Page 87 of Us Dark Few

AGH.

After several agonizingly long seconds, the soft creak of steps returned. Khalani slowly peeked through her lids, making sure it was safe.

The sweatpants hung low on his hips, and the black shirt was oversized, but Takeshi filled it up completely. His soft black hair swept over his forehead in a rough way that made him appear more youthful, but his charcoal eyes…they burned right through.

It wasn’t fair. No one should be that attractive without trying.

Takeshi’s jaw tightened as he hesitated, his gaze fixed on her sitting on his bed. Awkward tension filled the air, both aware of every square inch that separated them.

He quickly reached over and grabbed the smallest white pillow on his bed, tossing it to the floor.

“You keep the covers. It can get chilly in here at night.”

She bit her lip and waited, like sinking in his covers was illegal. But she eventually scooted her body toward the head of the bed and pulledthe warm blankets over herself. The soft sheets caressed her skin, and a content sigh escaped her mouth.

After months of sleeping on a hard stone slab, nestling in his bed was like laying on a puffy cloud. Takeshi’s eyes tightened as he stared at her and nodded, lowering his body to the ground and out of her vision.

They laid in silence. Her body was exhausted, but her mind was wide-awake, sending signals like she was sprinting a marathon.

Takeshi was sleeping on the cold, hard floor instead of his bed. Because of her. Their lives appeared to have been switched for the night, and she was unable to enjoy the new positions. With each passing second, guilt and another heated emotion crept up her throat, preventing her eyes from closing.

After nearly a minute, she couldn’t take it anymore. Khalani leaned over the bed. Takeshi was lying on his back, palms folded against his chest, and his eyes locked with hers.

“You don’t have to sleep on the floor. You can sleep in your bed,” she said.

Takeshi shook his head.

“I’m okay, Kanes.”

“No, seriously.”

She frowned, but he didn’t budge.

Fine.

Grabbing the pillow, Khalani stood up. Stepping over Takeshi, she placed the pillow next to his.

Takeshi abruptly sat up, his eyebrows drawing in a tight line. “What are you doing?”

“You saved my life. I’m not sleeping on the bed while you’re on the floor. If you’re down here, I will be too.”

Takeshi squeezed his eyes shut in exasperation, and the next moment, he heaved his body up, grabbing his pillow. He surprised Khalani by grabbing hers as well. He set both pillows back on the bed and interrupted her before she could speak.

“Don’t even attempt to sleep on the floor. It will only upset me.”He pulled the covers back and gestured for her to get in.

Her heart jackhammered inside her chest as she moved back under the covers. Takeshi straightened out the blankets and laid on top, keeping space between them.

Even on the bed, the size of his body completely dwarfed hers. They stared at the ceiling, the quiet like a physical being hanging over them.

Khalani was hyperaware of his body next to hers. The indentation of the covers with his full weight, the sound of his soft breaths, the heat coming off his arms, only a few inches away.

Yep, she was getting no sleep tonight.

Khalani glanced over at his virtual window on the wall. A full moon glowed in the frame, the picture so clear, you could trace every dark crater.

“Do you think the moon really looks like that on the surface?” she whispered, trying to break the tension.

Takeshi turned his head to stare at the window. He paused for a few moments. “I think on the surface, everything appears more beautiful.”

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