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Amy awakened quite disoriented. She recalled that she'd been sleeping on a couch the prior night, but it didn't feel the same now. No, this felt like an actual bed... On top of that, she suddenly realized, with fright, that she was not alone.
Her eyes now wide open, she scrambled somewhat to the opposite side of the bed, fear coursing through her as she caught sight of the blond hair. Her heart nearly stopped as she stared at it, thinking it belonged to Chris.
She was still slightly disoriented seconds later, until the person beside her stirred and turned over. The redhead let out a breath, finally able to exhale as she realized it was only Adam. And she remembered what had happened in the wee hours earlier.
She had been plagued by horrible dreams, all of which saw Chris getting his hands on her. He always tried to kill her in some form or fashion, though fortunately, she'd always managed to wake up before she'd actually died in the nightmares. Somehow, she'd managed not to make noise during the dreams, though she had moved quite a bit during them. And apparently, she hadn't woken the Canadian up sans the one time when she'd begged to sleep in the bed with him.
Amy's mood softened somewhat as she gazed down at him. The blond man was still asleep, and she thought she must have given him a rough night thanks to her rapid, frequent shifting. She felt slightly guilty for that even though she knew he would insist that it wasn't her fault.
She felt so grateful toward him, more than she could ever even conceive of expressing in mere words. He had insisted on protecting her, helping her, when he didn't have to. He was truly a godsend. She cocked her head as she continued to sit there and gaze down at him, her hand snaking out to cup his stubble-covered cheek. She marveled at the feel of touching his face, a warm and tender feeling overtaking her.
His eyes suddenly snapped open, startling her. In a flash, the jumpy redhead moved her hand away from him, a feeling of mortification gripping her. All of a sudden, she could barely bring herself to look at him.
Adam knew what had just happened but didn't mention a word of it. He studied her with a bit of amusement. She had been stroking his cheek. Was she beginning to experience feelings for him, same as he'd been for her? He didn't want to say or even do anything for the moment, as he didn't want to scare or embarrass her. So, instead, he played dumb and unaware.
"Amy," he murmured, "you're awake."
"Yeah," she replied sheepishly, "I just got up a few minutes ago. I... I'm sorry if I disturbed you."
"You didn't."
She remained silent at that but thought he couldn't possibly be telling the truth. Considering how restless she had been all through the night, he had to have gotten a very fitful sleep at best.
She finally found her voice again but completely changed the subject.
"We're supposed to go home today," she said with dismay.
"Yeah," the blond man agreed. He instantly caught the fear in her voice and knew why it was present.
"How can I go back there, Adam? He's still not finished with me, I know it! What if he..." There was a quaver in her tone as she concluded her horrid thought. "... comes to my house!"
Adam sat up and placed his hand gently on one of hers. She was shaking.
"Amy, that won't happen," he insisted. "I wouldn't dream of leaving you alone there."
"What are you saying, Adam?" There was naked terror in the woman's hazel orbs.
He didn't even have to think about it as he issued his response.
"You can stay with me."
She shook her head with uncertainty. Then, "I don't want to put you through any trouble."
"You won't," he told her. "It's no trouble at all. We'll go to your place first, so you can get some things and then go to Tampa to my house." She appeared on the verge of protesting again as she shook her head, but the tall blond man wouldn't hear of it. "I insist on having you over as my guest. So, what do you say?"
She stared at him in silence for a moment, almost speechless. He was insisting once again on protecting her, this time inviting her to stay at his house. Surely, she would be safer there with him than alone at her own house. Emotion nearly choking her up, she finally nodded and voiced her answer.
"Okay... You've got yourself a house guest." She was to grateful, she wanted to throw her arms around him but
refrained from it. All she could think was what would she ever do without this man?