The Maid For Styles

Chapter 78

Chloe's POV

"I need to go," Harry's hushed words rang in my ears while his warm breath fanned the skin of my neck in the early hours of the morning.

With our limbs tangled beneath the sheets, I found myself mentally pleading for him not to leave the bed-his skin my favourite source of warmth. Clinging to him tighter, a strangled whine escaped my mouth as my fingernails sunk into his flesh, hoping that was enough to make him stay.

"I'll be back tonight, baby girl," he softly reassured me, using his long digits to brush a few stray hairs from my forehead and cheeks. I only reacted to his touch by burrowing my head further into the crook of his neck, inhaling his unique peppermint-like scent.

A small sigh left Harry's mouth and hit the shell of my ear, gracing my skin with goose-bumps only he could bring about. He shuffled in my grasp, leaning his face down to allow his lips to collide with the soft flesh of my cheek in a gentle, parting kiss.

"I love you," he murmured, before pulling his legs from mine, as well as his upper torso. The loss of warmth was apparent as I immediately found myself burying my body deeper into the sheets, hoping to find some of the heat Harry had taken with him.

"I love you too," I tried to mumble back, but I was sure it was lost in the mass of material that sheltered me from the cold. Hoping he'd heard it, I squeezed my eyes shut tighter and forced myself to find comfort in some sleep without Harry.

Having done well, I'd awoken later after three hours of soundless sleeping in Harry's bed. Mornings without waking up to him were always different. A smile never graced my lips when large fingers caressed my cheeks. Lips were never pressed against my own in a passionate exchange that I soon participated in when I quickly awoke from my slumber. Mornings without Harry were boring-plain and glum.

I tried hard to not be selfish, because I knew the studio with Modest! was where Harry needed to be at times, the reason being his life's work was created in the one building, but he was mine as much as he was theirs, and I needed him too. It wasn't just the mornings that were plain without him, it the entirety of the day. I sounded clingy, really, to have a constant craving for him, but without Harry in my presence, nothing was the same.

Heaving myself from the bed, I tried hard to reframe from dragging myself along the floor towards the ensuite. With, lazy, lethargic steps, I managed to get to the bathroom in one piece, as well as remove my clothes and step into the glass confines of the shower. After at least ten minutes, the hot water had worked to relax my muscles and wake me up in such a way that my vision was no longer fuzzy, and I didn't feel as though I was to collapse any second.

When the cold air of the bathroom hit my wet skin, I shivered, working rapidly to wrap my towel around my body and remove my flesh of any water droplets. I was quick to clothe my body with a shirt of Harry's, along with his sweat-pants, deciding that underwear wasn't a necessity, as I was home alone. The material I'd adorned my body with smelt of Harry-peppermint-like combined with his musky cologne, and his natural manly odour. Pulling the collar of the shirt to my nose to inhale the smell I'd fallen in love with only days after meeting him for the first time, I smiled to myself, having filled my head with pictures of Harry wearing the clothes I was in. Throwing on a shirt of his after he'd worn it was my favourite thing to do, yet without him in the facility, I had to wait until he arrived home to be able to do so.

The weather was slowly cooling down, the season made for over-sized jumpers and sweatpants rolling in. As much as I loved summer, I was keen for a cold night that would involve Harry and I holding each other close in hope to gain some warmth. Walking downstairs, I couldn't help but notice the change in temperature from the second floor, to the first. Scurrying to where the heater was situated, I switched it on and waited for the heat to fill the confines of the house. I seemed to relax in my own skin when the house was noticeably warmer and the slight discomfort had diminished.