Katherine was already awake but she could still feel the indescribable pain that she had in her dreams. She clutched onto Damien"s s.h.i.+rt as though it helped alleviate what she was feeling. She buried her head on his chest, feeling his warmth against her cheek as she tried to shake off her anxiety by listening to his slow chant and focusing on the comfort that he gave. He could feel her whole body tremble and he was afraid to tighten his embrace as it felt as if she would break if he did so.
"Just this once… let me lean on you just this once," she said in her head thinking that she was giving in to her selfishness.
A few minutes have pa.s.sed and it was only then that she calmed down. Sensing that her breathing had returned to normal, Damien lowered his gaze and peeked, meeting her weak stare.
Katherine realized the position that they were in and despite how comfortable it was to lean on him, she gently pulled away.
"I"ll be right back," he said before he walked out of the room to get a gla.s.s of water for her. When he came back, Katherine was already sitting on the bed with her back against the white tufted headboard.
"Are you feeling better?" He asked as he handed the gla.s.s of water.
She took a sip and placed it on the bedside table before she nodded, "I"m sorry if I scared you."
"You didn"t scare me. You got me worried."
Katherine pursed her lips into a thin line upon hearing his words. It felt good that someone was worried for her and it felt even better that it was him. A blush crept on her neck that made her feel shy now that she"s fully conscious of how close they were earlier.
"Would you like to talk about it?" Damien asked as he tried to observe the expressions on her face.
She shook her head and averted her gaze as she responded, "I don"t really understand... It wasn"t very clear just like other times..."
Katherine had already forgotten most parts of her dream. Just like the previous nights, her nightmares would only be clear for a few seconds after waking up and would suddenly fade away from her memory. By now, she only remembered bits and pieces. All she knew was that it was only a nightmare and that she would never want to experience it again.
It was 1:30 am and she only slept for a few hours. But after what happened, she was afraid to sleep again. She feared that once she closes her eyes, she would see and experience the same horror. She blinked as if she was trying to clear her thoughts, not wanting to bring back the terror of her nightmares.
"You"ve been having nightmares?"
She nodded, thankful that his voice diverted her attention.
"Since when?" he asked further.
"A few days ago." Katherine"s answers were brief and Damien realized that she may not want to talk about it so he decided that he will have to call Jeffrey soon regarding this matter.
Nodding, he got up from the bed and said, "Okay… you should get some more sleep. We"re leaving at nine tomorrow."
Damien turned and was about to head out when he felt a tug on his clothes. He looked down and saw Katherine"s hand on the seam of his s.h.i.+rt. Confused and surprised, he turned to face Katherine and asked, "What is it? Do you need anything?"
"Oh."
She pulled her hand back when she realized what she just did. She wasn"t thinking clearly but her body just acted on its own. The drumming of her heart made her hands quiver. She didn"t know what or how to tell him - she didn"t want to be alone that night.
Was it okay to ask him? He wouldn"t think lowly of her if she did, right? Katherine swallowed but she didn"t lower her gaze and continued to look at him without saying anything. She was hoping that she didn"t have to say it; she had already managed to catch his attention so she didn"t think she had more guts to ask anything else.
Realizing why she was hesitant, Damien gently asked, "Do you… want me to stay until you fall asleep?"
She felt embarra.s.sed yet relieved that he was smart enough to read the situation, making it easier for her to probe, "Is that okay? I don"t usually do this-"
"Of course," without second thoughts, Damien agreed. And as soon as he did, Katherine scooted to the side and made a s.p.a.ce for him.
"Oh G.o.d. Did I just ask him to sleep with me? He doesn"t think so, does he?" Katherine began to feel nervous thinking that she had made a mistake.
Noticing the expression on her face, Damien chuckled as he slid under the covers. "Don"t worry. I won"t do anything to you. I"ll just sit here and give you company." He leaned his back on the headboard as he rea.s.sured her.
His words gave her comfort. At least she didn"t have to worry about being taken advantage of.
Katherine laid on her side to face him so that she could see him and made sure that she was at least an arm"s reach from him. She only needed to know that she wasn"t alone that night.
Damien didn"t speak so that she could rest while Katherine tried to stay awake. However, her eyelids soon became heavy that she fell back to sleep again.
When he noticed her long and steady breathing, he looked down and saw her peaceful angelic face. He couldn"t help but lay down next to her so that he could gaze at her better.
Earlier, he was downstairs when he heard her scream in her sleep. He almost tripped on the stairs as he went to the bedroom as fast as he could. He was truly worried sick and was distressed when he saw how terrified she was.
Now, they"re on the same bed and a foot apart. Being this close to her, he realized that he had never wanted someone that much. His heart yearned for her attention and he could only wait for her to feel the same way.
Raising his hand, he tucked her hair behind her ear and wished her goodnight.
As if that wasn"t enough, Damien placed a soft and tender kiss on her forehead before he closed his eyes and drifted to sleep.
The next morning, Katherine woke up alone in bed. Strangely, she felt a little disappointed not seeing him there but she thought that it was better that way or else she wouldn"t know how to face him.
She quickly got ready for work and made her way downstairs but only found a plate of food on the breakfast nook; Damien was nowhere to be seen. She didn"t have much time so she wolfed down the food, washed the dishes and left.
Damien also wasn"t in his office and Katherine started to wonder where he could have gone. It was eight in the morning so there was still time before they had to leave. Thinking that he may have just gone somewhere for personal matters, she went to her desk and started to prepare for the day"s schedule.
Fifteen minutes before nine, her phone beeped, a message notification from Damien telling her to meet him in the lobby.
When she arrived, Katherine saw him standing next to his car. A sigh escaped from her mouth as if she found what was missing in her morning and smiled as she walked towards him.
They exchanged nods briefly and left the office. In the car, Katherine wondered what was in his mind when he slipped out of bed that morning but she decided not to dwell on it instead. They were going to meet some business partners that day so they made use of their time in the car to go over the details.
Arriving at the restaurant where they were supposed to have a meeting, Katherine went to the receptionist to inform them of their reservation. When she walked back to Damien, she saw a woman with black hair wearing fas.h.i.+onable clothes talking to him.
"How long are you going to stay like this?" she asked with her brows furrowed.
"Like what exactly?"
"This." She waved her hand at him. "You"re acting as if you don"t care when the truth is, you absolutely do."
Damien chuckled and lifted his chin like the arrogant man that he is, "I don"t understand how you think I even care. Don"t a.s.sume that you know me."
"I know you, Damien. I"ve known you all your life and I know how you let people see only what you want them to see while-"
"You don"t know me, Lexi. Don"t be delusional and stop calling me. I"m busy." He said in a cold voice with a dark expression on his face and turned. Seeing Katherine, he grabbed her wrist and dragged her away. "Let"s go," he said, leaving the woman called Lexi feeling distressed.
"Who was that?" She asked and regretted right away that she did, thinking that she didn"t have the right to ask anything from her boss.
"No one important." He answered in a dismissive tone right before they arrived at the door of the private room.