Wait. “Oh, unless you need to sleep. I mean, do celestials sleep?”
He sat back with a small amused smile, probably elicited by my obvious fluster. “Celestials don’t need sleep, but we do indulge from time to time.”
“You’ll sleep with me then?”
His gaze fell to my lips for a second before he tore it away.
Fuck. “That came out wrong, I mean—”
“I know what you mean. And yes, I’ll sleep with you.”
My stupid mind focused on the wordsI’ll sleep with you,and heat crawled up my chest and hugged my neck. I took a gulp of hot tea to cover my sudden shyness and bit back a wince. “What happened at the Beyond?” I glanced over his shoulder to the spot where his wings had been a little while ago. “You got them back?”
He sat back in his seat. “Hegave them to me, and then he told me to leave.” Uri clasped his hands together. “I’m too tainted for the Beyond.”
“He said that?”
“He didn’t have to. I saw the pity in his face. He told me I could best serve by working with you.”
“The Dominus?”
“No, you specifically.” Uri’s expression was warm. “He likes you, and he wanted you to know you can come visit him any time.” He leaned his head to the side. “What happened, Fee? What happened between you two in Limbo?”
I took a gulp of my tea and then proceeded to fill him in.
* * *
I paddedover to the bed and kicked something on the floor. The damn journal again. It must have fallen onto the floor when I went sleepwalking. I popped it back on the dresser and climbed into my bed, already sleepy again. I guess the sleepwalking had exhausted me, not to mention the lecture Uri had given me on sacrificing my life to save him.
Yeah, he hadn’t been happy about that part.
“I’ll keep watch,” Uri said. “Just sleep.”
There wasn’t anywhere for him to sit aside from the dresser chair, which wouldn’t be very comfortable. I mean, he wasn’t exactly delicate, and that chair was tiny.
I patted the bed beside me. “Come lie down.”
He hesitated. “I’ll be fine on this chair.”
