“Ten o’clock. Went out for a stroll.”
His tone was unnatural, and he was stingy with his words.
“For what?” she further asked.
Leonardo tapped his finger on the mobile phone a couple of times, probably indicating that he was searching for a cell phone signal.
After a while, he put his phone aside and looked at her expressionlessly. “Lie over on the inside.”
She did as she was told and shifted her body nearer to the wall.
The bed was not large, not even 1. 5 meters wide.
With Leonardo sleeping on the same bed, she had to lie close to the wall.
Leonardo turned his mobile phone’s flashlight off and lay down beside her.
The already narrow bed instantly became crowded.
She lay there with the wall on one side and Leonardo on the other; she could even feel the heat from his body and smell his breath.
Summer felt nervous, her hands clutching the blanket and her body motionless.
Nighttime in the mountains was extremely quiet, so she could hear Leonardo’s breathing.
She could not explain why she was so nervous.
“Summer,” Leonardo called her all of a sudden.
“Uh-huh?” She found her voice hoarse.
“Blanket.” Leonardo’s voice was low.
Only then did she realize that she had kept the entire blanket to herself. Consciously, she shared half of it with him.
The two lay on the bed without a pillow, sharing the same blanket. The only thing that accompanied them was the musty smell of the rotten wood.
Summer had probably slept too long earlier because she was now alert.
Her eyes were wide open in the dark. Hearing Leonardo’s breathing slow down, she thought that he had fallen asleep, so she shifted her body to lie on her side and spread the blanket over him.
“I’m not interested in you right now, Summer. But I can’t guarantee that I won’t do anything if you keep touching me. I’m still a normal man, you know.”
Leonardo’s voice echoed, and it did not sound like he was sleepy.
Summer’s muscles froze for a moment.
“If you hadn’t told me, I would’ve forgotten that you’re still a normal man,” she said sarcastically after she calmed down.
She sneered and shifted her around so that her back faced him.
She told herself not to get angry and reminded herself that Leonardo was still a victim. She should not feel offended by a victim.
Her self-suggestion worked, and her emotions quickly settled. She fell asleep in no time.
She woke up abruptly in the middle of the night because she felt unbearably hot.
The towel had slid down her forehead and was almost dry.
Again, she found that she had kept the blanket all to herself. She draped half of it over Leonardo.
This time, he made no sound.
It looked like he was asleep for real at last.
Right then, he turned and slept on his side with his face facing her. That made it easier for her to place the blanket over him.
The air was freaking cold at night in the mountains. Without the blanket, it would be Leonardo’s turn to catch a cold the next day.
Summer also slept on her side, facing him. She could not see his face in the dark, but she could feel his warm breath.
The bed was small, and so was the blanket. Leonardo’s hot breath was right in front of her. It had been a long time since she was that close to him, and she felt her sleepiness go away.
Just as she was about to shift her posture so that her back would face him, he suddenly curled his arm around her waist and wrapped his leg around her. She was now locked in his arms.
Her body froze for a moment as she was too afraid to even move a muscle.
After a few minutes, she tried to sound him out. “Leonardo?”
All she got in return was the sound of his deep breathing.
Since he made the first move to hug her, he had better not blame it on her later.
Lying in the familiar warmth of his arms, she felt secure and content. As sleepiness caught up to her, she fell into slumber again.
…
Summer woke up the next morning with the sound of the rain hitting the roof. It told her that the weather was not going to get better any time soon.
Leonardo had remained in the same posture for the entire night. She found it hard to breathe because he was hugging her too tightly.
She gingerly stretched her hand, trying to take his hand off her waist.
However, the moment she held his wrist, he suddenly opened his eyes.
She had been keeping an eye on him while she was moving because she was worried that she would wake him up.
Seeing him open his eyes, she quickly let go of his hand as if she had done something bad. Her eyes were unblinking as they stared at each other.
Leonardo did not shift his body but moved his arm that was still curled around her waist. “What is it?” he asked with a frown.
“Last night, you…” Under his suspecting gaze, she kept an impassive face. “You touched me first.”
Leonardo pulled his hand back. “I slept like a log last night. You can say whatever you want.”
By saying that, was he not denying the fact that he had touched her first last night?
Fine. He was indeed not awake when he touched her. It was natural for him not to remember what happened.
Summer did not want to harp on it. She planned to climb over him to get out of bed, but as soon as her legs were astride him, she lost her balance.
Just as she was about to fall off the bed, Leonardo caught her by the waist, allowing her to land on him.
She was struck dumb. She remembered not doing anything wrong, yet she inexplicably felt like she had been slapped in the face.
Right after she fell on his body, she propped herself up. “If I told you I didn’t mean it, would you believe me?”
“Do you think I’d believe you?” There was no other expression on his handsome face.
Summer shook her head.
He stared at her for a couple of seconds and suddenly burst into laughter.
“Why are you laughing?” she asked softly.
Leonardo pushed her aside, sat up on the bed, and sorted his clothes. Only then did he glance at her again. “That’s such a lame excuse. If I hadn’t caught you in time…”
Summer knew what he meant despite no further explanation.
She also knew that she was innocent. She had just lost her balance. Yet, she felt like she could not rebut his accusation.
Lying in bed, she pulled the blanket over to hide herself.
Sensing that the man beside her had gotten out of bed, she finally pulled the blanket down to reveal her face. “If I do it again, you’ll still catch me. It doesn’t matter if the trick is lame as long as it works.”
Leonardo was putting on his shoes and looking back when she said that.
Summer did not flinch but looked him in the eye.
Leonardo squinted and leaned over her all of a sudden.
Did she overdo it, and Leonardo wanted to “fix” her?
Summer cowardly closed her eyes.
The next second, his ridicule rang from above. “Are you trying to browbeat me just like that?”