chapter1190
"Me?" Stella echoed, surprised.
Joshua nodded. "If you're giving up the bed for me, where will you sleep tonight?" Latest content published on Find1Novel.net
Sleeping on the floor was out of the question-German nights could be cold, and the last thing Stella wanted was to get sick now.
She replied, "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine in the armchair for one night. You need the bed, Joshua. Your health comes first."
Joshua glanced at the king-sized bed, hesitating. After a moment, he said, "There's plenty of room... If you want, you could share it with me?"
If any other man had suggested that, Stella would've assumed he had less-than- honorable intentions. But when Joshua said it, there was a childlike innocence to his offer he honestly just meant sharing the bed.
She shook her head. "No, that's okay."
Lowering her gaze, Stella began flipping through the stack of bedtime stories she'd organized earlier.
Joshua understood her boundaries, and he didn't push. He knew better than to make things awkward.
Once Stella was ready, she dimmed the lights and lit a soothing lavender candle. Then she settled into the chair and began reading aloud.
She read five stories, but Joshua still seemed wide awake.
Back when she used to read to Keen, he'd be fast asleep before she finished the third story. But Joshua's insomnia was a different beast entirely-she couldn't expect him to drift off so easily.
Still, Stella was patient. She kept reading.
She'd prepared around thirty stories for the night, just in case. If Joshua couldn't sleep even after all of them, she'd have to come up with a new plan for tomorrow.
But Stella herself hadn't slept well the night before, keeping watch over Joshua. As she read the drowsy tales, her own eyelids grew heavy, and she started to nod off.
Joshua noticed the fatigue etched on her face, the faint shadows under her eyes. His lips pressed together in concern.
By the seventh story, Joshua's eyes finally closed.
Stella rubbed her tired eyes, determined to keep going, when she realized Joshua had actually fallen asleep.
She whispered his name, softly, but when he didn't stir, she breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Pulling on a cardigan, she curled up in the armchair, and the moment she closed her eyes, she drifted off, too.
But as soon as she was asleep, Joshua's eyes snapped open.
He got out of bed, walked over to her, and for a moment just stood there, watching her peaceful face. Then gently he lifted Stella into his arms and laid her on the bed tucking the blanket over her. s
He gazed at her serene expression, drawn in as if by some invisible force. Almost unconsciously, he
leaned down, his lips just about to
brush her forehead. fo s
But suddenly, something made him pause. He stilled, eyes lingering on her face,
then closed them for a brief moment. In the end, he did nothing.
Instead of returning to the bed, Joshua settled into the armchair where Stella had been sitting.
He knew all too well: once you let desire in, it's hard to hold it back. He'd already crossed enough lines tonight; he couldn't let himself take. arty more s
But that wild, aching feeling inside him wasn't so easily tamed.
He knew he was close to losing control. If he ever did something to Stella that he
couldn't take back, he'd never forgive himself.
So he sat there, quietly watching the moonlight spill through the window.
He fully expected another sleepless night.
Yet, to his surprise, he soon drifted off, just as he had that night in the mountain cabin-falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.
He didn't wake until morning, when Stella's soft voice called him back.
"Joshua? Joshua, why are you sleeping over here?"
Joshua opened his eyes to see her familiar, beautiful face.
He smiled, feeling lighter than he had in days. "Good morning, Star."
A restful night, and waking up to the one he most wanted to see-there was no better way to start the day.
Stella looked at him, puzzled. Joshua, why were you sleeping in the chair?"
He replied, "I woke up in the middle of the night and saw you asleep in the chair, so I put you in the bed."