Page 44 of Keepsake
I pulled back her quilt and slid into the bed. The mattress depressed under my weight, jostling her slightly. She rolled immediately in my direction, one sleepy hand landing on my chest.
“Come here,” I whispered.
She did, too, burrowing closer, resting on my arm. I shifted her partway onto my chest. When I turned my head, my nose grazed her sweet-smelling hair.
If there was a heaven, it would be something like this—my arms full of sleeping girl. I thought it would take me a long time to fall back to sleep, but the feel of her chest rising and falling over mine put me right under.
It was light out when I woke up again. Sunday was the only day of the week that my watch alarm did not go off. Since we were going to have so many long hours this fall, Griff had given every guy a morning to sleep in. And Sunday was my day to sleep through the milking.
I always enjoyed my late morning, but this one was the best ever. I came to consciousness slowly.Warmwas my first reaction. And then I smelled melons. It was the soft scent of Lark’s hair. And I felt the warmth of her body, pressed up against mine.
Bliss.
I was in a fine, sleepy haze. I arched my back a bit, stretching. And that’s when I became aware of the fact that my erection was basically pressed against Lark’s bottom.
Quickly, I pulled my hips back and executed a fast roll onto my stomach. It wasn’t my smoothest move. But I lay there wondering how long I’d been holding her like that, while my body betrayed my desire for her.
Lark was silent, so maybe she hadn’t noticed. It was hard to imagine how to word my apology, anyway.Sorry my sleeping subconscious decided to press my dick against your ass.
I knew it was a perfectly ordinary physical reaction, but that didn’t make it less mortifying. You can’t grow up where I did and not feel shame. At Paradise Ranch, a boy would be beaten for asking curious questions about sex. Forget having any.
There was a quote from Deuteronomy which every boy at Paradise Ranch had been made to memorize:If one of your men is unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he is to go outside the camp and stay there.
I remember praying before bedtime not to spill my seed in my sleep, so that I wouldn’t be thrown out. Four years had passed since I left that place. But its lessons were still burned in my soul.
While I lay there thinking things over, Lark eventually yawned and stretched. Her eyes opened, then blinked at me. “Hi,” she said, looking startled.
“Hi. I suppose you can guess why I’m here.”
She reached over to put a hand on my back, and the warmth of her touch seeped through my T-shirt. “I’m not surprised that you’re here. I’m only surprised that you’restillhere. So I guess it’s Sunday.”
My laugh was so sudden that I snorted.Smooth. “You’re right, it is.”
She smiled at me with her eyes closed. Then she snuggled closer, her bare foot finding mine under the covers. “We have a very unusual friendship.”
“That’s right,” I whispered. And I won’t lie—the fact that she’d said we were friends made me ridiculously happy.
“What do you do on Sundays after I’m finished snuggling you?” she asked sleepily, her foot sliding against mine.
“Today I’m taking Ruth to church, because Daphne isn’t here to go with her.”
“Wow.” Lark’s eyes opened again. “That is so nice of you.”
“It’s nothing.”
“No it isn’t.”
Her hand rubbed sweetly up and down my back. I was aroused, but hiding it well. And since there was no danger of anything happening between us, I just relaxed into the sensation. Her gentle touch sent tingles up and down my spine, leaving my skin buzzing everywhere.
“I’m sure Ruth appreciates the company,” she said. “And I’ll bet you’re not a big fan of churches. You must be pretty ticked off at Christianity.”
“Nah,” I said drowsily. “I don’t blame religion for my troubles.”
“Really? Because I’m kind of pissed off on your behalf. Anyone who uses the church to justify throwing their own people away is an asshole.”
I smiled against the pillow, loving Lark’s touch, and the way she sounded all fired up in my defense. “They just got it all wrong. I feel sorry for them.” That was true on my better days, anyway. And today was already one of my better days.
“That’s big of you. I’m not so sure about religion myself. Maybe I’m a jerk for saying that, seeing as I did some heavy-duty bargaining with God recently.”
