Page 13 of Won't Let Go
Fuck.
This is no way to live.
Rounding her bed, I pad closer. “Jade?” I whisper, hoping to coax her awake, without giving her an aneurysm. I could turn the light on, but that might make things worse. Hell, maybe it wouldn’t, but what do I know?
“Please!” She turns onto her side, and I take this as an opportunity to gently brush my fingertips down the outside of her arm.
She gasps and wrenches away, dropping onto her back, still in the same pajamas from our movie night. “No.”
“Jade.” I try again, and when that doesn’t work, I do one of the dumbest things I’ve ever done and crawl in beside her. Keeping my body against the edge, so I don’t come off as a threat, I drape my arm over her stomach. That’s all. A simple touch to let her know I’m here, to maybe calm the demons.
Her nails bite into my forearm, and she pulls my arm higher, forcing my hand to cover her breast, right above her galloping heart. This is not good. Not good at all. The last thing I need is her waking up to find me groping her tit.
Trying to free myself proves impossible when Jade claims my arm as her own and rolls over, forcing me to move with her. My lower half comes dangerously close to her bottom as she rubs her face against the back of my hand like an adorable kitten before tucking it between her breasts. They’re warm, soft, and…
Fuck.
I arch my ass backward to keep the appendage in my boxers from causing an even bigger issue. ‘Cause he’s a boob man, and in case you were wondering, Jade has incredible boobs.
This was a terrible goddamn idea.
We should have discussed how to handle the nightmares. Hell, she should have fucking told me they happen. Not even Hunter mentioned them. In hindsight, that’s probably because he was just trying to protect his mom.
Staying as far away as I can, I wedge a pillow under my head and settle in for a night of no sleep. At least, she’s not thrashing anymore. Had I waited, she might have calmed on her own, and I wouldn’t have put my dumbass in this predicament. Yet here we are. Let’s hope she doesn’t kill me in the morning.
7
JADE
Peeking one eye open,then the other, light filters in through the windows. Bright light. Daytime light. What the hell? I never sleep this long.
Something warm and cozy rises and falls under my cheek, and when I glance up, I blink a million times. This cannot be happening.
It’s Josh.
He’s in my room, on my bed, shirtless. Why in the world am I sleeping on his chest, and why is his arm wrapped around my shoulder?!
On his back, Josh snores just a little. His face is relaxed. He’s wearing boxers and… welp… there’s a tent in them. A big tent. A tent that may or may not have a head playing peekaboo out of the slit. It’s…
I swallow hard.
This cannot be real.
“You’re thinkin’ awfully hard there.” His gruff morning voice makes me jump, and when he sees what I see, he covers himself and tucks it away. “Christ. Sorry about that.”
Mortified, I stuff my face into his pec and mumble, “It-it’s fine. But why are you in my bed?” My voice wavers, and I flush from embarrassment. This shouldn’t be a big deal. Truly. But it is.
Josh traces his fingers across my shoulder, and I shiver in response. “Somebody by the name of Jade woke me up screaming. I came in to check on you. Let’s just say it wasn’t pretty. So, when I tried to wake you and that didn’t work, I climbed in to see if I could help… I dunno… calm ya or something?” He shrugs, jostling my head in the process. “Well, that backfired when you took my arm prisoner. I tried to stay up, but I must have passed out at some point.”
Resting my chin on his chest, I look at his face. “I was screaming?”
“A lot.”
“Hmmm. Weird. I don’t usually scream.”
Eyelids heavy from just waking, Josh’s pale brows wrinkle in the center. “How do you know?”
“Hunter. He only comes in when I scream, and that’s only happened a couple times,” I explain and leave it at that. Josh doesn’t need to know about me waking up almost every night, drenched in a cold sweat, muscles aching. I can only imagine what he saw. The few times Hunter found me, he said I looked like I was possessed by a demon.
