𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙿𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚎𝚌𝚝 𝙰𝚜𝚜𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚗

Chapter 28: Doll

(Angela's P.O.V.)

I fell with a yelp as the thought had completely blown past my train of thought that it could happen. I realize I'd fallen on top of James when I lift my head from his bare chest. He almost never wore a shirt to bed. My cheeks heat with embarrassment as we stare at each other for a few moments. I can imagine he's just as frazzled as I am. I wouldn't have expected us to be in this situation either.

"Sorry," I mutter quickly. He blinks up at me with confusion, his eyes swarming my face for an explanation. One of his arms is wrapped around my waist to protect me from the sudden fall. I swallow, my mouth suddenly dry as we continue to lay on the carpeted floor.

"It's okay. I thought I heard a knock at the door so I got up to check on you." My unkempt hair is disheveled from tossing and turning in my bed, spilling over my shoulders and around his face like a waterfall. To my surprise the length of it has grown significantly since I'd arrived here, almost reaching just below my shoulder blades. It's dark, none of the lights are on, and I can barely make out his facial features. I can see him better as my eyes adjust to the darkness, though. Our faces are close, our noses barely touching. And I find that we seem to be growing closer and closer, our lips barely scraping together.

"Um..." I don't know what else to say. I'm too caught up in the situation for my brain to function. My heart is racing, head pounding and mind blank. My breasts are crushed against his hard chest, one of my legs lifted as if I were to half-straddle him. I try to speak, but nothing comes out. What must he be thinking right now? I shake my head to clear my thoughts and finally find the common sense to lift myself off of him, reaching my metal arm down to him when I'm equally balanced. He takes my hand with his own metal arm, the material making a clinking noise when it connects, and I help him up. "What are you doing awake?" I finally ask him, trying to make our current position less awkward. He takes a step towards me when he's thrust forward so that our bodies are almost touching again. The thought makes my body ache for the feeling again, but I push the urge deep down and try my best to ignore it.

"I thought you knew everything about me," He retorts with a sly smile.

"I wish," I suddenly blurted. My eyes widen with realization and I stare up at James, a playful smile playing at his attractive lips. "Wow, I really said that out loud. I'm sorry." He just nods his head with a small laugh.

"I have nightmares. It's hard to sleep sometimes." I bite my lip and look down for a moment before glancing at his upper body, noticing his scars up close for the first time. Reaching up, I hover my hand over one that's located on the left of his chest. My eyes gaze up at him, silently asking for permission. The moment is more intimate than I take it for, his eyes intense with emotion as he watches me before taking my hand in his own and placing it on top of the scar. He lets my fingertips trace its edges, my touch light as a feather as I gradually continue to the other scars around his exposed upper body. When I begin moving to his back he stops me though, his flesh hand gently taking mine and detaching it from his skin. I glance back up at him, my trance broken.

"I'm sorry, James." We both know I'm referring to the person that gave him these scars in the first place. I watch as he swallows, his Adam's apple bobbing as he does so. He nods in response to my apology. His eyes leave mine for the first time and he turns his attention to my neck. Immediately, I know he's looking at a scar of my own; the scar he caught sight of back in the interrogation room. James mimics my movements from before by lifting his own hand and grazing his finger along the raised skin, my head tilting to give him a better look. I take in a sharp breath when he touches me, not because it hurts, but because it's arousing. He pulls his hand away, his face alarmed.

"Did I hurt you?"

"No," I say quickly. "No. I've just... never had someone who understands." I notice both of our breathing patterns are heavy as we grow closer to each other. Our gaze connects once more, and the process repeats itself all over again as our noses brush, then our lips.

"I understand," He whispers as he licks his lips. The action brings my attention to them even closer, and I find myself wishing I knew what he tasted like. I don't give in to the temptation, though. I can't let that happen. I look down at the ground, my cheeks warm and my head feeling fuzzy as I take a deep breath to regain my senses. It's hard not to be pulled back into the trance when I meet James' eyes again.

"If you need anything I'm always here," I tell him quietly. His eyes glint mischievously.

"Anything?" His voice is low, captivating, attractive. I swallow, my mouth is still dry.

"Of course." I feel my neck cranking higher to look up at him as he looks down at me, his tall stature easily dominating my smaller one. He's only a few inches taller than I am, but any kind of situation like this could give the illusion that he's all the more powerful than me. I feel his fingers graze my cheek gently as he pushes my hair behind my shoulder. Then his palms cup both cheeks at the same time, his lips brushing closer for the third time. "James..." I whisper. "W-We can't."

"You said anything," He whispers huskily. His eyes shine as he holds my attention. My mind is screaming at me to stop, but I don't know if I want to.

"I..." The only other movement there was between us were my hands placing themselves over James' hands on my cheeks. "What will your girlfriend think?" He pulls away from me slightly, his facial expression confused and disoriented.

"What?"

"From dinner," I clarified. His hands left my face, my skin chilling from his disappearing warmth. He smiles slightly with a small chuckle.

"Nat only did that to see if she'd get a reaction out of you," He explained. "I scolded her after you left the dinner table." My shoulders slump forward with relief at the news. Thank god.

"Okay." My brows furrow when I think more about what he just said. "Wait, a reaction?" He nods.

"To see if you'd get jealous." My eyes widen with understanding.

"Oh..." James chuckles at me, the sound angelic and handsome. "Well, uh, I think I'll probably try taking a shower," I say randomly. At this point, I'm just trying to change the subject. He narrows his eyes at me for a split second.

"I think I'll join you." My blood runs cold as he continues to look at me, his eyes occasionally glancing at my parted lips.

"O-on second thought, I call dibs for the shower first thing in the morning." He smiles at me as I make my way back to the door I fell out of.

"Whatever you prefer, Ange-"

"Doll," I interrupt. He looks taken aback when I turned to face him just as my hand reaches the doorway. I'm blushing madly. "Call me Doll." He smiles the widest I've ever seen him smile before as he nods, his hands shoving themselves into his sweatpants pockets.

"Okay, Doll." I bite my lip to suppress a smile, my body pressing up against the doorframe.

"Goodnight, James." My hand reaches for the door handle, pulling it slowly.

"Goodnight, Doll." The door shuts with a click, and my body relaxes as I take a deep breath to calm myself. My legs carry me back to bed and I cuddle myself back under the covers, falling asleep in seconds.

Song that inspired this chapter:

Senorita - Shawn Mendes/Camilla Cabello

Side Effects - The Chainsmokers/Emily Warren