Free Sun Rose (Rose of the Dawn Series Book 1) by Ily Maguire Page A

isn’t like her. Who is this person? “It’s
room 26. Second floor,” she states before going back to the other end of the
counter.
    “I
know,” I say. I try to make out what the writing on the jar says, even if it is
in strange, foreign letters, but she blocks it from my view. I turn and walk
back through the plastic and upstairs to the second floor balcony rooms. I look
for 26. It’s at the top of the stairwell. I knock on JJ’s door.
    “Come
on in, Rose!” He calls and I open the door and enter. How’d he know it was
me?
    “Oh!
This is a bad t-time,” I stutter. JJ is standing in a bright room in only
undershorts. I’m caught off-guard. I avert my eyes.
    “No.
No, it’s fine. It’s a perfect time.”
    “Ezekiel
mentioned you wanted to see me, though he didn’t say when and I was downstairs
with Patience. I can definitely come back.” I wait for his reaction. There is
none.
    I
can’t look up at him. With clothes he looks small and scrawny. Bookish. Without
them, it’s obvious that he works out. A lot. He’s a perfect physical specimen.
It’s almost like he’s sculpted.
    “Yeah,
this is fine timing. I wanted to talk to you about a few things. A few of your
tests.”
    I
rub my forearm. The IV alone caused more residual irritation than any of his
previous tests of skin scraping, hair sampling, or cheek swabbing.
    “The
ones Hara was here for?” I ask.
    “Yeah.”
JJ laughs. “You’re cute.”
    I
ignore his comment. I’m not sure what he finds so funny. And Hara’s only been
around once during all of the testing. She’s the only nurse. The only one
qualified.
    JJ
grabs a folder on his bed and points for me to sit down. The bedspread is
maroon with some gold accents here and there. He doesn’t grab for a shirt.
    “Your
body is amazing,” he says staring at me, not the folder.
    “Excuse
me?” I’m sitting on his bed, but considering getting up. I’m uncomfortable with
the way he is looking at me.
    “The
way your body heals itself. It’s amazing.” He looks back at the folder. “Everything
we tested for, everything we observed and recorded, your cells repair
themselves at an unparalled rate. The whole battery of tests. It isn’t normal.”
    “How
about my liver?”
    “It’s
great. It’s been great. Whatever toxin you were exposed to is undetectable and
I suspect would’ve killed a regular person. You’d never know you were sick.”
    “So
I’m going to be fine?”
    “As
far as I can tell,” JJ sits on the bed beside me. “And as far as I can tell,
you’ll be healthy for a very long time.” He takes my hands and stares at them,
caressing them with his fingertips. His nails are clean and manicured. Trimmed
and neat. Did he do that himself or did Patience do it for him?
    I
pull away. The way he stares at me, touches me, hungry and intent, gives me the
chills. I rub the goosebumps away from my arms.
    “There’s
actually something I wanted to talk to you about.” JJ pats his hands on his
legs. Then touches mine. His fingers dig into my thigh and I don’t move his
hand or my own body. I should, but I don’t. I can’t seem to move. This is
uncharted territory for me. I don’t know what to do.
    JJ
leans back on the bed. He rests his head on the wall and I notice the colorful
tapestries. There is even a chair in the corner and a small bar with two stools
closer to the center of the room. A glass chandelier hangs from the ceiling and
it seems so out of place. He has more decorations than Pike’s, whose room looks
like mine. This is the first time I’ve been to JJ’s room and only to Pike’s
once to pick up a sweatshirt.
    “About
my results?” I focus.
    He
smiles. “About the opportunities.”
    “I
don’t know what you’re talking about.”
    “Rose,
the possibilities,” his voice almost a hiss.
    “I’m
not sure I like where this could be going.” I get up from the bed and head for
the door. JJ jumps up, and prevents my exit, his arms block me from getting
out. The