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She really was something else.
Not being able to concentrate any longer, I ended up heading home, leaving a note for Caroline to have her get a few files ready for me in the morning. It was odd for me to be going home at such a late hour. Normally, I would have just crashed on my office sofa. But I wanted to see Natalia. I hoped she would still be awake. I felt bad that I hadn’t gone home sooner, but I had some time-sensitive projects I needed to finish. That and I had gotten distracted watching her on the cameras.
When I finally walked through my front door, it was about one in the morning. The TV was still on, playing some sci-fi B movie. It wasn’t turned up too loud, but hearing noise in my place was a little startling. It was always quiet when I got home. I wasn’t sure if the sound was a bad thing, though.
I couldn’t see her from the entryway and wondered if she had gone to bed already. Quietly, I made my way to the couch.
“Natalia?” I whispered, not wanting to startle her, but also not wanting to wake her if she had fallen asleep.
She was lying on the couch fast asleep, the comforter thrown on the floor and her arm hanging off the edge of the couch as if she had reached for it in her sleep. Her wavy brown hair fell over her face, covering all but her eyes. She snored softly, which made me smile.
I stood there looking at her wondering what I should do. Should I just leave her there? No, that would almost be disrespectful. It was her first night here, and she had fallen asleep not knowing where her room was. No wonder she had slept on the couch. I should have just told her to sleep in my bedroom. It had the softest bed and the most space, and I was not going to let her take one of the smaller spare bedrooms, not for sleeping, anyway. She deserved better. She deserved the best that I could give her.
I didn’t know how she would feel about sleeping next to me, though. Hell, I didn’t know howIwould feel about sleeping next toher.I hadn’t slept beside anyone in a long time. Usually, if I had a woman over, I would insist they take one of the spare rooms. Most were happy to do so, and that was fine for them. Natalia was different, though.
Maybe it was the title of her being my wife, or maybe I was getting soft in my older age, but I wanted to make her feel safe, comfortable, and happy.
I reached down and brushed her hair from her face. She didn’t move, and now I could see the line of her jaw and the relaxed expression on her face. She looked like a sleeping angel. What the hell was wrong with me?
‘Natalia, it’s Jimmy,” I said, shaking her shoulder gently. She opened one eye and looked at me.
“Hey Jimmy,” she said. “I’m watching a movie. Wanna watchit withme?”
She ran her words together in an almost drunken way, and I wasn’t sure if she was even fully awake. My money would be on no.
“Actually, you fell asleep. I’m going to pick you up and bring you to bed, okay?”
“Okay, that sounds good,” She closed her eye then opened it again. “I’m not having sex with you.”
I chuckled. I wonder what she was dreaming about.
“No ma’am, just bringing you to bed so you can be more comfortable.
“Okay. That’s a plan,” she said then closed her eyes again. She let out another little snore.
Seeing as she wasn’t going to wake up and walk upstairs on her own, I scooped her up off the couch and into my arms. It wasn’t as smooth a movement as I would have liked, but she stayed asleep just the same. I tucked her head against my shoulder and made sure the arm under her knees was secure before readjusting my arm across her back. Once I had her completely secure, I took her upstairs to the main bedroom and placed her gently on the bed. I turned down the blankets on the other side of the bed and then had to pick her up again so she could actually be tucked into bed. But still, she didn’t wake.
Once I was certain she was fine, I undressed down to my boxer briefs and got into bed next to her. She snored again, and I smiled. This woman was such a surprise to me. I barely even knew her, and yet she had me changing all my rules. I wanted to change anything I could to make her comfortable and happy.
As we lay there, she had me thinking about what it would be like to wake up with her there every morning. About her in the kitchen making breakfast or reading in the library. I knew she didn’t have a job yet. Her father had wanted her at home cooking and cleaning, so he gave her money whenever she needed it. But he had mentioned she had hobbies she wanted to make a living doing. As long as she was happy, I didn’t care what she did.
I was thinking about her when I fell asleep and again when I woke up to the alarm on my phone at 6 a.m. I silenced it right away hoping I didn’t wake her. She was still fast asleep when I got dressed and headed downstairs. I almost headed right out the door when I thought maybe she would like some coffee when she woke up. So, I took a few extra minutes to set up the coffee maker and write a note. I placed the note on the bedside table nearest her and then went about my usual morning business, heading in to work.
For once, I was not happy about going to the office. I wanted to stay and talk with her, but I had about five meetings throughout the day, the first one being at 8 a.m. I couldn’t skip work that day.
The fact that I was considering it, though, made me wonder about Natalia and why I was feeling this way about her.
Chapter 12
Natalia
Iawokeinabed I had never been in before. The sheets and comforter were so soft that, at first, I thought I was in my own bed at home. But then I remembered the events that had transpired the day before. I sat up, rubbed my eyes, and looked around.
Morning light streamed through the window in the bedroom and the hallway, which I could see through the open bedroom door. It took me a minute to realize I was in Jimmy’s room. I scratched my head and blinked in confusion for a few minutes. The last thing I remembered was watching a werewolf movie on TV and snuggling up in my butterfly blanket. I was warm, I felt safe and, after everything that had happened, I was happy for some peace and quiet.
I had wondered when Jimmy was going to get home, but I must have fallen asleep during the movie. Then how did I…?
Jimmy must have picked me up and brought me upstairs when he got home, whenever that was. But if I was in here, where was he? Had he slept in one of the spare rooms? Or on the couch?
