Chapter 8 #2
“I did,” she responded. “I know exactly how Luke felt that day in my office. I swore that if I made it to adulthood, I’d do everything in my power to help kids know that they aren’t alone, that things can get better.”
Teller turned toward her, the light from the stars glinting off his eyes. “Like they did for you?”
She nodded and then laughed. “Well, until recently.”
“We’ll find the guy,” Teller said.
Sachie sighed. “This view gives me hope. Witnessing something this beautiful and vast can’t be a once-in-a-lifetime event. I’d like to be around to see it again.”
Teller reached out a hand. “And you will.”
She laid her hand in his. “Promise?”
“Damn right.” He closed his fingers around hers and held her hand for another ten or fifteen minutes.
Sachie lost track of time, preferring to live in the moment. If she could, she’d stay there for the rest of the night. It beat going to bed and sinking into the nightmare sure to haunt her in her sleep.
All too soon, Teller squeezed her hand gently and said, “We should call it a night. Our flight leaves early, and I want to be there at least an hour early.”
Sachie didn’t express the disappointment she felt, nor the trepidation roiling in her gut at the idea of closing her eyes. She let Teller draw her to her feet and, surprisingly, into his arms.
He pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I hope you sleep well.”
She lifted her face to him. “And I hope you do as well,” she whispered.
He stared down into her eyes, his own dark, enigmatic pools.
Holding her close, his body pressed to hers, all he had to do was lean down a little, and he’d be close enough to kiss her. On her lips, not her forehead.
Never in her life had Sachie wished so hard for a man to claim her lips.
When he stepped away, her heart sank into her belly.
Hell, what had she expected? He was there to protect her, not kiss her.
About to duck into her room and scream her frustration into her pillow, she was stopped by strong arms coming up around her and drawing her close again.
“I want to kiss you,” Teller said. “But only if you want me to.”
She stared up into his face. “More than you can imagine.”
He chuckled. “I can imagine a lot.” His hand rose and brushed a strand of her hair back from her face. “It should be wrong to kiss you.”
She raised her hands to rest against his chest. “Why? I want you to kiss me.”
“You’re my client,” he said. “But no matter how wrong it should be...” he cupped the back of her neck and leaned down until his lips hovered over hers, “...it feels so right.”
Her patience exceeding its limit, Sachie rose on her toes and pressed her lips to his, taking the decision out of his hands. She wanted the kiss so much that she was certain screaming into a pillow would not have been enough to ease her frustration.
But this kiss...
He started out slowly, gently exploring her mouth. When his tongue tested the seam between her lips, she opened to him, letting him past her teeth. He swept her tongue in a long, languorous caress that made her entire body tingle and then burn as her blood heated and her pulse quickened.
Sachie curled her fingers into his shirt, bringing him closer, urging him to take more. Every part of her yearned for more. She couldn’t get close enough, wishing she could press her skin to his, unfettered, unblocked by the fabric separating them.
When she raised her hands to encircle the back of his neck, he lifted his head, cupped her cheek and smiled down at her in the starlight.
“We should call it a night,” he said, his voice as rough as gravel. His thumb traced her lips, and he bent once more to brush his lips where his thumb had been. Then he stepped back. “Morning will be here before we know it.”
Kissing this man once had only made her want to do it again.
Yet, Teller seemed content to stop at one.
“Good night, Sachie,” he said.
“Good night,” she managed to say.
Teller turned toward his door.
When she didn’t move, he stopped, his brow dipping.
“You go on. I want to sit out here a little longer,” she said.
His frown deepened. “I can’t leave you out here. What if your stalker turns up?”
“Kalea and Hawk assured me the security is tight.” She forced a smile. “I’ll be fine. You must be exhausted. Please, don’t stay up on my account.”
Again, he shook his head. “I’m not going in until you do.”
She glanced toward her door, her belly clenching.
If she returned to her bedroom and climbed into the bed, she’d lie awake for as long as she could.
But once she succumbed to exhaustion, the same dream would return, forcing her to relive the event, to stand by as her patient ended his life.
She’d hear the echo of the blast, feel the splatter of blood across her face and feel the overwhelming sense of failure that weighed heavily on her heart.
“Hey,” Teller touched a finger beneath her chin and turned her to face him. “Are you afraid to go to sleep?”
She lifted a shoulder and let it fall. “It’s more a fear of closing my eyes. When I do, it’s like my eyelids are a screen in a cinema, and the film is the same one every time.”
“That day in your office?” he asked softly.
She nodded. “I haven’t slept all night since.
I get anxious when I think about going to bed.
I know I need rest, but there’s nothing restful about closing my eyes.
I lay for a long time, fighting sleep, fighting the inevitable.
” She grimaced. “But that’s not your problem.
You just need me to go inside so you can.
” She nodded. “I’ll go.” When she reached for the doorknob on the French door, his hand covered hers.
“Would it help if I stayed with you?” he asked. “Maybe if you’re not alone, you could sleep more peacefully.”
“You’d do that? I’m pretty sure that’s not part of your job description.”
“No, but I know what it’s like to be afraid to close your eyes, to be forced to relive, over and over, an event so horrific it steals a piece of your soul every time.”
She held his gaze, noting the shadows beneath his eyes and the intensity of truth in the set of his jaw. The man had been a soldier on a Delta Force team. He’d seen violence, death and heartache. He understood what was happening to her.
“If it makes you feel better, I’ll stay with you only until you go to sleep.” He held up his hands. “This isn’t an offer to make love. It’s an offer from one friend to another. A friend who’s been there.”
She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.
If she had him stay with her until she went to sleep, would she actually go to sleep or lie awake wishing his offer was to make love?
Then she could stay awake all night completely occupied and too busy exploring every inch of his incredible body to sink into her nightmare.
Or she could suck it up, go to bed on her own and avoid the temptation that was this Delta Force soldier who made her feel more alive than she had in... well...forever.
“Okay,” she said.
“Okay, you want me to stay until you go to sleep? Or okay, get lost, don’t be ridiculous, I’m a badass and can sleep on my own without some cocky son of a bitch babysitting me.” He grinned.
Her lips curved upward in a smile. “Okay, I’d like for you to stay until I go to sleep. Maybe having someone with me will keep the dreams away.”
“All right then,” he slid a hand beneath her elbow and guided her to her door. “Let’s prove the theory.”