Chapter 6
LEO
I'm relieved when her breathing evens out and I know she's finally asleep. She needs it after the trial she's endured. Especially if she still expects to get those presents delivered once the storm breaks.
Rubbing her feet and legs had been purposeful, of course.
The goal was to encourage the blood flow into her extremities as it should, warming her up and preventing damage.
The fact that I'd enjoyed every second of it, savored the moans she probably didn't even know were escaping her when I hit a tender or tense spot, wasn't the point.
Even if it did make me wonder what else I could do that would coax more of those sounds from her.
The wind outside wasn't screaming any longer, though I could still feel the occasional heavy gust when it hit the cabin, making it shake with the force. Not ideal, but better than it had been.
My brain, primed for threat assessment, considered the storm, and the best route to take away from the cabin when the opportunity presented itself.
Even if I didn't believe in Christmas, the woman resting beside me did, and the trust she'd placed in me was hard to shake off.
Her insistence that she make good on her promise was something I could relate to.
Her word mattered to her. She had honor.
That was a concept I understood.
The whole point of giving soldiers leave was to give them a break from the constant need to be on high alert.
To be somewhere they felt safe, so their bodies and minds could recover from the consistent high stress environments they were often in.
I hadn't been able to relax even a fraction since I'd been here.
Hadn't been able to sleep, not really, or even sit still.
That was why I'd been outside when the storm started, because I couldn't stand being in the confines of the cabin walls.
I'd even complained to myself when the snow started to blow in, because it meant coming back to this place where I'd have to spend time, silent and alone, and be left climbing the walls once more.
But the storm had gifted me more than I expected. If I hadn't turned around when I did, if I hadn't cut through toward the road to make the going easier, I'd have missed the flash of light that warned me something was wrong. I'd have missed finding her.
The idea of that left me instantly cold.
Looking at Celeste, the way she was sleeping so easily even with my hands on her, her head tilted to the side, and her long dark hair spread out around her, I was grateful.
Because even for this short time, I wasn't alone, and she'd offered me a reason to keep going. A purpose.
My eyes drifted closed as I watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest, the rhythm of her breathing soothing me, and I stopped fighting for a moment.
I let myself rest.