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‘but I’m going to anyway’ silent but his eyes communicated it all the same.  We finished our small meal and I felt marginally better, but exhausted.
    “Come on.” He stood up and nodded towards the guest room. I stood and began to clear my plate but he took it from me and set it down.
    “Bed, Everett.” He intoned gravely.
    “Okay.” I nodded and rubbed my eyes.
    “Good night Dray.” I said to him, and “Thank you for everything.”
    He pursed his lips and looked me over, nodding once and I slipped off to the guest room, shutting the door softly behind me. I switched on the light and looked at the room. The walls were a tasteful slate gray, the hardwood floors dark with a black area rug. The bed was dark wood too and heavy. Queen sized and filling the small room. There was an armoire and a dresser that matched the bed and curious I eased open one of the drawers, blinking at the overabundance of socks in it.
    Since when does guest room furniture contain clothing? I wondered. I opened another drawer after sliding the sock drawer shut. Tee shirts. Another held jeans… I shut everything carefully and quietly and sat on the end of the bed. I wasn’t in a guest room… I was in Dray’s room. But why would he lie to me? I closed my eyes. To make me more comfortable?
    I thought about it and came to the conclusion that thinking about it was just going to give me a headache. I switched out the light and pulled back the blankets. With a soft sigh I slid between the high thread count, black, sheets. I closed my eyes and lay on my side breathing in Dray’s scent which enveloped me. It was spicy and masculine with a hint of wind and road. I lay there, lulled by the sound of the rain in the eaves, trickling down the drainpipe.  My thoughts drifted back to Jerry, to everything that had happened today. I’d been burned in more ways than one, and it hurt . I sniffed and curled in on myself. I shuddered and dragged in a tortured breath. A low moan emitted from my chest and broke on a sob. I wept bitterly, scared, angry and alone.
    Had Jerry given me something? How could I not have seen what he was doing? Who was Dray really? Was this the stupidest thing I’d ever done or what!? What was I going to do? How was I going to survive? I couldn’t call Mandy… Couldn’t impose on her and her folks, could I? No… God, how could I have been so stupid!?
    I lay in the bed of a man I didn’t know the first thing about, these thoughts and more chasing around in my head and I cried myself to sleep to the sound of the pouring rain.

Chapter 4
     
    Dray…
    I lay flat on my back on my dad’s bed with my hands behind my head staring at the ceiling. She’d tried to cry quietly but the problem with old houses was the walls were paper thin. I didn’t know how to comfort her. I couldn’t fix it, so I’d finished the dishes and had come in here and listened to her cry. Which bothered me.
    Trouble was I didn’t know what bothered me more, the fact I didn’t know what to do to help her feel better or the fact that I didn’t know what to do about wanting to. These thoughts and ruminations kept me awake, staring at the ceiling for a long damned time. Now it was only a couple of hours until she’d be up and I hadn’t slept at all. The door swung open and the light flared on and I threw up my hand to shield my eyes.
    “The fuck you doin’ in here Boy?” my dad asked, annoyed. I sighed. Water dripped from his riding leathers and I sat up abruptly.
    “Shhhh!” I hissed and his eyes, a mirror of my own, burned a hole right through me. If I were a lesser man, I’d be shitting myself, but I wasn’t a lesser man. I was my father’s son so I gave him his own look right back. I got up and motioned for him to follow. I eased open my bedroom door and he looked over my shoulder.
    Everett was on her side, facing the door, a slight wrinkle between her brows but at least she slept. I didn’t think she was getting much rest out of it though.