“You slipped away…” She still remembered all my expressions like we hadn’t been apart.
“Just…” I didn’t know how to form my answer because I wasn’t entirely sure what I was thinking about. I’d never felt so confused. Before Rome walked into my life, I never thought about these things. But now, I was filled with doubt. “Nothing.”
Rome didn’t press her curiosity.
“I’m glad you’re alright.” I turned my attention back to her, my fingers worshiping her soft hair. I wanted to erase what had happened to her, to end Hank before he had the chance to even look at her ever again. This woman meant the world to me. When she hurt, I hurt. “If anything worse happened to you…” I couldn’t finish the sentence because it was too difficult. Just the suggestion of Hank overpowering her made me sick to my stomach.
“But nothing did.” Her slender fingers wrapped around my wrist, still cold. “That’s all that matters.”
I stared at her lips and ached to kiss her, to feel those soft lips against my mouth. I wanted to roll around on my sheets while I was buried deep inside her. I wanted to feel that connection with her, that powerful voltage that always healed all my aches and wounds. But she and I were still worlds apart.
Rome must have felt the connection too because she excused herself. “I should go to bed. It’ll be nice to get some sleep tonight. Haven’t been able to close my eyes for a few days…”
Probably because she was terrified that asshole would come back to the apartment. “Good night.” I unwillingly released her and watched her walk up the stairs until she was gone from my sight.
When I was alone, I lay back and stared at the blank TV. The woman of my dreams shared the house with me, her bedroom just down the hall from mine. Would I be able to stay in my own room and not slip under the sheets with her? I didn’t have a lot of self-control—not when it came to Rome.
I tried to get some sleep, but it was pointless. I stared at the ceiling in the dark, my hand resting on my chest. I hadn’t gotten laid in a month, and I knew that messed my cycle up. And I knew it had something to do with the brunette across the hall.
I didn’t own a gun, but I didn’t need one. If Hank somehow figured out Rome was here, I could take him down with my own fists. I wasn’t sure how he would even figure out she was in the house. He’d have to be stalking her like he was staring at her through a microscope.
A gentle knock sounded on my bedroom door before it cracked open.
I sat up in bed automatically, my reflexes taking over.
Rome poked her head inside, wearing one of my old t-shirts. She must have taken it with her when she left. I hadn’t seen it around the house in weeks. “Sorry to wake you…”
“I wasn’t asleep.” I stared her down and waited for an explanation.
“Can I sleep with you?” She asked the question as if it caused her pain to say the words out loud. “I can’t sleep—”
“Yes.” There was nothing I wanted more than to have this woman in my bed again. She wouldn’t be the only one to finally get some sleep. I would too. I pulled down the covers and patted the sheets beside me. “Come here.”
She walked to the bed then climbed inside, looking beautiful in my clothes. Her cold body lay beside mine, and she pulled the sheets over herself, surrounded by the warmth my body produced.
The second she was beside me, I grabbed her leg and hooked it over my waist, feeling her smooth skin under my fingertips. My face rested against hers, and the pain immediately stopped. Just having her next to me made me feel better, made me feel some form of joy. My cock was hard, and I knew she could feel it, but that was beyond my control. I was so hard up for her that my dick thickened anytime we were in the same room together.
She cuddled against my chest and sighed deeply, like she was finally relaxing and drifting away. Her hand circled my waist, and her strands tickled my skin at the slightest movement. It felt like we were four months in the past, when the two of us were better together than apart.
I pressed a kiss to her forehead, feeling my thoughts slip away. “Good night, sweetheart.”
“Good night, Sexy…”
17
Rome
I hadn’t slept that well in four days.
It felt so good.
The second my head hit the pillow as I lay beside Calloway, my lights went out. Knowing I was safe in this castle with the king right beside me, I knew I was untouchable. I could finally let my guard down and get some real sleep.