No Strings Attached

Chapter Twelve

Alex led her to his bedroom, flipping on the light as he moved slowly towards his closet. "Should be something in here that will fit you," he says, already pulling out a flannel for her. "It's a little big but...should keep you warm." His voice was steady but tinged with exhaustion.
Norma followed him into the room, her eyes scanning, the intimate setting making her feel strangely out of place. She had never been in his bedroom before, never really thought she ever would be.
"Here," he says, walking towards her with the flannel and a pair of sweatpants held out towards her.
"Thanks," she says, taking the clothes from him. As she does this, her eyes begin to narrow at the blood stained gown he still wore. "You should change too."
"I'm fine," he says, already trying to make his way back to the living room but Norma stepped in front of him, her voice firmer now.
"Alex, there's blood all over that thing. You can't sleep in it. Take it off. I'll help you."
He gave her a look, one that teetered between exasperation and disbelief. "Norma, no, I can-"
"You can't lift your arms without pulling at the wound. I can see that it's hurting you, just let me help." Her voice was still firm, but her tone was gentler now.
Then her lips curved up just slightly into a knowing smile. "I mean, it's nothing I haven't seen before."
He froze, his brow furrowing, but the way her words hung between them sent a faint flush to his cheeks. He sighed, knowing he wouldn't win this battle, and gave her a reluctant nod.
"Fine," he muttered, his tone gruff as he turns to grab some clothes for himself. Norma sets her own clothes onto the bed before turning back to help him undress. Her movements were slow and deliberate as she pulled at the gown's ties, her fingers brushing against his skin as she did so. Alex stood as still as possible, his muscles taut, eyes closed as his breathing became shallow.
When the gown slipped from his body, revealing his bare chest and the bandage she'd carefully placed earlier, she realized he was only wearing boxers beneath. Her breath caught in her throat, but she pushed the reaction down, focusing instead on the task at hand.
He couldn't seem to keep his eyes off of her as she guided his arms through the sleeves of his shirt, her touch impossibly tender. He felt the warmth of her fingers as they brushed against his skin, unknowingly setting him ablaze. There was an unfamiliar ache building in him that had nothing to do with his injuries.
"You okay?" she asks as she pulls the shirt down his stomach carefully. All he can manage is a firm nod as she moves to grab the sweatpants, lowering herself to her knees as she moves to grab one of his legs.
"I can manage the rest," Alex says, making Norma look up at him with an eyebrow raised.
"Really? You're going to bend over and pull these up? Don't be ridiculous."
He sighed, that movement alone sending a sharp pain through his upper body, proving that Norma was right. She simply held the waistband open for him, allowing him to place a steadying hand on her shoulder as she helps him step into the sweats.
Her movements were careful as she stood up, pulling the fabric up his legs. The proximity, the intimacy of the moment, was almost overwhelming for both of them. Norma could feel the heat of his skin under her fingers, the subtle tremor in his muscles as she slowly tugged the sweatpants into place.
"There," she says softly, her hands still lingering on his waist as she looks up at him, his dark eyes heavy with something she couldn't quite name. She watched as those dark eyes flickered from her eyes down to her lips and back.
"Thanks," he mutters softly, neither able to move from the trance they seemed to be in. He watched as her blue eyes flicked to his lips, confusion lacing her features, her breathing labored.
"Stay with me tonight," she finally says, a pleading look in her eyes as she looks back up at him.
"Norma," he tries to argue, though he can already feel himself begin to give in as he stares into her desperate gaze.
"Please, Alex. I promise I won't make a move on you," she says with a playful smile, before her face becomes more serious again, her voice just above a whisper. "I just...I almost lost you tonight. I want to be close to you."
He studied her for a moment, the air between them feeling charged as the vulnerability of the moment binded them in a way neither of them had expected.
"Okay," he says simply, watching her visibly relax at his acceptance.
"I'll let you get changed," he says, being the first to break the trance they were in as he stepped towards the door, closing it behind him for her privacy.
He took the moment alone to gather his thoughts, and it was only now that he realized how truly exhausted he felt. He leaned back against the wall next to his door, the movement sending a sharp pain through him once again.
He knew letting her stay here, allowing her to sleep in the same bed with him, would be a challenge. The exact kind of challenge he had been trying so hard to avoid. But he also knew he didn't have it in him to turn her down.
Before he could mull it over any longer, his door opened and there she stood, practically swimming in his clothes. He found himself smirking slightly at the sight.
"You just gonna stand there and stare?" she asks, breaking him from his thoughts. He follows her into the bedroom, clicking the door shut behind him, making the heavy reality set in.
He slipped under the covers first, his movements slow, wincing slightly as he lays back against the pillows. Norma makes sure he is situated and comfortable before she carefully slides in beside him.
They sit in a comfortable silence for a moment, staring at the wall in front of them, both too consumed with their own thoughts. And then Norma slowly turns to look at him.
"You gonna tell me what the hell happened tonight?" she asks, making him turn to look at her, his jaw tightening at the memory.
"I got shot," he says flatly, making her narrow her eyes at him.
"Yeah, I gathered that. But how? Who shot you?" she asks, worry lacing her features.
"One of Bob's men-"
"Bob? How do you know?" she asks with disbelief, sitting up on her elbow as she turns to face him, his shirt falling from her shoulder just slightly.
"Because, I know." His voice was firm and sure, though it wavered slightly as he tried to keep his gaze away from her now prominent collar bone.
"But...But why?" she asks, still not fully believing Bob would do something like that.
"To send a message," he says simply, making her insides churn. "I told you, he's going to smile in your face while he sets a trap. This was the trap," he explained, glancing down to the hole that is now in his chest under his shirt.
Her lips parted, her breath catching as the weight of his words settled down on her. "I didn't...I never wanted anyone to get hurt," she stammered, her voice trembling. "It's all my fault. You could've died and it would've been my fault."
It took everything in Alex not to pull her to his chest, but his injury and the pull he felt towards her kept him from doing so.
"I just wanted to stop the stupid bypass."
Alex softened slightly, seeing the genuine distress on her face. "I know," he said, his voice quieter. "But he doesn't care about that. He's not a forgiving man, Norma. You go against him, and he'll make sure you regret it."
Her eyes shimmered with tears she refused to let fall. "So...So what now? What do we do?" she whispered.
Alex hesitated, the need to protect her battling against his understanding that she was a stubborn woman and might not listen to him. "You stay away from him. And you stay out of my way while I handle it."
Norma's jaw tightened as she sat up fully, the familiar defiance flickering back into her gaze. "No," she says firmly. "No, I almost got you killed already. I'm not letting you take another bullet for me."
The corners of his lips lifted slightly at the fact that she still couldn't see how much she truly meant to him. He wasn't sure if it was the exhaustion, the loss of blood, or the whirlwind of emotions he had felt tonight that made him uncharacteristically bold and transparent.
"I'm always going to do what it takes to keep you safe."
The bluntness of his reply made her freeze, the weight of his words hanging in the air between them, thick with unspoken emotion. Before she could respond, Alex pulled the blanket higher around them with his good arm, making her lay back down as he leaned further back against the pillows, his exhaustion taking over.
"We should get some rest," he murmurs softly, slowly reaching over to flick off the bedside lamp, quickly engulfing them in darkness.
As her eyes adjust, she turns to face him only to find him already looking at her, the air between them thick and charged once again. She found her heart racing for reasons she couldn't quite name as she turned her body towards him. Their faces were so close that their noses were almost brushing, but she was careful not to touch him. Partly because she had promised not to make a move on him, but mostly because she was afraid she would hurt him. More than she already had.
"Goodnight, Norma," he whispers, his fingertips gently brushing along her leg that rests against his.
"Goodnight, Alex," she whispers back, watching as his exhaustion quickly pulls him to sleep.
She watched him for a moment, her mind still scrambled by the electric tension that had passed between them. She only now realized this was the first time she was sharing a bed with a man she wasn't married to, and they weren't having sex. It somehow felt more intimate.
She wasn't prepared for this. The sudden pull she felt towards him, the way his presence alone seemed to intoxicate her, how her very being felt lost in his absence. It wasn't just attraction, it was something deeper, something that left her breathless and yearning.
She closed her eyes in an attempt to follow him into slumber, but her thoughts betrayed her, circling back to the way his voice now softened when he spoke to her, the way his eyes seemed to see right through her in a way no one else could.
And when she did finally find sleep, he was waiting for her in her dreams, his warmth and steadiness pulling her into a world she didn't quite understand but couldn't resist.