Damon slowly, carefully rolled over onto his stomach. He pressed his hands flat against the floorboards. Very quietly, he pushed his body up. He did not stand up completely. He stayed on his knees, moving like a silent shadow in the darkness.
He slowly raised his head. He peeped up over the high edge of the bed.
He expected to see Camilla completely sprawling across the entire mattress, taking up all the space like she usually did. He expected to have no room left for himself.
But when he looked, he was very surprised.
Camilla had rolled over to the far side of the massive bed. She was sleeping on her side, facing him. In doing so, she had left a very large empty small space on the right side of the mattress. It was just enough space for him to sleep.
Damon stared at the empty space. A very soft, very strange feeling touched his heart. Even though she was deeply asleep, her body had naturally made room for him.
He took a slow, deep breath. He tried again.
This ti, he did not panic. He slowly lifted his right knee. He placed it gently onto the very edge of the soft mattress. The bed dipped slightly, but Camilla did not move. He lifted his other leg and climbed completely onto the bed.
He finally got into the bed. The soft, thick mattress felt incredibly comfortable.
Damon lay down on his side. He pulled the edge of the thick wool blanket up over his broad chest. He faced her.
He lay perfectly still, his eyes scanning her features in the dim, silver moonlight.
He looked at the soft curve of her pale cheek. He looked at her long, dark eyelashes resting quietly against her skin. He looked at her beautiful, thick red curly hair spread out ssily over the white pillow.
During the day, her mind was a loud, chaotic, annoying storm of sarcastic remarks, greedy plans, and dark complaints. She was always plotting, always mocking him, and always causing so kind of trouble.
But right now, she was completely still. She looked so gentle, so innocent, and so peaceful.
"It’s kind of quiet when she’s asleep," Damon thought to himself. His internal voice was very soft and full of appreciation.
He liked this quiet version of his wife. He did not have to listen to her internal insults. He did not have to worry about what crazy thing she was going to do next. He could just look at her and enjoy her presence.
Damon closed his eyes. The stress of the long day finally lted completely out of his muscles. Listening to the gentle, steady sound of her breathing, he drifted to a deep, peaceful sleep.
Hours passed slowly. The moon moved across the dark night sky. The air inside the large bedroom grew much colder as the middle of the night arrived.
Deep in her sleep, Camilla felt the chill in the air. Her sleeping mind searched blindly for a source of heat. She felt the warm, solid presence lying right next to her on the mattress.
Camilla rolled over to his side of the bed.
She did not just move closer. She pressed her entire body directly against his. She lifted her left leg and threw it heavily right over his strong thighs. She reached out her left arm and wrapped it completely around his broad, muscular chest. She snuggled her face deeply into the warm crook of his neck, seeking comfort.
The sudden weight of her arm and leg landing on his body instantly shattered Damon’s sleep.
Damon opened his eyes imdiately.
His reflexes woke him up completely in a fraction of a second. His heart gave a massive, violent thump against his ribs. He was completely trapped.
He felt her soft, warm leg wrapped around his own. He felt her small hand resting flat against his chest. He felt her soft breathing tickling the sensitive skin of his neck. The physical contact was incredibly close and deeply overwhelming.
Damon panicked again. He rembered his strict rule. He did not want to share this kind of intimate closeness, because he knew his own body would react naturally, and he would be embarrassed again.
He tried to leave before she woke up.
He carefully placed his right hand onto her arm. He tried to gently lift her arm off his chest. He wanted to slide his body backward and escape the bed entirely.
But Camilla wouldn’t budge.
Even in her deep sleep, her grip was incredibly strong. As soon as he tried to lift her arm, she simply tightened her hold. She grumbled a very soft, unhappy sound in the back of her throat and pulled herself even closer, pressing her chest flush against his side. She felt exactly like a stubborn octopus holding onto a warm rock.
Damon stopped moving. He did not want to push her roughly and wake her up. If she woke up and found them tangled together like this, she would mock him endlessly in her mind.
He let out a very slow, very frustrated breath of air.
He slowly turned his head on the soft pillow to look at her. He wanted to see if she was waking up.
When he looked down at her face, his heart suddenly stopped completely.
He saw her crying in her sleep.
Her eyebrows were pulled tightly together in a mask of deep sorrow. Small, wet tears were leaking continuously from the corners of her closed eyes. The tears rolled slowly down her pale cheeks and soaked silently into his grey cotton shirt. Her bottom lip was trembling violently. She looked utterly heartbroken.
Damon stared at her wet face in shock.
"Why is she crying" he murmured to himself in disbelief.
He had seen her fake tears many tis. He had seen her use water drops to pretend she was crying. He had seen her force a sad pout to manipulate him or the servants.
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