Hope Burning

Chapter Eleven:

         At check-in the Innkeepers seemed almost embarrassed when Jessica introduced herself as the person who reserved the attic room. Heading up the stairs she wondered how bad it could possibly be. Mark just looked curious and skeptical when he heard she had taken a room in the attic.
         
         “I didn’t know they had one up there.”
         
         “Well, they didn’t really want to rent it to me. I kind of had to drop your name and beg a little. It can’t be that bad. Besides I wont be spending much time there.” Shrugging she looked skeptically at the steep narrow staircase that led up to the attic.

         “Ladies first. Just let me know if there is any room in there for me to bring in your bags.” Mark snickered slightly at her disgruntled glace back at him.

         Jessica climbed the stairs and entered the small attic room. Although she would have described it more as a closet. The room was excruciatingly small. It very much put her in mind of a low ceiling walk-in closet. The innkeepers had tried to explain saying they had fixed it up for their granddaughter when she came to visit. Now she understood the couples’ reluctance to rent this room. It was only bout 10 feet deep and 7 feet wide. Besides the ridiculously small bed there was only one small dresser with mirror and a stool. The ceiling at the doorway was a fairly low 6 feet in height and sloped down to a frighteningly low 4 feet over the head of the bed.

         It was obviously a teenage girls room that the innkeepers had tidied up to make more appropriate for a guest. Jessica was pretty sure that this room wasn’t usually rented out to the general public.

         “Ouch!”
         
         Jessica turned from her assessment of the room to see Mark had folded his 6’4” broad frame into the doorway and discovered the low ceiling with his head.

         “Where exactly would you like your bags?” glancing around the room he tried valiantly not to laugh.

         “That’s it. Out!” she placed her bags on the bed for lack of anywhere else to place them and began pushing at his chest.

         “Oh come on Jess. There has to be something better. Maybe something for a grown up sized human.” He proved unable to withhold a chuckle.

         “I tried Mark! You wouldn’t believe how hard it was to get this room. I think this fair of yours is quite popular.” 

         “Jess, really this is…” he paused looking thoughtful before continuing. “Look, this is just an idea but your welcome to share my room. It is the guest house out back. There is a living room with a fold out couch. You are welcome to it.” Seeing her alarm he quickly added, “It’s just an offer as friends of course.”

         “Well, thanks but I’m sure I will be fine here.” Jessica closed her room door and squeezed past Mark to head down the stairs.

         “If your sure. It’s an open invitation just in case bashing our head on the ceiling gets a little old that is.”

         For the rest of the afternoon Mark showed Jessica around some of his favorite Seattle locations before heading back to the inn for coffee after an early dinner. After spending the evening chatting and talking with other guests in the common room they headed off to bed late that night.
         
         Jessica could hear talking from the top of the narrow stairs that led to her room. Only her room was at the top and no one should have been there. She paused at the foot of the stairs listening for anything that would indicate trouble before heading up to find out what was going on.

         When she reached the top of the stairs she could see that her rooms door was open and there was a young woman standing just inside the room door talking on a cell phone sounding upset. She was in mid-sentence when she turned and saw Jessica just a few steps behind her. The unknown young woman was a very petite but pretty blond who appeared to be in her mid-twenties.

         “Oh!” the young woman seemed embarrassed to be caught here and a little bit defiant at the same time.

         “Hi. Umm. This is my room. Can I help you?”

         “Sorry. I’m Stacy. My grandparents own the inn. This is my room. They have never rented it out before, that I know of.” She shifted her weight and looked away. Jessica could see now that what she thought was a young woman in her twenties was actually in her late teens.

         “I’m Jessica.” It was all she could think to say in the awkward moment.

         “I am so sorry Jessica. It’s just that I didn’t expect to have to come out here tonight. There was a - umm - slight emergency. I can’t get a hold of my grandparents. I don’t have anywhere else to go and they always keep this room for me.” Seeming on the verge of tears Jessica felt suddenly moved by this young woman who seemed so lost and upset.

         “Stacy, It’s ok. Really. I have another place I can stay tonight. I am actually here with a friend and he has the guest cottage.” She smiled warmly at Stacy. “Since we can’t share this bed it seems like a good solution.”

         Stacy laughed as the tears that had been welling in her large blue eyes spilled out and down her cheeks.

         Jessica looked closely at the red eyed girl. “Stacy are you ok? Can I help?”

         “I just can’t believe you are being so nice about this. It’s the last thing I would have expected of this day.” Her voice cracked and she turned away to wipe her face.

         “Really, is there anything I can do?” Jessica couldn’t stand to see this young woman so obviously distressed.

         After a long silent moment Jessica placed a hand on the girls shoulder and squeezed gently. “Maybe we should both just hit the hay. It’s late.”

         Stacy placed her hand over Jessica’s. “Thank you Jessica.”

         Jessica removed her few small bags and headed out the door. “Stacy, if you want to talk I’ll be here all weekend.” She paused debating her next words. “I think you will find I can understand the…difficult things that can happen to a person.” she said very softly before hurrying down the stairs.

         A few minutes later she found herself standing in front of the door to the cottage Mark had rented unable to work up the nerve to knock on his door. What am I doing out here? What if he is already asleep? Finally, after standing there for over five minutes feeling like a fool, she knocked.

         When the door opened she was momentarily stunned by what she saw. Mark, apparently just out of a shower, was wearing unbuttoned jeans that he had obviously thrown on quickly to answer the door. Jessica noticed with undue fascination the water glistening on his muscular chest dripping down his sculpted abs and being absorbed by the darkening edge of his blue jeans. He held a towel in one hand lifted to absorb the water still dripping from his long hair. His handsome face showed an array of emotion including surprise but mainly what looked like delight and wonder.

         Trying not to pay too much attention to his apparent pleasure at her standing on his doorstep she forced herself to look away from him. “My room is now taken so I am in need of a place to crash if you don’t mind that is.” Seeing the confusion on his face she added, “Don’t ask. I’ll tell you all about it later. So, Chief, can I come in?”

         Mark jumped out of the way when he realized he had just been standing there gazing at her. “Yeah of course. I said it was an open invitation. I just didn’t expect you to show up.”

         While Jessica was in the bathroom getting ready for bed Mark brought in Jessica’s bags and got the fold out couch ready. When she came back out she found Mark stretched out on the folded out sleeper sofa.

         Mark watched her as she came back into the living room and saw the surprise on her face as she halted just short of the sofa bed. He noticed she was wearing a light bathrobe over her tank top and pajama pants and wondered if she felt cool on such a warm evening or if it was out of shyness.

         She had to take a minute to remember to breathe and slow her suddenly racing heartbeat. God he is gorgeous reclining there.

         “Mark…” her words trailed away as if she had forgotten what she was going to say. She looked slightly confused and glanced back toward the bedroom then back to where Mark lay.

         “I know what you are going to say but don’t. I am sleeping here, you can sleep anywhere you want but I am not moving.” Mark said completely unperturbed.

         “Mark no. I can’t kick you out of your bed. I am imposing enough as it is.” she insisted.

         “Jess, you don’t get to tell me where I can and can’t sleep in my own room.“ He seemed very amused at something but Jessica couldn’t tell what. “You can of course choose where you will sleep. I wont make you sleep in the bedroom if you don’t want to.” Jessica did not miss the slight heat in his last sentence but decided it was best to ignore it even though it made her flush so brightly from head to toe that she knew it was impossible to hide.
         
         “I am not going to be able to dislodge you am I?” she asked in defeat.

         “Nope.”

         “Well you don’t have to sound so totally pleased with yourself.” she sighed in mock irritation. She looked back and stuck her tongue out at him before disappearing down the short hallway.

         That night neither one fell into sleep easily. They both lay awake tossing and turning straining to hear sounds from the other room. Mark thought he was going to go mad thinking about her. Just knowing how close she was, was intoxicating. Finally he fell asleep wondering if she was as painfully aware of him as he was of her.

         Jessica lay awake long after she heard Marks’ soft breathing from the other room indicating that he had at last succumbed to slumber. She was actually afraid to go to sleep for fear of having another nightmare and waking up screaming.

         Finally she couldn’t fight it any longer and drifted off to sleep. When she awoke from a dream it was not frightening or a nightmare at all. This new dream left her gasping for breath and moaning softly for completely new reasons. Mark had been a prominent character in this latest concoction of her subconscious. It was so vivid that it left her embarrassed even though no one knew but herself.

         She got up and quietly tiptoed out to the kitchen to get a glass of water trying to be as quiet as possible so as not to wake Mark. On the way back to bed she stopped short when she caught sight of his tall frame sprawled across the uncomfortable looking pull out sofa bed. He was still shirtless but had changed into a pair of very snug boxers and obviously felt warm enough to discard the blankets. His skin shone a gold copper in the light filtering in from the patio. His unbridled black silk hair spilled around him on the pillow and flowed across his chest. The sight of his near naked body left her breathless again.  His face was painfully vulnerable and achingly sweet in sleep without losing any of his undeniable manliness. She wanted to touch his face, to caress the planes of his perfect features so badly that she balled her hands into fists to control the urge. She forced herself to turn away and start back to her room.

         “Jessica…. Mmm….  Mmmm… wait.” his voice made her whirl around thinking he had caught her there staring at him. She again flushed with embarrassment before realizing he was muttering in his sleep. She inched closer hoping to hear more and knowing it was wrong. After what felt like an eternity he spoke again and Jessica felt physical pain at his words. “wont hurt you… mmm…. Promise… so …mmm…. Beautiful…”
         
         Unable to hold back any longer she reached out a hand and carefully lifted a lock of hair away from his face that had obscured her view. He shifted and mumbled again and she withdrew quickly fleeing down the hallway falling into the room with a whimper.

         After that it took her some time to calm down enough to sleep again. When she did wake again it was not so pleasant.