Kissing in a Dream

Alone with Wolf

The next morning, I woke alone. When I sat up, Wolf was sitting on the edge of the bed, looking down at me. I smiled and he caressed the side of my face before leaning over to kiss the side of my head.

"You're supposed to sleep in." I told him.

"I thought you might be hungry," Wolf said.

Instead of climbing out of the bed, I reached for him and pull him down beside me. Wolf settled in for a cuddle with me. The truth was, I'd imagined having him like this, of waking up in his arms. I never once thought of being like this with Prae.

"What's on your mind?" Wolf asked.

"Nothing." I lied. Bring Prae up would only hurt his feelings. Besides, she wasn't invited into the privacy of our bed. I resolved myself to not think of her when I had Wolf in my arms. "I like being here like this with you and I'm trying not to think about what happens when we go back."

"I forbid you to think of home when you're here with me." Wolf's voice was soft.

"Okay-khrap."

We remained like that for another few hours. When I finally crawled out, it was only because I needed to use the bathroom. I took the moment to shower, brush my teeth then reported for food with Wolf. We sat across from each other at the table, overlooking the ocean and ate. He held my hand, using his thumb to caress the back of my hand and warmth filled my heart.

Leaving the cottage was out of the question--at least for a while. We watched television cuddled up on the sofa, then Wolf convinced me to go out. We went for a walk through the woods on the other side of the place. We stopped in town to grab lunch and snacks, then made our way back.

Wolf fielded calls and while I didn't hear what he was talking about because I was busy trying to figure out music, when he joined me again, his mood had changed.

"Wolf? P? What's the matter?" I asked.

"I have to go home for the holidays."

I arched a brow. "You weren't going to go home?"

"No." He sat and pulled a pillow into his arms. "My father isn't a very—he doesn't do holidays. Are you going home?"

"No. It's not in the budget." I admitted as I say beside him. "But don't you have friends at home?"

"The only friend I had was Dae." He admitted. "It's a long story. My father was hurt in an accident a while ago and they're saying he's not getting better. The wounds have healed but mentally, he's not doing so well."

"I'm sorry, P." I cleared my throat. "Does this mean you're going to take care of your dad?"

"And the business. The plan was for me to finish school then take over. It seems that timeline has been moved up."

"You can't drop out of school."

"I won't." He pulled me into his arms and cuddled me close. "I promise."

I wanted to push the topic, to find out where he saw us going, but he seemed as if he had the world sitting on his shoulders. When I tried getting up, he merely pulled me back.

"The nightmares I've been having is the same one I'd been having ever since I was ten years old." Wolf shifted. "And it has everything to do with my father. The only time I seem to be able to shake it is when I'm with you."

"P..."

"I never wanted t go home for Christmas before I met you, Chang Noi—meeting you and having you with makes it impossible for me to want to go home now. I know I have to do the right thing."