Page 24 of Harbinger of Destiny

With a sigh, he lifted his head and looked straight into her eyes. “Unless you want to, of course. But I would never—”

Amy put her hand on his forearm. “I know.” For the first time this evening, she smiled. “Why are you so nice to me?”

He smiled back at her. “Because you need it.” Then he pointed to the storeroom. “Shall we get your things? I’ve got the car outside.”

15

WE’LL SHARE THE SHELTER

Amy had to pinch herself when she entered Joshua’s studio apartment. Was she asleep in the coffee shop, dreaming all this? Or had Joshua really swooped in and rescued her again?

She felt like she was in a trance when Joshua helped her with her bags and made space for her things in his closet—which to her surprise only contained a few items. She declined his offer of food, because she’d been able to eat leftovers at the coffee shop. But when he asked her if she wanted to take a bath to relax, she nodded, mainly because she needed time to digest what was happening.

As she lay in the bathtub, the hot water soothing her tired bones and her aching feet, she closed her eyes for a few minutes. This was real. Joshua had offered his help without hesitation, even though he didn’t have to. Just because they’d had sex the night before, didn’t obligate him to suddenly offer her a place to stay. So what exactly was his reason for doing this? More sex? A man looking like Joshua could get sex anytime he wanted without having to offer a girl a place to stay. Then why?

No matter how long and how hard she thought about it, she couldn’t figure out why he was doing this for her. But she wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. At least not tonight. Tomorrow, after a good night’s sleep, she would figure something out, find something more permanent—because she had no illusions about Joshua: sooner or later, he’d grow tired of her, just as soon as he realized that he could do better than her.

But in the meantime, she’d allow herself to make a few good memories.

Amy stepped out of the tub and pulled the plug to drain it. She reached for a towel and dried herself, then wrapped it around her torso and looked in the mirror. When she tilted her head and combed her hair just right, she could almost hide the ugly side of her face. In the mirror, the girl staring back at her was the Amy before the assault, the girl who’d had dreams, the girl who’d been pretty. It seemed like a lifetime ago.

With a sigh, she turned away from the mirror and opened the door. She stepped into the main room of the studio, where one side was furnished as a living/dining room, the other as a bedroom.

Joshua sat on the sofa, dressed only in a pair of jeans, his chest bare, his skin glistening as if he was perspiring even though it wasn’t overly hot in the apartment.

He turned his head and ran his eyes over her, making her hesitate. Slowly, he rose and took a couple of steps toward her.

“Did the bath help you relax a bit?”

Amy nodded. “Thank you. It was just what I needed.” Barefoot, she approached.

“I hope you don’t mind, but we should probably share the bed.” He motioned to the sofa. “The couch isn’t very comfortable to sleep on.”

“Of course, I don’t mind.” She cast a stolen look at his chest, admiring his toned abs and the smoothness of his skin. The sight tempted her, made her yearn for his touch.

“Do you mind if I…” She hesitated, not knowing if she had the courage to be bold.

“If you what?” Joshua asked softly, one hand on the button of his jeans now.

She swallowed away her shyness. “If I sleep in the nude?”

Was it an optical illusion, or did his jeans suddenly appear to stretch more tightly over his groin?

When he didn’t say anything, she lifted her gaze to his face and saw him grin. “Only if I may sleep in the nude too.”

Encouraged by his response, she stepped closer. “Fair is fair.”

He popped the button of his pants open and lowered the zipper. Then he stopped. “Why don’t you hang that towel over the chair and get into bed?”

Slowly, Amy released the towel where she’d tucked it in, and pulled it off her, before she draped it over the chair so it could dry overnight. When she looked back at Joshua, she noticed him run his eyes over her, his gaze hungry, his lips parted, while he rid himself of his pants.

Amy lifted the duvet and pulled it aside, then laid down on the mattress without covering herself with the duvet, while she continued looking at Joshua. He was already freeing himself of his boxer briefs, revealing his hard-on. His cock was just as hard and thick as she remembered from the night before. Instinctively, she licked her lips.

With a chuckle, Joshua approached the bed. “Oh no, you’re not gonna suck me tonight.” He joined her on the bed. “Or I won’t last long.”

Joshua pulled her into his arms, his face only inches from hers, their chests touching, their legs brushing against one another.

“I hope I’m reading the signs correctly that you want me to make love to you… I figured since you wanted to sleep in the nude…”