52

No. She forced herself to take a breath. It wasn’t suffocating at all. Truthfully, it was relaxing and nothing like the other times she’d attempted to do a little cuddling.

"I'm sorry…. I…. I couldn't sleep," she said softly,

"It's okay," Alaric replied, "I couldn't sleep either,"

There was silence for a while before Vanessa spoke again. “Can I ask you a question?” she asked, staring at the moonlight.

“Anything.”

Her heart sped up at his quick response. Alaric was…well, he was nothing she had expected.

“The scar on your shoulder? Were you shot?”

His thumb smoothed over her hip, and she liked the constant, idle motion.

“Yes. About four years ago.”

“How?” She winced, feeling awkward. “Sorry. That’s none of my business.”

“It’s okay. I was doing a job. A white-collar was about to turn state evidence and wanted security before he met with the police. Thought the guy was paranoid, but turned out, he wasn’t.” His chest moved in deep, slow breaths, the effect lulling. “When I was taking h