Carnelian (15 page)

“I want to go back to my dorm room,” I
complained as Seth opened my door. He didn’t even listen to my
request as he bent over and picked me up like I weighed nothing.
“Seth, I mean it. I want to go to my dorm room.”

“After I’m satisfied that you’re safe, I’ll
return you to your room. But first I need to look at your scrapes
and check out your ankle.” Seth walked through the open doorway,
and Ty shut my door behind me. Seth turned and immediately climbed
stairs to an upstairs hallway. He passed several doors, which, if I
wasn’t irritated, I might have peeked in.

We ended up in a large room that had windows
overlooking the lake. At first I wondered about the color scheme,
mostly white with some natural wood that looked very yellowish and
blue thrown in, but then it occurred to me. It was like a beach.
The walls and curtains were clean white while the wooden floor was
a sandy, brownish-yellow color. The only real splash of color in
the room was the deep blue bed. I didn’t get to analyze it more as
I was carried into an adjoining bathroom. Seth finally set me down
on the sink counter top.

After digging under the sink, Seth grabbed a
washcloth and ran cold water on it. Kneeling between my knees, he
began wiping the dirt and dried blood off my scrapes. It stung as
he touched the open sores, but I kept my mouth shut. Silently, he
went from one knee to the other, making sure to not miss a bit of
dirt. Once he was finished with my knees, he stood and washed the
washcloth. Gently, he took my right hand and began to clean it up
similarly. I didn’t pull away as his touch caused the hum that I
was getting used to by now. He wiped my hand clean before taking
the other hand in his. Once he was thoroughly happy with how clean
the cuts were, he reached back under the sink, pulling out an
aerosol can.

“This might sting a little,” he warned. “But
it helps the healing a lot.” Seth looked deep into my eyes to make
sure that I was okay that he was going to hurt me while fixing me.
I nodded. He wasn’t kidding that the spray stung, but like my knees
being cleaned, I kept my mouth shut and let him finish.

“You can take a shower and clean up while I
get your clothes washed,” he offered, pointing to my ripped shirt
and dirty shorts. He opened a closet in the bathroom and gave me
two freshly-laundered towels. It was strange that even the towels
reminded me of the ocean, like his bedroom did. “Just toss your
clothes outside the door, and I’ll go get them cleaned by
Miller.”

“Miller?” I asked. That was a brother I
hadn’t met yet.

“He’s our housekeeper. Our father wasn’t
sure we could handle a house on our own. He cleans, cooks, does
yard work and washes our clothes,” Seth explained, helping me
stand. “I’ll look at your ankle after you’ve showered.”

“What are you now? A doctor?” I asked. “I
didn’t think you were pre-med.” Actually, I was sure he wasn’t
pre-med. I had his school files back in my dorm room still.

Seth smiled his crooked grin and didn’t
reply as he shut the door. I was left alone in his spacious,
pristinely-white bathroom. While I wanted to refuse him telling me
what to do, the shower sounded inviting. The dorms had shower
stalls built in the early 1970’s that were never upgraded even
though people in general were a bit bigger. Seth had a spacious
shower, and even a standing tub sitting next to it. The tub was
very tempting. It had been a long time since I had sat in a tub and
relaxed, and right now, all I wanted to do was relax. I eyed the
tub up again, but decided on a shower. If my ankle gave out, I
could always sit.

I enjoyed the warm water as
it washed away all the dirt from my last few hours. I hadn’t yet
had a moment alone since Seth came to my rescue. He was there the
whole time, answering the police and detectives questions and
repeating them to me when I forgot to answer. The water stung on my
knees and hands as it washed over me, but soon the pain dulled. I
looked around and found an assortment of shampoos and
conditioners.
Typical of a guy that
brought ladies home all the time.
I wanted
to hate him for that, but found now that I could not. He saved me.
He didn’t have to come looking for me after I left, and he didn’t
have to jump into a fight with a guy that had at least eight inches
of height and fifty pounds on him. He just did. And those strange
tingles when his skin touched mine... it was growing more
intense.

“Are you feeling okay?” Seth asked from the
cracked doorway. Too many thoughts swirled around in my mind that I
didn’t notice how long I had been in there until I heard a
knock.

“Yes, I’ll be out in a minute.” I hurriedly
washed away the suds. How many times did I end up washing my hair?
I couldn’t even remember.

As I stepped out and grabbed the towels
before I could be interrupted again, I noticed a stack of clothes
on the sink. I dried off as best I could, though my hair still hung
wet. I grabbed the shirt first, and it had to be one of Seth’s. It
was gigantic on me, but that was fine. I just needed to wait until
my clothes were cleaned. The pajama pants with the shirt had a tie
at the waist I could pull as tight as I needed. I cautiously pushed
the door open into his bedroom. Seth was seated at the window seat,
watching the water outside his bedroom window.

“Do you feel better?” Seth asked, turning
slightly to view me.

I looked at my hands that were now red from
the shower. At least they were no longer throbbing. I nodded. They
didn’t hurt even half as bad as they did before.

“Can I look at your ankle?” he asked.

Even that was feeling better after my
shower. I nodded and sat down next to him, placing my foot up on
the window seat beside him. Seth picked up my foot and twisted a
little left and right. There was a little residual pain, but
nothing compared to even an hour ago. I studied Seth as he examined
me. He did seem to know what he was doing. His dark eyes looked at
every little detail as he moved my foot. He had taken time to
shower.

I reached up and touched Seth’s face. Where
I was sure the man had cut his face with his knife, there weren’t
any marks. Seth dropped my foot and stared at me touching him. I
pulled my hand back quickly. He looked more shocked than
anything.

“But you were cut,” I said in a whisper. Big
warnings were going off in my head to get away from him… something
was very off with Seth. But I couldn’t move. The hum at touching
him was even louder now, and felt like a chain binding us now that
I had touched him for the first time.

“I was,” he replied and didn’t explain more.
He stood and pulled back the covers of the bed. “Miller changed the
bed while you showered. I’d prefer if you stay here tonight.”

“But,” I sputtered my reply. Staying
overnight was not part of my plans.

“I’d feel better if I can watch over you
tonight and be close,” he answered, patting the bed. My traitorous
body agreed with him, and I found myself walking over to his bed. I
really should have been running, but I couldn’t convince my brain
to do so. My body wanted to rest. “I’ll be in the room right next
door. I just don’t think you should be alone in the dorms
tonight.”

“I have Sim,” I reminded him of my
roommate.

“I called her and she went home for the
night. That’s why she wasn’t there,” Seth explained as I lay down
in his bed. I had forgot that much. He pulled the covers up around
me, tucking me in like a small child. “I’ll be right next door if
you need anything.” I melted into the softness of the bed.

Seth walked to the doorway and paused to
turn out the light. He gave me one last look before leaving the
room. He shut the door softly behind him. At the click of the door
shutting and me being locked into complete darkness, I couldn’t
help the thoughts racing through my mind. I could feel my heartbeat
pick up pace as I remembered running from the larger man. I had
repeated the story several times to the police, but now I could
feel it again. My mind went ahead and started to wonder what the
men would have done to me. My naivety of the world was good was
gone in an instant tonight. These men weren’t planning on just
talking. I wanted to cry and scream at the same time, but the
darkness of the room kept me tucked tightly into the bedcovers,
shivering. I began to analyze every little sound; a creak here and
a snap over there. My heart kicked in more. The handle turned
before the door opened, and I tried not to scream out.

“It’s just me,” Seth replied, walking back
into the room. He knelt beside the bed and touched my face. My
heart began to slow to a more normal beat. In the hallway light I
saw the concern etched all over his face. “I shouldn’t have left
you alone. I thought you were handling this strangely well for what
had happened to you. I’m sorry.”

I wanted to ask more questions, like how he
knew to return at that moment, but the warmth of his hand made my
eyes droop. It had been a long day. I didn’t even know what time it
was, but I was sleepy. Seth smoothed my hair with his other hand,
never letting go of my face. He seemed to be able to tell his
presence was keeping me content.

“I’ll stay here,” he said softly. “I’ll just
sleep on the window seat. You don’t need to get scared.”

Warm, fuzzy thoughts were taking over my
brain. At this point I didn’t care where he slept. He was easily
lulling me into sleep. Seth pulled back his hands and stood up to
walk to the window seat only feet away from the bed. The warmth
trickled away as he walked away. I was no longer sleepy. He laid
down and unfolded the blanket sitting there to cover himself. Why
was he being nice, and how did he know I was scared? The blanket
didn’t hide that he was shirtless. I could see that his perfectly
formed chest and arm muscles in the faint light coming through the
window.

“Go to sleep, Mari,” Seth said softly,
making me blush that I was caught watching him.

“How did you know?” I got my question out
before he could tell me to sleep a second time.

“Know what?” Seth asked, turning to face me.
The slight moonlight peeking through the curtain fell across his
face, now giving me an excellent view of him while I was covered in
darkness.

“That I was scared,” I replied, snuggling
into the covers. It was cozy, but I wasn’t feeling the same
overwhelming urge to sleep as I had when he was touching my face
only moments ago. My mind was waking up now that he was a little
ways away.

“I’ll explain that all tomorrow after my
game,” he replied. Not the answer I wanted to hear, but that was
all I would get from him. I didn’t ask any more and closed my eyes,
hoping sleep would take me soon.

I listened to his breathing as I tried to
sleep, but thoughts kept rambling through my head. I wasn’t scared
now, knowing that my defender was just feet away from me. Maybe I
should have been scared. Something was different about Seth, but he
proved quite well tonight that he was an excellent protector, my
own knight in shining armor. But that didn’t stop the images of
what might have happened if he didn’t arrive when he did. My brain
was a mess. First I was thinking about my night, but then I was
thinking more and more about Seth. Every time I tried to shut off
my thinking, I’d just change subjects. I was so lost in thought
that I didn’t notice that Seth was standing next to the bed.

“Mari,” he scolded me. “You really need to
sleep. You can’t get better if you don’t sleep. It’s late, and I
know you don’t stay up this late normally. Just go to sleep.” How
did he know I went to bed early? He knelt beside the bed.

“Too much to think about,” I replied, not
even hiding my guilt.

“But you were almost asleep a minute ago,”
he complained. It was obvious that Seth was tired as well. In the
dark, I could still make out his face and that he was looking at
me. I wanted to reach up and touch him, but instead kept a tight
grasp on my blankets to keep myself from doing so.

“Because you were touching me,” I admitted,
closing my eyes and giving into the warm fuzzies from him being
close now. Seth sighed.

“Fine,” he said as he moved around the bed.
I was startled. Why would he leave the room now? He had promised to
protect me. Seth stopped on the other side of the bed and climbed
in. I didn’t even have time to protest as his arms were around me,
and the warm fuzzy feeling was overwhelming. Everything about being
in his arms felt right. I was safe now. He was my shelter from all
my rambling thoughts and my protector from the world.

I turned in his arms to face him. I was
lying with my face at his chest. I didn’t have to look at his face,
which helped me be braver.

“What now?” Seth asked. He actually sounded
tired and a little grumpy.

“Thanks for saving me tonight,” I whispered.
Before I could stop myself, I kissed his chest and tried to roll
back around. Seth locked his arms and didn’t let me turn
completely. He easily forced me back to facing him. I hoped he
couldn’t see my burning cheeks, but he wouldn’t care. He was
staring into my eyes.

“I know you don’t believe me, but I’m very
serious about you,” Seth said softly. “I’ll do everything in my
power to keep you safe, even if you don’t see me the same way I see
you. You’re more special than you’ll ever know, and I’ve waited
three years to find you. I didn’t know what my purpose was to be
here, but I know now.” Seth’s hand cupped my face. I felt his thumb
make small circles on my cheek as he talked and was a bit
distracted. The hum I felt at his touch was magnified, and I could
feel the tingling down to my toes now. “I’ve never fallen for a
girl before, and no matter what you think about me and girls, there
was never a girl that made me feel the way you do.”

Chapter 9

Getting the
Truth