Falling For You [Tom Hiddleston]

40

Claire's POV

I groggily rubbed the sleep from my eyes and reached for my phone to check the time; 5:15 - not time to get up yet. I set it back on the nightstand, wondering what woke me; it was obvious from Tom's slow, even breathing that he was still fast asleep beside me.

I closed my eyes again, intending to just go back to sleep again when a noise from downstairs had my eyes snapping wide open. I slid out of bed without a second thought and pulled on my peignoir to cover my nakedness, quickly tying it closed. Shoving my phone in a pocket, I reached for the Beretta I'd hidden behind the dresser on my way past it; I certainly wasn't searching the house without a weapon in my current condition.

I closed the bedroom door behind me before silently padding down the stairs. A glance at the front door showed it was still locked and the alarm was active - nothing out of place and none of them damn letters. Thanks to my excellent night vision and that fact that Tom was such a minimalist when it came to furniture, it didn't take me long to sweep the front rooms and clear them.

The way the ground floor was laid out, the only way to get to the rear section of the house was through the kitchen. The rooms behind me were clear and there was no way an intruder could get past me without going outside. Since the kitchen door was also still locked and alarmed, I began to wonder if maybe I'd just been hearing things; it was an old house, after all.

But when I came around the corner and there was a narrow strip of light visible underneath the study door, I knew I hadn't been imagining things. I put my ear close to the door, hearing only the faint rustling of papers; someone was in there but I couldn't tell exactly where they were in the room - they weren't making enough noise.

Unfortunately, there was no way for me to peep in; the door opened inwards. I didn't like going in blind with no backup, but in this case the odds were actually in my favor: I was armed, an excellent shot, I knew the layout and was aware of the intruder. Plus, thanks to adrenaline, I was feeling almost as good as new at the moment, so my injuries wouldn't hinder me.

Back to the wall, I exhaled slowly and readied one finger on the trigger. In one motion, I threw open the door and rushed inside, instinctively aiming at any possible hostiles. The sole occupant of the room jumped to his feet facing the door at my entrance, startled at my sudden intrusion.

"Holy shit, Claire!" Luke Windsor stared at me, eyes wide with shock and hands up. "Don't shoot!"

"Goddammit, Luke!" I growled, removing my finger from the trigger and lowering the Beretta, my heart pounding from the close call. I shut the door again behind me to muffle the sound of our voices. "What the fuck are you doing here at this time of night?"

"Did you seriously just pull a gun on me?"

I raised an eyebrow at him as I put on the safety and slid the gun in my pocket. "You're acting like it's the first time."

"You'll have to forgive me; it's been a while."

"So I'm a little on edge right now with all this shit going on."

"Apparently I don't need to worry about Tom's safety with you around!"

"Answer the fucking question, Windsor. What are you doing here?"

"Right." Luke sat down and exhaled slowly, his cheeks turning a bright red as he fiddled with the stack of papers on the desk - copies of the letters, I realized. "I...erm...might have talked to Jack last night. And he's right...I mean...you're right." I waited patiently for him to finish saying his piece; rushing him would only fluster him and make him take three times as long to get the words out. "Tom deserves to know about the letters."