Summer to Winter

Chapter Twenty

Syden was trying to keep her physical proximity to Henry at an arm's length after what had happened during the night. She knew she was going to fall asleep during the movie (because she ALWAYS did), but it was accelerated by the fact that he had made a comfy little nest on the floor and opened his body nook for her to get warm in. She didn't even think twice when he offered it up for her to get warm, but as soon as her brain woke up the next morning, she wondered what the hell was she thinking. He felt so safe and warm and she quickly fall asleep almost immediately. She woke up clutching his strong arm to her chest, feeling safe and warm, his face on the back of her neck. She could feel him breathing deeply, his soft lips lightly touching her skin. She was about to fall asleep again when she heard Kal yawning and stretching from the couch above them. She released her grip on Henry's arm and he quickly backed away from her. I guess I'm the only one that enjoyed my sleep last night. Oh man... I'm so dumb. What the heck was I thinking...

She got up and walked to the back door; the only thing she could think of to keep her mind off his warm body against hers, his strong arm on holding her chest... snap out of it, dummy! Sy did her best to keep reminding herself that he was her boss. Nothing was ever going to happen. He is untouchable.

When he asked her if he could drive her to her meeting with Amy and then spend the afternoon with her again, she was dumbfounded. He has GOT to be really lonely if he wants to spend another day with me... He's new to LA, I guess I'm getting paid to entertain him. By the time they had finished breakfast and taking apart their nest on the floor, his clothes were dry.

"I'm going to get ready for my meeting with Amy. You don't have to drive me to the studio if you are busy... we can always meet back here for our hike when you are done. I don't want to inconvenience you." She didn't want to lose her confidence, so she didn't look him in his beautiful blue eyes when she asked. She didn't want to see his reaction to her statement.

She saw him watching her fluff the pillows on the couch from the corner of her eye when he said, "Your house is on the way there anyway. It's not a problem at all to swing by here."

She shrugged, "If you don't mind..."

With that statement, he and Kal walked out of the house and headed home to change.

As the door closed behind him, she sighed and walked upstairs to her bedroom. What the heck are you doing, Syden? You are setting yourself up for a world of hurt in six months... You need to stop this non-sense now. Her brain was spinning, and she didn't know what to do.

Syden showered and dressed. She wanted to look professional for her meeting with Amy, so she chose a tan shirt dress and wedges. With her hair down and air drying in soft waves, she was giving off a serious Pocahontas vibe in this outfit. By the time she walked down the stairs, she already heard a knocking on the door.

She took a deep breath, Sy... you got this. Be strong. "Hey! That was fast!" as she opened the door, expecting Henry.

"Hey there, stinker."

It wasn't Henry. Standing at the door was Tim and she had absolutely no idea why. She pursed her lips and stood her ground, not letting him through the door. "What are you doing here?"

"Aren't you going to let me in?" Tim asked as he gave her an obviously one-sided hug.

Sy just stood there with her arms at her side, not reciprocating the gesture. "You need to leave."

Tim made her blood boil. It had been over a year since she walked in on him with another woman and it still stung. She thought she was in love with him; they began dating in college and she was young. Like all young romances, they had their ups and downs; breaking up and making up throughout the years. Around the six-year mark he began to get especially distant with her, which was unusual because he was co-dependent one. She had always been fiercely independent and working with Adam also kept her very busy. She travelled often and they kept in touch while she was gone, but after a while the texts started to slow down in frequency and skype calls almost never happened. She tried to talk to him about it, but he always had an excuse, avoided the subject, or would start talking about her moving into his apartment.