Page 51 of Façade

I stiffened and very nearly jolted away. “You mean you considered taking it off?”

“I usually sleep without a shirt, but I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

It was far too late for that. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t keep my mischievous mind from imagining what a shirtless Ryland looked like. The man was likely toned and utterly appealing, a physique whose entire purpose, I had no doubt, was to annoy me.

It took me far too long to rid myself of the thought of a shirtless Ryland as night fully settled around us. By the sound of his ragged breaths, he wasn’t near falling asleep any more than I was. The firelight faded into glowing embers, leaving nothing but the starlight, glistening far too cheerfully than the awkward situation warranted. Despite my exhaustion from our long journey and the relief that came from finally lying down, I was no longer tired; instead I felt wide awake, acutely aware of every movement Ryland made, rendering sleep impossible.

“You don’t happen to snore, do you?” I asked in a whisper, knowing without checking he was still awake too.

“I wouldn’t know.” His heated breath tickled my ear as he leaned in far too close. “I suppose we’re about to find out…unless you manage to beat me in falling asleep first.”

“Is that a challenge?”

“Would you like it to be?”

I was tempted to agree to this newest contest, but fear caused me to hesitate, considering it was a game elusive sleep seemed determined to have me lose. The last thing I wanted was for him to realize how effective he was at keeping me awake; even though I was fairly certain he wasn’t doing it on purpose, I didn’t want to give him that satisfaction.

Several more unbearable minutes drifted by. “Why aren’t you asleep yet?” Annoyance sharpened my whisper.

“Believe me, I’m desperately trying to win this race just in caseyousnore.”

“I most certainly don’t!” Yet in truth, I couldn’t be sure.

He chuckled. “We’re about to find out, aren’t we?”

I silenced his laughter with a sharp poke in the ribs. “I’m determined to fall asleep first. Even if I fail and come morning you make such a claim, I shan’t believe you.”

His second chuckle eventually faded into another silence that should have made for ideal sleeping conditions…except for the remaining problem that I suddenly had the strangest urgency not to sleep at all with him so near. Such feelings in addition to our proximity made me immensely vulnerable, not to mention something about his nearness made me yearn to converse with him, a temptation the darkness made more difficult to resist than midst the safety of day.

I seized the opportunity when he stirred with the most subtle, careful movement. “Are you always so noisy?”

“Are you always so talkative?”

I released a heavy sigh. “How many nights until we reach the monastery?”

He was silent a moment. “Two.”

My breath hooked. “Two?”

“Indeed.” His tone sounded oddly strangled. He hesitated. “Perhaps tomorrow we’ll find a bigger clearing to set up camp.”

“If it’s gossip we’re trying to avoid, then sleeping beside your wife one night and avoiding her the next would only raise unwanted questions.”

“Rumors will spread regardless once we annul our marriage, but until then…” He propped on his elbow to face me, each movement seeming magnified in the darkness. The moonlight illuminated his mischievous expression. “Perhaps we can come up with a reason for a passionate lover’s quarrel that will provide a reasonable explanation for you not to want to sleep near me.”

I smirked. “That could prove fun, though not much of a challenge. I just have to insult your precious rocks for us to go at it for a bit, until I threaten to dump every single one on your head if you dare venture so close to me when I’m rather peeved.” This made-up scenario sounded far more appealing than it ought.

Up went his eyebrows. “You wouldn’t.” But rather than sound threatened, he seemed to be fighting not to laugh.

“Wouldn’t I?”

He studied my expression to gauge my sincerity as best he could in the dim silvery light. “I find myself almost wanting to delay our journey until I discover whether or not that’s something you’d really do in anger.”

Did he truly care more about satisfying his curiosity than he did about his precious rocks that moments ago he’d worried I’d inadvertently scratch? “False bravery from a man about to experience his wife’s emotions firsthand. I rather like the idea I’ve come up with; for the sake of your well-being, you shouldn’t have allowed me to brainstorm one.”

“You’re rather feisty.” But he only sounded delighted by this. “Admittedly it was these rare displays of emotion that kept me from annulling our marriage sooner.”

I gave him a playful shove, meaning to hit his shoulder, but in the darkness I missed and my hand landed on his chest. My breath caught…as did his, and although I knew I should pull away, for an intense moment I somehow couldn’t. Time stood still as we faced one another, our gazes locked, and I suddenly found I didn’t want to pretend to be angry with him at all; rather, I wanted any excuse to return to this cozy sleeping arrangement so that I might enjoy it while I still could.

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