He’d left the door cracked open with the hall light on. She’d waited until he was out of the room to climb from the bed and turn the lamp on then shut the door. Luckily, the lamp had a dim setting so it wasn’t too bright.
It had taken her a while to get out from under the covers. The man sure did know how to tuck a girl in tight.
The door didn’t have a lock, but she had to hope he wouldn’t just walk in. Going to her bag, she’d grabbed snuggly and Princess Nana.
Now here she was, her thumb in her mouth, snuggly rubbing back and forth under her nose as she tried to get to sleep.
It was so quiet here.
And when she closed her eyes, the events from tonight just kept running through her brain on repeat.
Not to mention her body felt like she’d been run over by a train. Seemed jumping from a second story balcony wasn’t a great idea.
Who knew?
There was also a part of her that was somewhat disappointed she wasn’t sleeping in Linc’s bed. She knew that was crazy. If he’d wanted her to sleep with him, she’d likely have freaked out. But now she was worrying that he didn’t want her like that.
She knew he was upset with her and she understood why. She just didn’t know how to fix things.
Knowing she wasn’t going to sleep, she pushed the blankets back and stood. A groan escaped as her body protested. Maybe she should have taken a bath. It was too late now, she didn’t want to wake Linc up. He’d told her that he would get up early and go do a few jobs then be back around eight. He definitely needed sleep more than she needed a bath.
Grabbing the bedding off the bed, she knew there was only one place she’d feel safe enough to maybe sleep. Opening the closet door, she made a bed for herself on the floor. Then she dragged in Princess Nana and her snuggly.
With a yawn, she snuggled into her makeshift bed. Wishing she had her eReader, she lay there until her eyelids eventually grew heavy. Exhausted, she finally slipped into sleep.
Linc moved quietly through his cabin, Marisol’s clean clothes in his arms. He’d been up for a few hours working, clearing some time so he could come back and see Mari. He’d also spoke to Kent about her situation. Kent had assured him he’d put everyone on alert, and that whatever Linc needed, he was there for him. He wished he’d checked in on her this morning before he’d left. Actually, he wished he’d insisted that she sleep with him. In his bed.
But he figured that was pushing things too far too fast. He didn’t want to scare her off. Plus, he’d needed some time to process things. He wasn’t happy about everything that she’d kept from him. But he also had to realize that they hadn’t known each other long. If she’d done this after they’d been in a relationship for a few months, their chat would go very differently from the one he intended to have with her.
He wasn’t surprised that she was still sleeping, she’d been exhausted last night. But he was wondering if he should wake her. He’d had a chat with Doc about type one diabetes and Doc had suggested sticking to set times for eating. He wasn’t sure when she usually ate breakfast and it was now after eight. Although she did have a midnight snack, so maybe he shouldn’t worry so much.
Opening up her door, he peeked in. He frowned when he saw the stripped bed.
What the hell? Where was she? Why had she taken the top sheet and blankets off the bed?
He strode in, worry flooding him. Had she left? But no, there was no way she could have. She didn’t have any clothes or a way off the ranch.
Setting her clean clothes on the dresser, he crouched down to check under the bed. Not there. He turned to the closet door and opened it.
His heart nearly stopped as he found her. It was a walk-in closet, and she was so short that she didn’t even look scrunched up. She was lying on her front with one leg cocked up. His T-shirt, that she was wearing, had ridden up just enough to show him the curve of a plump buttock and a hint of her pussy lips.
Fuck. Shit.
Immediately, his cock hardened and he felt like a pervy asshole.
Crouching down, he flicked the blanket over her naked backside. He noticed that she had a princess doll tucked into her bent arm. And in her hand, she held the corner of a pastel-colored blanket. She was sucking on her thumb and rubbing the blanket under her nose.
Fuck. That was adorable.
And another sign that his gut was right.
That she was a Little.
Affection filled him as he watched her. He wondered how long she’d had the blankie. It looked a bit old and worn in places. Should she be sucking her thumb? Maybe a pacifier would be better. He wondered if she’d ever tried one.
Suddenly her eyes opened. She looked up at him.
Then she screamed.
Marisol scrambled backwards quickly hitting a wall as she tried to get away from the man looming over her.
There was a man in her room. A man in her room.
Tiger!
“Marisol.”
She whimpered. Why hadn’t she locked the door? Idiot!
“Marisol!” He reached for her and she slapped at his hands. Tiger coming for her. Tiger grabbing her, forcing her to her knees.
“No! No!” she screamed.
“Marisol, it’s me. It’s Linc.”
“No. Noo! Tiger, no!”
“Oh jeez, baby girl. Teeny, it’s me. Shh, you’re killing me here. It’s me. It’s Linc.”
“Stay away. Stay away.”
“I’m not going to touch you. Just breathe, teeny. Look around you. You’re not with Tiger. You’re with me. Linc.”
The calmness of his voice combined with the fact that he wasn’t trying to touch her finally got through to her.
“L-Linc?”
“That’s right, Mari-girl. It’s Linc. Can you open your eyes up and look at me?”
Shudders worked their way through her body as her breath heaved in and out of her lungs. She looked up at him, taking him in.
Relief flooded her body. Linc. She was at his house. Nowhere near her aunt’s place or Tiger.
“Oh God. I’m so sorry.” She wiped at her cheeks as she realized she was crying. “I was dreaming about . . . about what happened and then I woke up and saw you there. Sorry. I didn’t hurt you, did I? I’m so sorry.”
“Hush,” he told her gently as he sat on the floor. Then she realized she was in the closet. Crap.
“Come on. Come out of there.” He stood and held out his hand, helping her out. Then he led her to the bed. When she was sitting on the mattress, he grabbed some tissues from the box on the nightstand. Kneeling on the floor in front of her, he grasped hold of her chin and wiped her face free of tears with an expert touch. “Of course you didn’t hurt me. And it was my fault for standing over you like that. No wonder you woke up screaming.”
She drew back and he let her go, studying her intently.
“Wait. What are you doing in here? Were you watching me sleep?”
Red tinged his cheeks. Was he embarrassed? Wow. She hadn’t thought someone as confident and together as Linc would blush.
That was sexy.
“I came in to check on you and you weren’t in your bed so I went looking for you. Sorry.”
“Oh God. Please don’t tell me I was doing anything embarrassing,” she moaned.
He raised his eyebrows. “What could you possibly do that would be so embarrassing?”