Salvation [manxman]

Chapter 35

Chapter 35

Sleep was having me in his clutches and the delicious warmth radiating off the arms hugging me to his torso didn't make it any easier to wake up. I sighed, rubbing my face against the silky surface of the top covering his chest before I took a deep breath, trying to fall asleep again. I kept dozing off while he was still fast asleep, glad the other nymph was there to do my job for me. I hadn't even bothered asking what his name was yet but he seemed to be a nice guy.

Erebus managed to still be asleep as I finally woke up for good a few hours later, bursting with energy and ready to get up. We had started sleeping in one bed together after I moved back in again and he always ended up clinging to me and almost suffocating me in my sleep. Not that I was minding it. I took it as a sign of affection and I was looking forward to waking up to that every morning from now on.

I was glad I hadn't had made the decision to break things off with him but instead had decided on staying with him. I had yet to regret it and he showered me with affection daily, sticking to me and spending as much time as possible with me. I had to tell him to leave me alone if I wanted to use the toilet in peace, otherwise he would probably want to hold my hand during it. He even called in, pretending to be still sick so he didn't have to go back to the battle field and I was very okay with that. I didn't want him to fight.

I looked up at his face, admiring his long, midnight black eye lashes that were resting on the bags underneath the eyes. They had lost a lot of their discoloration but they were still visible. I couldn't wait for those silver eyes of his to open up and to meet mine again. I loved the tiny gold specks that were sprinkled across the silver iris and I could spend hours just watching his eyes look back at me but that would be weird.

We were starting to make progress with working through our issues and I was growing closer to him than ever before. We had tried to be intimate with each other and I had managed to not freak out when I saw him aroused but once I started to feel the same way, I had started crying the first time, thinking Eris had poisoned me again until he explained to me that it was normal to feel like this if you were attracted to someone. I was feeling ashamed and wished for the earth to open up and swallow me once I realized I was supposed to feel like that and made a fuss about basically nothing.

I even managed to touch him without being disgusted and he showed a lot of patience while I was exploring his body. I was becoming more and more comfortable being around him, touching him and letting him touch me. The only thing that still made me fidget was the prospect of having sex with him. The mere thought made my skin crawl and we had tried a few times but it always freaked me out.

I was starting to get frustrated since I wanted to be able to do these kinds of things with him. It made me feel good when he hugged me, when he kissed me and when he just held me. I could even tolerate him touching me underneath my clothes as long as it concentrated on my torso but as soon as it involved taking my clothes off or he moved below my navel, everything went south and I started crying. If he told me to do it anyway, I could force myself but thankfully he never did.

He had been very understanding and didn't try to force me to do anything I wasn't ready for. If it was going to be anything like my first time with him, I might actually enjoy it and I knew he wanted it as well, judging by his reaction to making out with me. Or at least that was what I was hoping for. I wiggled out of his embrace and sat up, biting my lip. I didn't want to start something I wasn't going to be able to finish.

He sighed in his sleep, one hand trying to reach for me. I didn't want him to wake up fully yet so I took his hand into mine and he relaxed again, making me smile. I moved down his body and dove underneath the blankets, giggling to myself as I lifted his top a bit to be able to plant little kisses onto his abdomen. I proudly watched the goosebumps spread across his skin, knowing I was the only one allowed to do this to him from now on until I died.