Page 35 of Double Booked
He jumped out of bed, dressed only in his boxer/briefs, and hurried out of the bedroom. Jogging downstairs, he reached her bedroom door in no time. He briefly paused, questioning whether to enter, but then she wailed like she was in pain. He quickly opened the door and went inside.
Eden was thrashing about on the bed, her head jerking from side to side. “No! Don’t!” she shouted.
He rushed to her bedside and leaned over her. “Eden. It’s okay. Wake up.”
Her eyes remained closed. “Stop! No!”
Placing his hands firmly on her shoulders, he stopped her from thrashing about. “Eden. It’s Cole. Wake up,” he said firmly.
Suddenly, her eyes popped open, and she gazed at him in a daze.
“It’s okay. I’m here,” he said, still holding her in place.
“Cole?”
“You were having a bad dream. I heard you through the vent.”
She started to sit up, and he pulled his hands away. The covers fell to her waist as she propped herself against the headboard. “What was I saying?”
Realizing he was standing there in his underwear, he perched on the edge of the bed. She was still confused and didn’t seem to notice. “You kept saying ‘no,’ and ‘stop.’”
She plunged her hands in her hair, unsticking it from her face. It was dark in the room, except for the dim light of the alarm clock that read 2:54 a.m.
“Do you remember the dream?” he asked.
“Not really.”
He’d be willing to bet it had something to do with Patrick. Damn the man for texting her last night. How could she heal if he wouldn’t leave her alone? He glanced at her empty glass. “I’ll get you some water,” he offered.
“You don’t have to.”
“It’s no problem.”
He padded into the bathroom and filled the glass with water. When he reemerged, she tracked his approach, and her eyes widened like she’d just noticed his state of undress. Since there was nothing to be done about it, he returned to her bedside and handed her the glass.
“You’re wearing… You’re not…”
He chuckled. “You sounded like you were in pain, so I didn’t take the time to get dressed.”
She kept staring at his chest, and he decided to sit down again, for fear the attention went straight to his groin.
“Drink some water,” he said, hoping to distract them both.
She took a long drink. Then she held the glass in front of her like a shield.
“Feeling better now?”
“Yes, and no.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m so embarrassed. Since you met me, I’ve done a lot of stupid things.”
“No, you haven’t.”
“Yes, I have. You’re just too nice to say so.”
Too nice? He hadn’t heard that one before.
