Free Ablaze by Tierney O’Malley Page B

"Okay, fine. I'll sleep. But I'm not getting
under the covers in these clothes."
    "Bathroom is through that door."
    "Alright. I'll be quick." She
kneeled in front of her luggage and unzipped it, then looked at Dylan and found
him watching her. "Don't look."
    "What do you have in there? A whip and
cuffs?"
    "Ha-ha." She grabbed her pink tank
top, shorts, and underwear. "I just don't want you to see my lacy bra and
see-through thong, that's all."
    Dylan's smile disappeared in a hurry. In its
place was a scowl that made her want to laugh out loud. Ha! Served him right.
She walked over to the bathroom, opened the door and then stopped. "Dylan,
there's another door here. Where does it lead? Not a torture room, I hope."
    "No. That door leads to my
bedroom."
    Just like Dylan, this time, Angel's smile quickly
disappeared. Dylan must have noticed her discomfort, but instead of wiping the
grin off his face, it turned into a deep jovial laugh.
    "You don't have to look at me as if I
just tortured your pet. Don't worry. I don't use that bathroom when someone's
staying here."
    "Good. I thought for a minute there, a
chance to finally use my skill in karate would come in handy."
    "You know karate?"
    "No. I just wanted to scare you."
With that, she went into the bathroom and took a quick shower without getting her
hair wet. It didn't take her long before she was back in the bedroom. Dylan was
already sitting on the chair with his legs stretched in front of him. His gaze
was focused on the window, but when she took another step, he turned his head
to look at her. His expression was unreadable. Did he like what he saw or maybe
he'd seen better?
    "M & M shorts?"
    "Yup. Love M & Ms. Are you sure you
want to sit there and listen to me snore?"
    "I have four brothers plus a cousin who
snore as loud as an electric chain saw. Not going to bother me."
    "Alright. If I start snoring, pinch my
nose," she said and got under the covers. The sheet felt cool and crisp
and the pillowcase smelled as nice as newly laundered clothes. "I don't
normally take naps, you know. I tried, but no matter how tired and worn out I
was, sleep still eluded me." She fluffed her pillow, lay down and then
pulled the covers to cover her head.
    "What are you doing?"
    "Taking off my bra. It's not good to
sleep with this thing on. Suffocates the suckers."
    "Fucking shit. What have I got myself
into?"
    Angel laughed so hard she started snorting
and she wasn't embarrassed at all. God, she'd never felt this good since the
day Bianca wiped Dibs on her moth-scented glove. She pulled the covers off her
head and found Dylan shaking his head. "I'm not begging you to stay."
    "I know, but I will. Just keep the
sheet up to your neck."
    Angel grinned. "Right now, I feel like
a kid."
    "Why?"
    "Why? Don't you think this situation
hilarious? I hardly know you and yet you're already sitting by my bed like an
older brother watching his younger sister--"
    "Wait. An older brother?"
    "Yes. I'm only twenty-four. Did you say
you're in your early forties?"
    "Early forties my ass!"
    Angel burst out laughing. Oh, how she loved
to tease people. "Thank you, Dylan."
    "For what?"
    "For making me forget about the demon. No,
I don't think about him as much as I used to, but he hovers in my mind. You
know what I mean?"
    "I know what you mean. Now stop talking
and close your eyes."
    "I can't believe I'm doing this. We
barely know each other."
    "There'll be time for that."
    Angel held the end of the sheet to cover her
chin. "A man just broke my trust. I shouldn't let another man come within
a foot of my being, but I'm trusting you to watch me while I try to go to
sleep. Why is that?"
    "Because it is your nature to see what
you wanted to see--goodness in every human being."
    "Are you saying that you're good?"
    "No. All I'm saying is that you don't
see evil in anyone."
    Angel closed her eyes. "Manfred told me
to see what's good about someone before I look at his dark side. That way, I
would understand that person and not