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Gabriel frowned down at me. I thought he was going to say no, that he’d insist on driving home or that he’d get a room somewhere else.
I just had that feeling that if he left, he was gone, and I wouldn’t see him again. The atmosphere felt fragile; if one of us misspoke, the air would shatter between us. Irreparable damage would be done. Whether it was from the height of too much emotion or because we were both clearly exhausted, we needed our space, but we needed each other more.
He didn’t leave. His hands fell to his sides as he took a step back. “I’ll take the couch.”
“That lumpy old thing? It’s an overstuffed nightmare.” My couch was ghastly to sleep on. It was wonderful for cuddling with pillows while you watched a movie but lacked any kind of support for sleeping. He already looked miserable. If he slept on my couch, tomorrow, he’d add a backache to whatever ailed him.
“I can take the couch. You can have my bed. You’re taller than I am. I’ll fit better on the couch. Come on.”
Before he could argue more, I tugged on Gabriel’s arm and pulled him into the bedroom.
He took up the entire space, not with his size, but with his charisma and his demeanor. The area was small, but it had never felt claustrophobic until then. The bed was against the wall with only one side available for climbing in and out. I had a small nightstand next to it and the built-in shelves were just two feet from the foot of the bed. My dresser lined the opposite wall where a small closet had been added to the room at some point; its painted plywood walls extended into the space, removing even more usable square footage.
I switched on my small bedside lamp, one of those German porcelain ones with the figure of a dancing eighteenth century couple as the base.
I smiled ruefully at Gabriel. “It’s cozy, but I promise, the bed is more comfortable than the couch.”
“I’m sure it will be.” He started removing his shoes and I started yammering.
“So, the bathroom is the door opposite the stove.” I waved my hand in its general direction, which was kind of hard to miss, given the size of my apartment. “And it gets a little chilly in here at night since I have an end unit. I can get you an extra blanket.”
While I had been talking, Gabriel stretched out across the bed and closed his eyes.
I stood there for a second and watched his even breathing. He had removed his shoes, but that was it. He’d left his jacket on and one foot dangled from the side of the bed.
I reached down to switch off the light so he could sleep.
I turned to walk away and stopped when Gabriel circled my wrist with his hand.
“Stay,” he muttered with his eyes still closed.
It was against my better judgment, but that one word uttered by a tired man reached out to me.
“I need to change. I’ll be right back.”
I pulled a nightgown out of the top drawer of my dresser and went to the bathroom to slip into it. Gabriel was exhausted enough to fall asleep in his clothes, but the sequins on my dress wouldn’t be so hospitable. I avoided looking in the mirror as I changed, knowing that my mascara had given me the raccoon effect and my eyes were probably as bloodshot as Gabriel’s. I washed my face quickly, donned the simple white flannel gown, and tried to settle my nerves. Neither one of us was in the condition to do more than sleep, but still, I was getting ready tosleepwith Gabriel. Me - the introverted nerd at heart. I pulled in another deep breath and opened the bathroom door. I took a moment to make sure my apartment door was locked and switched off the lights. I didn’t use a nightlight because the streetlights cast enough luminescence into the apartment, so I didn’t need one. The bedroom area was the darkest part of the space and the built-in shelves helped block the excess light.
I returned to the bed and found Gabriel fast asleep, his breathing easy and deep.
And he was still on the exposed side of the bed. I’d have to crawl over him to get to the other side. I suppose I could have ignored his invitation to stay with him and slept on the couch as I’d originally intended, but I wasn’t really interested in doing that.
Gingerly, I put one knee on the bed and crawled over his legs, putting my other knee in the open space. Gabriel had fallen asleep on top of the covers. Cold at night or not, I never slept well unless I had the added weight from the blanket covering me. I reached for the quilt I kept folded across the foot of the bed. I usually used it more for decoration than warmth, but tonight, it’d have to do. I tugged to free it from beneath the weight of Gabriel’s feet and then arranged it as best I could over both of us.
I felt like I would finally be able to sleep. My body had entered that overtired zone where my skin tingled, and my body hummed with sensitivity to every touch. The blanket felt like a ton of bricks, and I swear every hair on my arms prickled with awareness. I positioned myself carefully against the wall so I didn’t disturb Gabriel. I only had a full-sized bed. With his height, I’m sure he was used to a king. I turned on my side to give him more room, but as I moved, so did he.
“You’re too far away,” he murmured as he rolled onto his side. “Come here.”
Before I could protest, though it wasn’t like I really wanted to stop him, Gabriel pulled me next to him into a classic spooning position with one of his arms wrapped draped over my hips and the back of my head tucked under his chin. When I couldn’t hold back the sigh, I felt him smile against the top of my head.
I think it was the best night’s sleep I’d ever had.
