Free Sleep Keeper by April Wilcox Page A

mid-sentence. I didn’t want to ruin the mood.
    He caught the gist of my thought and finished for me, “If you’re still around.”
    I didn’t confirm. I didn’t need to. We both knew our time with each other was attached to an unknown stopwatch; limitations we didn’t know or understand.
    Orion caught the mood shift and decided to change it back. “Have you ever snorkeled?” he asked with a smirk that I knew meant, ‘Do you want to snorkel.’
    We reached closer to the shoreline before he anchored the boat and handed me the snorkel and mask. He had an extra pair of cotton shorts and shirt that I changed into downstairs. I tied the drawstring as far as I could but wondered if the shorts would stay on in the water. I jumped into the sea and was pleasantly surprised by the warm water, given our close proximity to the mountains. I wasn’t sure geographically where we were.
    I floated on the surface of the water and tasted the salt on my lips. The buoyant salt water held my weight effortlessly. We swam near a shallow cove that presented an enchanting world below with coral reefs rich with life. The reefs were full of formations in hues of oranges, yellows, purples and greens. Countless varicolored fish swam around me. Their beauty was mesmerizing.
    Orion was a natural, diving down to explore the sights below. Whenever I attempted to dive below the surface, I ended up with a mouthful of salty water and decided it was best to stick with floating on the surface. I had no idea how long we explored. Time stood still when we were together. I wondered if he felt the same way.
    Eventually, we headed back to shore. Orion was determined for me to gut and clean my first catch and I was determined not to wake up. We arrived at his doorstep not long later. My curiosity to see the inside of his house was piqued. He held open the door for me and I nearly pummeled him over to get inside.
    The entryway led to a large open room, partially separated by a floor-to-ceiling double-sided stone fireplace. A thick beige rug sprawled across the bamboo floor in the living room. A dark patterned couch and love seat with a burgundy accent chair were huddled around a rectangular coffee table. A tall lamp carved from stone stood near the couch. The side facing the ocean had several large arched windows, which let in enough light to brighten the entire room. Another wall held a bookshelf that housed several hundred books. The walls were made of cedar with vaulted ceilings that bathed the room in a rich aroma.
    A dining room table and buffet sat in the adjacent room past the fireplace. The kitchen extended further and wrapped the two rooms together.
    “Welcome to my home,” he said.
    “It’s beautiful. Very natural and comfortable,” I complimented as I surveyed the room. I instantly fell in love.
    “I’m glad you like it. Let me show you to the bathroom. You can hop in the shower to rinse off if you’d like.”
    “That sounds great,” I smiled, and then suddenly realized what I must look like. My hair was partially dried with clumps of hair tangled in a salty mess.
    I followed him down the hall as he gave a quick tour. There were two bedrooms, each with their own full bathroom, and an oversized den. He left me in the second bedroom to shower as he went into the master bathroom. I had to admit it - I was a little excited knowing that he was undressed in the shower right down the hall from me.
    I stripped off my clothes and stepped into the stoned walk-in shower. I quickly washed, not wasting any precious time, and then changed back into my dry clothes. I heard Orion’s shower turn off. I started rummaging through the bathroom drawers in hopes of finding a hairbrush. I reached for the second drawer but my hand slipped straight through. Before I could comprehend what was happening, I was staring at the ceiling.
    I turned over and saw Mitchell sound asleep. The early morning light meant it was close to dawn. I closed my eyes tight and tried to