Page 145 of Deadwood
I stared at his thumb moving over my skin, trying to process how I’d been down that long.
“How much do you remember?”
I swallowed, my mouth dry. He grabbed a glass of water from the nightstand, allowing me to sip before I answered. “The wolves, the bite, then a burst of light, and it was all over…” My forehead creased, my mind straining to remember anything more. “After that, nothing.”
His brows pulled together. “A light?”
My mind replayed the flash over and over again. “I was being attacked, and then I was blinded by it, and it all just…stopped. After that, the wolves stopped attacking, but it could just be the holes in my memory. Maybe they kept going, and I imagined it.”
“Did you see where it came from?”
I shook my head. “I was kind of…”
His lips flattened into a thin line. He knew what had occurred after that. “Vulcan saw what happened and came to get me. He took me to where you were, where Lander was just sitting there like a fucking fool rather than trying to get you help.”
Lander.
My eyes widened slightly. “Is he alive?”
Bowen nodded, though his eyes were lethal. “Vulcan brought us here, but Flynt went back for him. He’s okay. A bit scratched up, but nothing Quinn couldn’t handle.” He shifted closer. “How are you feeling?”
It was a loaded question. I felt foreign in my body, like a chunk of my life had been stolen away by the gap of lost memory. It wasn’t anything major, but still, lying in this bed for two days while the unknown happened around me…
“No one was allowed in the room aside from Siara, Flynt, and Raiden to bring supplies,” he explained, reading my thoughts, as I was sure my face showed my quiet panic. “I never left your side, Auria.” His tone fell, his throat tightening. “I’d never let anything happen to you under my watch.”
I couldn’t blame Lander for bringing us into the woods. He hadn’t known what could happen, yet I knew Bowen was furious with him.
“I feel okay,” I finally answered. Summing up how I felt both mentally and physically seemed too much of a chore at the moment, so the response would have to suffice. “Sore, but alive.”
He gave a closed-lip smile, holding so much back in that look alone. Had he feared I would slip away in my sleep? Watched the rise and fall of my chest for two days to make sure I was breathing? It was hard to believe Bowen cared that much, but if what he said was true, I had no choice but to take his word.
“Are you hungry? I can have Flynt bring some food if you are.”
I shook my head, a slight headache blooming behind my eyes. “No, I’m okay. Thank you. I think I’m just tired.” Two days of rest had left me feeling exhausted, surprisingly.
“Get some sleep,” he said, pushing to a stand.
Before his hand could leave mine, I gripped it. “Stay.”
He peered down at me, a war brewing in his eyes as his brows furrowed. “I’m not leaving you alone in this room.”
“No.” I pulled the sheet back, indicating what I meant. “Stay with me.”
The crease between his brows deepened. “Auria…”
“Please. Just for today.”
Despite how I would have thought things between us would transpire, Bowen made me feel safe, and right now, I wanted to be wrapped in that feeling. Him being in this bed with me didn’t have to mean anything. It was just for the day.
Or at least, that’s what I told myself.
Succumbing to his inner battle, he let go of my hand, shoving the sheets back farther. He helped me scoot over the slightest bit, making room for himself. I rolled onto my side, expecting him to keep his hands to himself, but instead, he wrapped an arm around me, his chest pressed to my back.
“For as long as you’d like,” he whispered against my hair, pulling me closer and wrapping me in his warmth.
We fell asleep like that. Two lost souls in a universe full of pain, finding solace in each other.
CHAPTER 46
