Safeguard

Chapter Forty-Four

So, pushing my back away from the headboard it had found little comfort against, I sighed heavily, knowing that my actions were going to continue whether my mind consciously accepted it or not. A sigh slipped past my lips as my feet padded quietly along the wooden flooring. A great part of me would regret this in the morning but I knew there was only one way that I could find the comfort I was desperately longing for.

My eyes searched around the corridor, adjusting to the light before I twisted my body to face Luke's room. His door, as usual, had been left ajar, allowing a rectangle of the hallway light to seep into his room.

As I edged closer to his doorway, I caught sight of the gun holster that he had evidently flung onto the floor, which indicated his presence. With this confirmed, I gently pushed his door further open, letting my feet filter into his room in the process.

I left my hand lingering on the door handle, unable to rid my body of the apprehension that presented itself from being in the same room as Luke for the first time in over a week. Finally gaining the courage to avert my eye line his way, I found him with his eyes already trained on my uneasy figure.

He sat with his back against the headboard, his hands gathered on his lap where I was certain they had fought among one another before my arrival. Likewise, the rest of his body was still, the only movement being the slow and steady rise of his chest. His hair was matted against his forehead, an exhausted look carved into his features which was only worsened by the hurtful bags hanging deep under his eyes.

Any words that I could have collected together were trapped in my throat, but as a second or two past, it dawned on me that no words needed to be exchanged between the two of us.

Simply by the look in his emerald eyes, I knew that he was fully aware that in that moment in time I just needed to be with him. I needed to be in his company, without the confusion or stress of our relationship. I just needed to have him close. He completely understood this and that was the thing that comforted me the most. It was as if it were a common ground, set out by simply catching each other's eye line.

So, discarding the hesitation that had swarmed my body, I focused on the new warmth within my chest and carried my body toward Luke's bed. He shifted to one side, simply watching my movements as a comforting expression formed on his features. He wasn't smiling, far from it, but the look in his eye alone made my presence welcome.

My body advanced onto the security of his mattress only to be shifted moments later into a delicate hold. He cradled my head against his chest, one of his palms finding comfort in my hair while the other lurched for a hand of my own. I sighed inwardly, feeling the warmth of his body instantly as I embraced him back. It was a warmth that spread deeper than my nerves and seemed to soothe every inch of my restless body in seconds.

We lay there, motionless, for a few more moments, letting time slip between our fingertips before my eyes wandered down to his wrist. The details of his wound scorned at me, acting as a reminder of the spiral of lies that the two of us had been plummeted into. My fingers trailed along his palm, feeling his delicate skin under my touch as they neared the disfigurement gracing his wrist. I traced my palm over the outline, feeling his gaze hot on my features as I inspected the bullet-hole further.

My rhythmic movements continued as my eyes bore into the shape, something that eventually lead to Luke clasping my hand gently and preventing my actions from continuing any further. He was discrete with his intentions but it was more than clear to me that he didn't want my mind wondering to our past. It wasn't the time to try and process everything that had happened; we had more important things at stake. Even those, however, were forgotten in that moment as Luke pressed a comforting kiss to my forehead, my eyes fluttering shut in the process.