Pierced (Lucian & Lia #1)(23)
His warmth wraps around me as I snuggle deeper into him. I have no idea if I will see him again after this, so I want to revel in the moment. All too soon, drowsiness takes over, and I find myself dozing, lulled into sleep by the sound of his heartbeat against my ear. “Sleep, baby,” I hear faintly and then I am drifting away.
How long I had been asleep, I have no idea. The room is dark, but someone near is choking. The gurgling sounds fill my ears as I frantically push the webs of sleep away and grope for an answer in the darkness. Someone thrashes next to me as I jump from the bed, rushing to turn on a lamp to light the darkness.
Lucian is on his back, his body twisting as if in agony. His hands are holding his neck and gasping sounds escape from his throat. Oh, dear God, he is choking, but on what? Rushing toward him, I put my hands over his on his neck. “Luc,” I whisper, not wanting to startle him further. He continues to wither as if in great pain, so I shake him lightly. “Lucian. Wake up, you’re scaring the hell out of me!” Just as I decide to call 911 in case he is having some sort of seizure, he bolts upright in bed, looking around wildly. I stroke his arm, trying to soothe him. ‘It’s okay, it’s me…Lia.” His other hand rubs against his throat, but the gurgling sound has stopped. I’m weak with relief that he appears to be unhurt. As suddenly as he jumped up, he sinks back down to the bed, forcing me to move aside as he lowers his head in his hands, taking deep breaths. Sitting beside him, I hesitate before starting to rub his back in slow, soothing circles.
“I’m sorry,” he says hoarsely. “That…hasn’t happened in a long time. I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
I continue to rub his back, trying to digest his words. That this has happened to him before is obvious. I wonder if this has anything to do with the scar on his neck, but I’m not brave enough to ask. “No, I was just worried about you. Would you like a glass of water?” He looks so young and vulnerable sitting here with his shoulders slumped forward that I feel something in my heart twinge. I don’t think this is some random bad dream for him. Someone hurt this man badly, and I find myself wanting to protect him, which is absurd. Just because I live with past traumas doesn’t mean everyone does. He pulls away mentally before he does physically. I see the shutters going down and the walls going up; I’m an expert at this behavior, so it’s easy for me to recognize.
“I’m fine, Lia; it was just a dream.” He makes a point of looking at the clock, which shows it’s just after midnight. He gives me a quick kiss before standing. “I really need to go, though. I have some emails to return before morning.” Instinctively, I grab my shirt from the floor, keeping my back turned away from him until I am covered. At this point, I don’t think either of us could handle any more upset tonight, and I’m in no shape to answer questions. I want him to stay, but I know he won’t; he needs space and this I understand too well to try to stop him.
He quickly dresses, and I’m pleasantly surprised when he takes my hand, pulling me behind him from the bedroom and into the living room area. There is no sign of Rose, so I assume she is either staying the night with Jake or has stopped somewhere on the way home. Lucian surprises me further when he drops my hand and quickly walks to the table to pick up our leftover pizza and drink cans. He makes short work of throwing them in the trash. “Maybe I should be the one hiring you as a housekeeper.” This surprises a laugh out of him, and I smile in return.
His hand again takes mine, and I am pulled into his arms. His kiss this time feels more as if he is giving me comfort, rather than the fire of earlier. I think he is embarrassed by what happened and wants to make sure I’m not upset, which is sweet but unnecessary. I wrap my arms around his waist and hold him tight for a moment, giving him the reassurance I feel he needs. “Goodnight, baby,” he sighs against my neck. Pulling back, he raises a questioning brow. “I’ll see you in the morning?”
“Yep, I don’t have a class till after lunch. I can come for a few hours in the morning so you can show me around, and then I’ll be back in the afternoon.”
“What time shall I have Sam pick you up?” I’m helpless to suppress a giggle at his question. He looks for the world like someone who missed out on the joke and is running through the conversation in his head. I decide to put him out of his misery.
“I don’t think the cleaning lady typically gets chauffeured to and from work unless she is Cinderella. I have a car, and I’m driving myself. Besides, I need my car for my afternoon classes.”
Stubborn, Lucian insists. “Sam can drop you and pick you back up.” Shaking my head, I open the door and push him bodily through it.
“Don’t even think of sending your car. I’ll ignore it and drive myself anyway. Sam doesn’t want to deal with that.” I see he wants to argue but instead turns on his heels, looking like a spoiled child for a moment as he mutters under his breath and stalks off. Declaring victory in our battle will have to wait until morning; I’m not confident he won’t ignore me and send the damn car anyway.
Chapter Seven
Lia
“What’s going on with you? I thought you were going to stroke out when you ran out of here yesterday.”
In a pathetic attempt to change the subject, I ask, “So, how was dinner with Jake’s parents? Since you did the walk of shame this morning, not even an hour ago, I’m assuming it went well?”