Carter lay in his bed, staring into the darkness. 

He'd told her that he had to get to bed early, gathered their dessert dishes, and placed what he thought was a reserved kiss against her soft lips. She tasted of the cake and he wanted to taste the rest of her. But he made himself leave.

Scrubbing the dishes, his mind kept slipping to the woman in his cellar. 

He knew that he needed to sleep, but it was getting harder to leave her in the cellar each night. For several minutes, he considered going down to sleep with her. But he made himself stay in his own bed.

Their conversations seemed to be a turning point. He felt like she was starting to trust him, feel comfortable sharing with him. He enjoyed the way she looked at him and asked questions. She made him feel like what he had to say, what he thought and felt were important. 

The only other person to ever give him that had been his uncle.

Trying to will his body to relax, he sighed and rolled over. After several minutes, he sighed again and turned to his other side. 

"Argh!!" A massive groan erupted from his mouth as he slapped his arms down. There was no way he was going to fall asleep. 

He got out of the bed and made his way into the living room and sat on the couch without a clue of what to do. Blank eyes stared into the forest, broken moonlight illuminating various branches and leaves that cast shadows into the nooks and crannies of the room. 

After so long, he sighed and stood up. There was one way, one thing that would help him sleep.

With careful fingers, he unlocked the cellar and made his way down. At the bottom, he stared into the dark, wondering why the lamps weren't on like normal. After several small, shuffling steps, he bumped against the nightstand. 

He debated on turning one of the lamps on, but decided against it. Instead, he felt for her and found that she lay in the middle of the bed. After some careful maneuvering, he moved her toward the wall, giving him just enough space to lay behind her. 

It wasn't as satisfying as he'd thought it would be to lay there in the darkness. He wanted to be able to see her, watch her sleep. But it did make him feel better to have her beside him. He snuggled closer to her, molding his body against hers.

She stirred, but didn't wake. 

He closed his eyes and focused on controlling his breathing in an effort to relax and fall asleep.

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Something felt weird when Sloane woke up. Her backside was warmer than normal and where she lay felt far firmer than what she’d come to know as her comfort zone. 

With every intention of stretching, she let out a hiss as her knuckles hit what she assumed was the wall. Deciding to feel behind her, she reached her right hand back. 

Shock hit her as she realized that Carter lay behind her, thus the reason she was toasty. His breathing was slow and even, his body still as he slept.

She didn't know when he'd gotten into the bed with her, but she felt her body, finding that her clothes still covered her. He didn't even have an arm around her. With as little movement as possible, she rotated to her right side and reached out.

Her fingertips met something hard. Exploring, she found that it was his back. Unexpected annoyance flared up. He isn't even facing me. 

She wasn't sure where that had come from and she frowned at herself.

With all the ease she could muster in her nervous excitement, she slid down to the foot of the bed and got up. She had to remind herself to go slow at the stairs. 

Taking her time was easier said than done as her heart hammered against her ribcage. After what seemed like years, she made it to the top, releasing the breath she’d held since starting her ascent. 

The house had a soft silvery look as the moonlight shined through the window panes. She made her way to the bathroom, flicking the light switch on to illuminate the space while causing her temporary blindness. 

Once her eyes adjusted to the light, she stared at her reflection in the mirror. The woman that looked back at her didn't look much different than the version she was used to. But there was something she couldn't put her finger on. She hadn't lost weight, which made her chuckle. He is trying to get me fat. There wasn't a sick pallor; rather she looked rested and her gray eyes sparkled. 

Turning away, she flicked the switch, darkness springing up to overtake the yellowish bright. She took her time walking through the living room. Unlike the cellar walls, there were photographs and prints spaced across the expanse in a perfect line.

There were many of an older man that Carter resembled. It has to be his beloved uncle. Most of the prints were forest scenes with various animals. She found herself captivated by one with a massive brown bear, knee deep in a stream and a look of concentration on its face as the animal stared into the water. 

Moving along, she realized that he didn't have a television in the room. Instead, there was an arched stone fireplace with a beam crossing the top to serve as the mantle. The grate inside held the remnants of wood that had been burned during the winter, maybe even a few chilly spring nights. 

There were built-in shelves on either side of the fireplace with statuettes and books. Sloane picked up a wolf head and admired the work, sure it was one of Carter's pieces. Turning the wooden carving over, the etched signature proved her right.

She placed the wolf head back and continued to explore, finding a weird pleasure that the place felt homey.

Her heart began to beat faster when she came to the door serving as the separation point between the living room and the kitchen. She took a step forward, her eyes never drifting away from the view of the outside world.

She raised her hands to the heavy wooden door, pressing her head against the cool glass panel. A shuddering sigh fogged her view and tears sprang to her eyes. Her body shook as she struggled to control her emotions.

Here it was. Her chance at freedom. 

But she couldn't bring herself to even try the door. A sob escaped, breaking the silence around her. The tears flowed down her cheeks, splashing against her chest. Her stomach twisted, threatening to relieve itself of the current contents. 

It was a long time before her tears had stopped running and dried on her skin. Her stomach had calmed to an uneasy ache, giving her a weak and drained feeling. Between the much needed cry and waking in the middle of the night, she was still tired and realized that she was ready to go back to bed.

In an odd mix of defeat and acceptance, Sloane went to the stairs to go back down into the cellar. 

It took just as long to go down the stairs as it had taken to go up them. The softest creaks made her pause and listen, always expecting the worse, but never hearing more than Carter's gentle snore.

With just as much ease as she’d used to get out of the bed, she crawled back in, facing away from the wall. After snuggling down to get comfortable, she curled one hand against her chin with the other on his shoulder blade. 

It wasn't long before she drifted off to sleep, unaware that Carter had felt her leave the bed and return. 

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