“The shower is yours,” she said, sitting down on the side of her bed facing Gavin, as she started to listen to the international news he was watching. The more she listened, the more afraid she became.
“Are we going to be all right?”
“We will be when we get to Treepoint.”
Watching the news coverage wasn’t as frightening as Gavin’s grim visage.
“I meant everyone, not just us.”
“Time will tell. Go to sleep. Worrying about it tonight won’t make it better tomorrow. People have been living through pandemics since time began. We’ll survive this one too.”
Ginny had to swallow her fear down. If anything happened to any of her brothers, Trudy, or Willa, she didn’t know if she could bear a loss like that again.
“Ginny ….”
Taking her eyes off the television, he gave her a reassuring look. “It’s going to be all right. Get some sleep. I want to try to drive through tomorrow without stopping for the night.”
“Okay. Good night.”
Taking her housecoat off, she slipped under the covers, expecting Gavin to turn the lights and television off.
“Aren’t you going to sleep?” she asked.
“I will in a few minutes. I want to finish watching this special report.” Leaning to his side, he turned the light off, then lowered the volume on the television.
Rolling onto her side, she closed her eyes. After driving for so many hours, she fell asleep after a few fitful turns.
In the middle of the night, her full bladder woke her from a dead sleep. Sitting up in bed, she turned to the side to get up and saw Gavin was still awake. The digital clock on the nightstand between their beds showed it was two in the morning. She had fallen asleep at ten.
“You haven’t gone to sleep yet?”
“I’ve been texting Viper. I’m waiting for Shade to call.”
“He’s probable asleep, and so should you be. You’re exhausted, Gavin.”
“No, I’m not. I don’t need much sleep.”
“Keep telling yourself that. Meanwhile, the circles under your eyes look like someone sucker-punched you.”
Throwing her covers off, Ginny stomped into the bathroom. Relieving her bladder and washing her hands, she came out, prepared to give him hell, only to find he had dozed off, his exhaustion finally winning. She silently took the TV remote and muted the television, afraid if she turned it off, the sudden darkness would wake him.
Lying back down on her bed, she lay on her side, watching him sleep sitting up. She waited for thirty minutes until she was sure he had fallen into a deep sleep before noiselessly getting out of bed to go to the foot of his.
Gently taking the hem of his jeans, she pulled the legs down until he was sprawled out on the bed. Moving to the head of the bed, she gently placed a pillow under him.
The lines of exhaustion on his face tugged at her heart. Unable to resist, she traced her fingertips over his upper lip before jerking back when he rolled to the side.
Getting back in her bed, Ginny watched him until she started dozing off.
Waking with a start at the noise coming from Gavin’s bed, she worriedly sat up, seeing him thrashing on his bed, the pillow she placed under his head laying on the floor. Carefully getting up, she moved closer to the bed, unsure whether to wake him from the bad dream or not. He needed sleep ….
Gingerly sitting down on the edge of his bed next to his hip, she placed a gentle hand on his chest when he gave a heartbreaking groan. “Shh … You’re okay … I’m here,” she crooned softly.
At her touch, Gavin expelled a deep breath, then started to breathe easier. Ginny sat there until she thought he had fallen into a deep sleep again. Slowly removing her hand, she started to rise, but she didn’t even make it off the bed before he was twisting and turning again, nearly knocking her off the bed. Putting her hand back on his chest, she started talking to him again.
“You’re okay, Gavin. I’m here. Sleep, baby, sleep. I won’t let anyone hurt you ever again,” she promised, through tears in her eyes from his moans.
His chest started rising and falling so fast, she was afraid his heart wouldn’t be able to take the pressure he was exerting. It was painfully obvious why he wasn’t sleeping.
When his thrashing around knocked her hand away, Ginny didn’t know what to do. Then she remember what she and Leah used to do after they watched a scary movie.
Lying down next to him, she wrapped her arm around his waist, snuggling up against him. “Shh … Sleep, Gavin. I’m here. I’m never going to leave you.” Using her free hand, she reached for his other pillow and placed it under his head. Finding a spot on his shoulder, she rested hers.