Page 78 of Oblivion

He offered a small smile, and I took it as approval to lie down next to him. As if we’d done this a hundred times before, his arm extended sideways and provided the perfect place to rest my head.

“This isn’t over-stepping boundaries, is it?” I murmured, gazing up into the city-lit sky.

“Two friends hanging out? Not at all.”

“Good, because this friend feels the cold, so is going to snuggle closer.”

Dante’s low chuckle created a smile on my face.

His arm tightened around my shoulders. “Better?”

“Much. How about you?”

He paused for a moment, and I studied his profile as he looked out into the night.

“Better,” he murmured after the longest while.

CHAPTERTHIRTY-ONE

Dante

I woke with a stiff back and my shoulder pinned. The urge to push free was short-lived when warmth against my torso brought reality back.

Penny.

She moved in her sleep after being jostled when I roused, only to snuggle closer. While my head screamed to pull away, to wake her and remove my arm from around her, my soul wanted to hold her close. To soak in her innocence and light.

While at times she made me want to tear my hair out, earlier tonight, she unexpectedly grounded me, and I was left with an inexplicable feeling of wholeness with her in my arms.

I looked down at her tucked into my armpit and smiled. Each relaxed breath breezed over my chest, tickling across the light sprinkling of chest hair. I tucked her closer and sighed in bliss, allowing myself a moment to simplybewithout my job getting in the way.

Penny snuffled and sighed in her sleep, and I relished the last few cozy seconds with this beautiful young woman sleeping next to me.

Reluctantly rocking her back and forth, I brushed my lips against her forehead while murmuring, “Penny. Wake up. We need to head inside.” When no response came, I rocked a little harder. “Penny.”

“Is it December already?” she murmured in her sleep.

A laugh vibrated through me. “No, babe, it’s not December.”

“I haven’t done my shopping yet.”

I laughed a little louder, unable to stop the affection from spreading through my chest.So fucking cute. She created sunny spots across my heart, even while sleeping.

“Plenty of time for shopping in daylight hours,” I chuckled, extracting my arm from under her head.

She sat up with a groan and clasped her shoulder.

“You okay?”

Her gaze climbed up my chest until she met my eyes. “Yeah, I must have slept on it funny. How long have we been out here?”

I flicked my wristwatch. “A couple of hours.”

It was sneaking up on four a.m. I got to my feet and offered a hand. Penny set her warm hand in mine and allowed me to pull her to her feet.

“You must be freezing. Look, you’re all goosebumpy,” she murmured.

I raised a brow and smirked when her eyes zeroed in on my stiff nipples.

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