Page 65 of The Desire

Finally, the storm starts to fade, and the peace of night settles over me. My body relaxes, and I can feel sleep coming to claim me.

All I’m begging is that I don’t have another dream of Remington like most other nights. I need to douse that flame before it gets any bigger tomorrow.

As the real world slips away and sleep overtakes me, I’m immediately brought back into the here and now with a thud next to my bed and the weird cold feeling running wild through my body. My eyes instantly fly open as wide as a possum as I sit bolt upright in the bed and look at the painting that has fallen off the wall onto the floor next to the chair which has definitely moved position.

I’m done.

My feet land on the floor and I’m running out of this room and down the hallway, screaming Rem’s name as I burst into his room.

“El!” He’s out of bed and to me before I even make it across the room, wrapping me in his arms, and I hold on so tight. “Talk to me.” His demanding voice is calm but reassures me that whatever it is, I’m safe.

My breathing is erratic, and I try to take a few deep breaths before I can even explain, but he decides not to wait for me and starts to ask me questions.

“Are you hurt?” He tries to pull back to look at me, but I won’t let him. I just pull him tighter to me, shaking my head sideways to confirm I’m not.

“Is there someone in the castle?”

How do I answer that without sounding like a lunatic?

Looking up at him, it’s then I realize that his room isn’t completely dark. The door to the bathroom is slightly ajar to let a faint amount of light in.

The concern in his eyes has me melting into him further.

“Maybe?” It slips from me in the faintest voice like a child.

“What the fuck does that mean?” His patience with me starts to wane as he drags me toward the bed where I see him reach for his gun on the table beside the bed.

“Shit, no, not a real person!” I yell at him.

“Elouise, explain now!” He pushes distance between us and grabs my jaw with his free hand, crouching slightly and staring at me hard.

Gulping, I blurt out my fear. “Ghost. In my room. It’s haunted and the painting fell, the chair moved, and the spirit is fucking with my body.” And with strength I didn’t know I even had, I break free from his hold and move into his body again, wrapping myself around him like a koala bear.

While I’m still as tense as steel, his body starts to soften under me. He places his gun back on the table, and before I can say another word, he steps to the side of the bed and lays both of us down, pulling the blankets over the top and running his hands up and down my back.

“I know you’re scared, but you know ghosts aren’t real, right?” And now he is back talking in that calming smooth tone that makes my heart slow and my brain kick in to think rationally.

“In theory, but how do you explain the weird coldness in my body in that room, and the things moving, hmm?” I’m not game to look up at him, knowing he must think I’m crazy.

“I can’t. But what I can tell you is that no matter what, I will protect you from everything, living or dead. Understand?” His words settle deep in my soul. The warmth of his protectiveness over me radiates through my body, but more importantly, it’s a comfort that he isn’t making fun of me.

Lying in silence for a few moments has my heart beating in tune with Rem’s finally, and the last fifteen minutes start drifting away like they never happened.

“I know it sounds ridiculous and you probably don’t believe me, but there’s something weird in that room.”

“I believe you that something freaked you out. What that was I don’t know, but let’s just worry about that later.” Rem pushes my hair from where it had fallen over my face when he got us onto the bed. Then as much as I would have preferred to keep looking at his shoulder, his hand moves my head to look up at him.

There is no look of judgment but instead one of compassion and concern for me.

“I don’t want you scared of anything while you’re with me, or even when you’re not.” Hesitation flashes through his eyes, but then it’s gone as he lowers his lips and kisses me on the forehead.

Soft, tender, and full of affection, it leaves my skin burning from his touch.

“Do you need to stay the night with me?” He caresses my cheek softly. I’m no longer able to stop my body from reacting to him in a way I shouldn’t.

“No, I shouldn’t… but I want to… desperately, and not just because of the ghost.” The words float from my lips before I can stop them. “Just tonight…”

His hand slips down from my jaw to the back of my neck, and as he pulls me closer, I feel the warmth of his breath on my ear as he whispers the words I know we will both regret later. “If you stay, I’m breaking your rules. So, answer me again, do… you… need… me?”

---