Page 44 of Hensley Manor
It was the happiest I’d ever been.
“Come here,” he said, holding out an arm toward me. Blond hair fell across his brow, and his vibrant blue eyes held a tenderness that matched the one inside my chest.
I stepped forward and slipped my hand into his, letting him guide me into the hot water. My skin prickled from the heat, and I exuded a soft sigh as we sunk into the tub. Ian sat behind me. Minutes passed as I lay against him. He brushed his fingers through my hair, playing with the strands.
“This is nice,” I said, closing my eyes.
“Mhm.” His fingers touched my scar, and when he pressed his face against the side of my head, I thought I felt his chin tremble. “Can I wash you?”
“Please.”
Ian took a washcloth and lathered it with soap before gently scrubbing down my chest to my lower abdomen. The movement of the water was the only sound as he dipped the cloth into the water and brought it back up to glide over my skin.
The night with Ian was a turning point for us. I felt it in my core.
“You sleeping?” Ian nudged my head with his.
“No,” I murmured. My eyelids were heavy and refused to stay open. After the emotional conversation and the mind-blowing sex, I was physically and mentally drained.
“I think you’re a liar.”
Still with my eyes closed, I cracked a smile. Damn, I was just so comfortable. The warm water and Ian’s arms around me. His scent. I could’ve easily gone to sleep.
He softly chuckled and kissed my ear.
Later, I woke up to him carrying me to bed. The logs in the fireplace were blackened, nothing left to burn, taking the light as well as the soothing warmth. The silver glow of the moon shone through the window, and I looked at it as Ian placed me under the covers and lifted them to my chest. He crawled in behind me, wrapping an arm around my midsection and kissing my shoulder.
“Goodnight, Cole.”
“I’m not tired.” But even as I said it, my eyes drifted closed again.
“Get some sleep, beautiful boy. We have a busy day tomorrow.”
And with that, I welcomed the clutches of sleep, comforted by the fact that Ian would be beside me when I woke up.
Chapter Ten
The next morning, I woke up and stretched my arms above my head, my joints popping. Christmas Eve morning. We had a lot to do before the party tonight; more decorating, ensuring the food and presents would be delivered on time, and finding time to kiss in between.
I was a little nervous about the party but excited, too. Ian would be dressed to the nine in a suit tailored to his beautiful body, and I’d be dressing up all spiffy as well. A friend of his in town was letting me rent a suit, since I had nothing but jeans and sweaters.
Still with my eyes closed, not ready to get up quite yet, I remembered the way Ian had made love to me by the fire last night. And the conversation we’d had before it. I had told him everything about the accident and the reasons for me being depressed around this time of year. After saying it all, I had felt better.
It didn’t take away the sadness from not having my family with me, but talking about it had been like a weight off my shoulders. I was allowed to be happy. I was allowed to go on living, even though they couldn’t.
Ian had been right. They wouldn’t have wanted me to live like I had been; consumed by grief and guilt. So, starting today, I’d leave the past where it belonged and focus on the present. Making the most of each day as it came.
I didn’t feel Ian beside me, so he must’ve woken early to get a start on things. My workaholic.
But when I opened my eyes, I didn’t see the window with the red curtains. I didn’t see the fireplace in Ian’s room or the chair he liked to sit in and read in the evening.
I saw the scuffed coffee table in my living room. Saw the clouded glass window that was too small and didn’t have a great view anyway. There was no Christmas spirit and no warmth. There was only my gloomy apartment.
No.
I shot upward, cringing at the crick in my neck. I was on the couch, right where I’d been the night I’d gotten drunk and fallen asleep there. The evidence of that night stared me in the face as I saw the empty whiskey bottle overturned on the table and felt a pounding in my skull. My mouth was dry, too.
Something cold touched my arm and I looked down to see the snow globe. I remembered dropping it beside me before I fell asleep that night.
