You better believe I gawked at him for a solid minute, as if he spoke in tongues. "I'm sorry?" I asked, making sure I heard him correctly. He placed his hands on his hip. "Don't make me ask again." I shook my head in disbelief. "So, let me get this straight," I began.

"You want me, a complete stranger whom you just met, I don't know, two days ago, to sleep with you?" He smiled devilishly and I knew I was screwed. I palmed my face. "Look," My voice sounds strained. "You don't have to ask this kind of request. Just because I saved your life and all doesn't mean we have to go with this...deeply." I pointed towards him and I.

He pinched the bridge of his nose which reminded me of Luke. I know Luke is pissed when he pinches the bridge of his nose and his other hand on his hip. Not a good sign. "Regardless," he began. "I want you to sleep with me. Just for tonight." I raised my brow. "Okay...this is becoming unusual, even for me." I heaved an exasperated sigh.

"Define sleep with you," I continued, asking the impossible man intently.

I saw the corner of his lips raise. This man is enjoying whatever the hell he's thinking inside his head. "Sleep with me. What does it sound like?" I rolled my eyes and then his eyes went dark once again. At this point, I have come to a conclusion that he doesn't like it when I roll my eyes at him.

"Either you just want me to sleep next to you or you want to have sex." I stated bluntly.

"I just want you to sleep with me. Lay beside me. I'm not going to have sex with you." Relief washed over me. I went out of my villa, closed the door behind me and leaned against it. We were a few inches from each other and obviously I was looking up to meet his eyes. "Is there a particular reason why you would request such a thing? I mean, like I said, we're both strangers. We did talk a lot about each other...I guess if you call that getting to know each other, but that's about it." He crossed his arms. I can sense his patience wearing thin.

"You're overthinking this too much. Just sleep with me. That's it. It's not like we'll see each other anyway. I'm sure you'll be heading home to wherever you are from and I'll do the same." As soon as he said that, a stinging pain came to my chest and my palm started to feel prickly. Regardless of how I felt, he was completely correct. I suddenly realized we spoke a lot a couple of days ago, but it never involved any personal information.

Where does he live?

What does he do?

How old was he?

So much for getting to know each other. I thought.

"Fine," I said in defeat. "Do you mind if I took a quick shower? I just need to remove the smell of the ocean on me." He grabbed my wrist suddenly and started walking towards the direction of his villa. "Just take a shower at my villa. I'll lend you some clothes and then we'll sleep." I never realized he had such a temper.

As we walked, well, he walked and I was dragged to his place. I noticed his hand was on my wrist the whole way. His grip was firm but gentle. His touch was warm and I couldn't help but just stare at the back of his head as we moved forward. Suddenly, we came to a stop and we were in front of his villa, I'm assuming. We ascended the small steps and he removed his grip on my wrist. I started massaging my wrist but at the back of my head, I wanted him to touch me again.

I heard the door unlock and he opened the door and stepped aside. "After you," he said as he motioned his hand towards his villa. I did as I was told and stood in the middle of his room. First thing I noticed was the smell of the room. It smells just like him. My jaw clenched.

his is going to be a long night.

Suddenly he held out a clean towel and shirt. "You may use the bathroom first." I nodded slightly and headed towards his bathroom. I closed the door and saw myself in the mirror. I saw my cheeks inflamed, eyes dilated and my chest breathing heavily. Reflexively, I splashed cold water on my face and leaned on the sink. I looked at my face in the mirror once again. My blue eyes were a little shaken.

Am I really going to do this?

I shut my eyes and removed my clothes and washed myself. Unfortunately, the cold shower did not do help. I was still nervous. I dried myself and folded my clothes and put on what he gave me. The shirt was bigger on me. One of my shoulders was almost peeking through the collar. Still, it was comfortable. I placed my hand on the door handle. If I go out of this bathroom, there's no point of return. I cursed internally.

C'mon Reidyr, it's not like he's going to have sex with you. Get a grip.

I turned the knob and went out. I saw him on the patio, talking to his phone. I placed my clothes on the desk not far from the bed and went in front of the French double doors. I tapped on the glass lightly and he turned to look at me.

Your turn. I mouthed. He gave me a nod, while he was still on a call. I was standing at the foot of the four-post canopy bed now, studying the furniture as if I was solving a difficult math problem. I heard the door open and a light salty breeze came into the room. He studied me for a moment. This time, my ears felt like they were on fire. I adjusted the shirt because the collar kept falling off my left shoulder. I tried not to look at him. "Sorry, I guess it's a little big on me..." It was an understatement. It was way too large for my body frame. He went past me and I heard the bathroom shut with a little force. My eyes trailed behind him.

What was that all about?

Exhaustion started to keep up with me and I gave out a yawn. I decided to take one side of the bed, making sure my back was facing the other side. A few minutes later, I heard the door of the bathroom open and then shut. Out of nervousness, I closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep. I heard the click of a switch and the mattress dipped on the other side of the bed. We were quiet for a moment. "Are you asleep?" he asked.

Fuck. I didn't respond. I was praying he'd just let it go and fall asleep. What happened next was beyond me. I felt an arm around my torso which made me jump a little. "What the-"

I looked at him over my shoulder. The lights were switched off, but the room was somehow a little lit because of the moon's light. I got lost in his gaze. It was soft. Needy. I lay on my back and looked at him. He was on his side, with his elbows propped and we were looking at each other. "What's wrong?" I asked. Suddenly the atmosphere between us became serious. My hand reflexively cupped his face. As soon as my hand made contact, he closed his eyes.

"Sorry," I frowned at him. "What are you apologizing for?" I asked. "I'm asking too much of you tonight, I know that but...I...I just want-" I placed my finger on his lips. "I know. It's okay." It was all I could say to reassure him and make him feel at ease. "Don't think about it. Tell me what you need." Something within me stirred.

I suddenly realized how multifaceted this man was. He may come off as intimidating, arrogant, hard, and standoffish, but he can also be a little needy, I mean doesn't everyone on this planet get a little needy at some point?

"Can you hold me tonight?" he pleaded. I gave an assuring smile.

He placed his head at the crook of my neck. Instinctively, I started drawing small circles at the base of his spine. His arm was across my abdomen, pulling me against the hard contour of his body. My eyes glued to the ceiling, but I noticed our breathing pattern was somehow in sync. I can feel his warm breath against my skin. Least to say, it was amazing. We were silent for a while until he spoke.

"You feel nice." I chuckled. "Thank you. You're not so bad yourself." He looked up, his beautiful brown eyes meeting my blue ones. The juxtaposition of his hard masculine features against his gentle eyes were almost contradicting, like night and day. He held the softest gaze I've seen he made, considering he's obviously physically dominant compared to me. He was about to say something. "Don't think about it." I told him.

"Regardless what this is, what we are doing or what we are to each other, don't think about it too much."

"Okay," I felt him relax as the minutes passed by until I felt his body melt into mine.

"Sleep." I told him. "It's been a long day." He nodded and then I felt him snuggle even closer to me. I hummed a little melody and waited for him to drift to a deep sleep.

Not long had passed and my back was now pressed against his bare body. I didn't realize that he wasn't wearing anything but his boxers. His arms were wrapped around my torso and his face buried deep in my head. He was breathing evenly. His skin felt remarkable against mine. I already accepted the fact that I wanted this man to touch me. I waited for him to fully fall asleep before joining him in dreamland.

I woke up earlier than I expected. The sun was peeking through the horizon. I didn't realize that my head was nested on his perfectly sculpted chest. I rubbed the sleep off my eyes and looked at the time. It was six in the morning. I must get up since my flight back home is at nine. Before I decided to get up, I stared at his sleeping face. I can see his chest rise and fall. His olive skin looked immaculate. I traced the lines of his tattoos on his chest, trying not to wake him up. I laughed quietly and I realized I really should get up or I'll miss my flight back home. I got out of the bed carefully making sure not to wake him up.

He was sleeping so peacefully. Strands of his hair fell across his forehead. Christ, he still looked beautiful even when asleep. I was about to grab my clothes by the desk where I left them, then it occurred to me to leave a note. I felt it was necessary to let him know I'm okay and that I'm...leaving. A sudden pang in my chest came and tried to disregard it. I wrote him a quick note and left it by the nightstand, grabbed my things and shut the door gently. I hurried back to my villa, took a shower, and collected my things - prepared to leave this piece of paradise. My thoughts wandered to the sleeping man I just left on his bed a few moments ago and the smile on my face never left.

A swell of melancholy washed over me, and tears were threatening to be released at the brim of my eyes. I wiped them before they even fell and went to the main lobby, signed a few papers, and left.

As I entered the cab that will transport me to the airport, the longing to go back to bed with him intensified. After what happened last night, I couldn't take him off my head. But even dreams end at some point, I knew that from the beginning. It's just hard to accept that someone who made you feel wanted, even for just a minute, will now be nothing but a mere memory.

I sat on the plane, staring out the window with a heavy heart. People were still piling in, placing their things at the overhead counter. My phone buzzed and it was a message from Luke.

From: Luke Anderson

Can't wait to see you later Snowflake.

I smiled. Finally, something to take my mind off him. I replied and decided to listen to classical music to ease my mind. I found myself feeling guilty, leaving like that but I guess it's for the best. If I had woken him up, I know that I'm going to fall deeper into this sinkhole I allowed myself in. This is for the best. Suddenly, a tear escaped, and I wiped it immediately.

You already know it would end one way or the other. I bit the inner sides of my cheeks and exhaled slowly. Time to wake up and face reality. As soon as the plane took off, I felt like my heart left a piece of it back in Bali.