Souls Entwined

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen
Elle's POV

Something unfamiliar pinned me to the mattress, and a dead weight caught over my waist. Then, as it dawned on me, I suddenly found myself being pulled from the recesses of sleep. I could never remember being so profoundly unaware, so tightly wound in sleep's warm embrace, but now I was hyper-fixated on the weight, the arm wrapped around me.

But even as the warning bells went off, the alarms inside my head, I knew who it was. I would recognise his warmth anywhere. The familiarity of his scent tickled my senses. It reminded me of dew-dusted mornings in the rising sun, of winter days and summer nights. A hint of ocean breeze settled in the fabric of his clothes, and citrus mist kissed his skin.

It was as familiar as my own name. I trusted him.

I was sure that opening my eyes would cause the imagined image to fragment, to destroy any fantasy I'd created. Reality would stare me in the face by just blinking, threatening to steal away the emotions coursing through me.

I wasn't sure I wanted to know what reality looked like in the light of day.

I found myself nestled in his arms, wondering if sleep had come so easily because the sanctuary of his embrace provided a secret haven. He wouldn't hurt me.

As my mind started to jump from thought to thought, and sleep escaped me, I peeled back sleep-fused eyelashes, blinking away the haze. Light trickled through thin curtains, and a sunlit fire softly caressed Kaden's skin. He looked fragile, deep in peaceful slumber. Tension had eased from a steel jaw, and his brow had softened without the stress, caught in a sleeping state.

My gaze stayed momentarily, painting a memory. I was captivated by the stillness that seemed so few and far between.

I knew I couldn't stay like this forever.

After a while, I tried to wriggle from his hold, twisting awkwardly in search of my phone. I only wanted to check the time, but mine was nowhere to be seen. Then, my stumbling fingers found Kaden's phone, which lit up. I blinked at the blaring light, trying to check the time without the scrolling messages distracting me.

His arms tightened around my waist, a waking groan mewling behind his set jaw. He buried his nose into my hair, his fingers curling against my skin. He stayed like that for a moment before pulling back, his hand slipping away with little resistance.

Kaden groaned, dragging a hand over his face, but then he stiffened, not risking a breath as he lay his hands over his eyes. And then slowly, like dripping molasses, his fingers parted, and he peered at me, eyes clouded with bewilderment.

Staring unabashedly, sluggishly, he let a deep breath escape through his parted lips. 'You're still here.'

I wrapped an arm around myself, trying to recapture some of the warmth he had taken with him. Then, staring at the wrinkled crease on his cheek, I cleared my throat with a half-shrug. 'It's a quarter-to-nine. We need to get up, or you'll miss your meeting.'

I pushed up, smoothing nerve-fluttered fingers over my hair, trying not to imagine the mess I'd become.

'Elle, wait,' his fingers brushed the inside of my wrist, pulling away just as fast as they'd reached out, 'I didn't make you feel like you had to stay, did I?'

I shook my head mutely, trust him, the voice whispered, but I forgot to listen, shuffling backwards, my head bowed as I neared the door. 'It's fine.' I'd nearly escaped when a gloomy exhalation whispered precariously through the room, filling my limbs with lead.

I picked my gaze up from the floor and studied him. He was staring at the sheets, a chastising scowl creasing his expression. Then he ground his teeth, raking his fingers through crumpled umber hair and squeezed his eyes shut with a silent groan.