When the fear of isolation pulls Ashton and Ria together, nothing can prepare them for the collision. An anomaly shatters the repetitive fabric of their lives, sending them on a journey of discovering themselves and one another.
Beneath Ashton's gen...
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PALE RAYS OF LIGHT kiss Ria's eyelids as the sun caresses her roused limbs. Slumber expels from her dreamless mind. Warmth wraps tender arms around her frame, fighting away the cold tendrils that usually threaten her throughout the night. The gentlest sigh touches the air, and she snuggles deeper into her bed. A strong arm tightens around her waist. A deep groan rumbles in her ear.
Her eyes spring open.
With a desperate twist, she turns to see Ashton slumbering next to her. Golden brushstrokes of sunlight paint his fair features; bed hair falls over his forehead and brushes against the tips of his pale lashes.
Her heart slams against her ribcage. She springs upright. This has never happened before. Scowling, she leans on her forearm and stares into nothing. Remnants of last night drive into her mind, and she stares at him still clad in dark jeans and a black shirt. One glance down. She's still in the clothes she wore last night.
We didn't have sex.
Hasty recollections of them talking for hours — or rather her running Ashton's ears red with stories of growing up in Italy — mold into her memory.
We just talked? Talked until I fell asleep? When did I fall asleep?
Her heart plummets attempting to recall the end of their night. Had she ruined the mood? Did she grow tired before they could undress? Why didn't they have sex?
Memories flesh out in her mind one by one. Instead of stripping her down like past men when they stepped into her apartment, Ashton gravitated to the artwork displayed along the walls of her compact apartment. He littered the air with dazed questions. Instead of communicating with their bodies, they communicated with eager tongues and breathless declarations while resting in her living room.
Faint fragments cut into her mind. Crimson liquid; like wine. Laughing. Giggling. Kissing. Nothing. Oh god. Did I...
Embarrassment strokes her cheeks and she covers her face. "I did not get drunk," she hisses.
"Ngn." A groan drags through the air.
Ria's heart stops and her lungs contract. The laws of space and time freeze when Ashton meets her with electric blue irises, dangerously beautiful eyes. He runs a sluggish hand through his slightly disheveled hair. Ria combs through her own tangled mess all the while trying to find the right words to utter into the virgin air.
"Good morning," he breaks the silence, words gentle as the smile across his lips.
"I'm so sorry!" she blurts. "Did I fall asleep last night?"
"Kind of," he admits and makes haste to remove himself from her bed and stand next to it. "It's fine. I had a lot of fun getting to know you last night, Ria."
