tomorrow's shadows (fated_wren) wrote in 2145ic, @ 2018-04-25 00:04:00 |
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Entry tags: | samson, wren |
who: wren & samson
where: her houseboat
It had taken him a few days to find it, but when he did, Samson had sat straight up off his bed, frowning at the lines. It wasn’t a complicated change, as far as code went. Just a few lines, but they were enough to shut everything down, to completely shut down all incoming messages and block access outside. It was what kept her maps down, her communications, all of it. He paced a little, then grabbed a jacket and shoved his feet into his boots. It was late, dusk already and it would be dark by the time he got to her boat, but still. He could fix it. Easily.
He grabbed his bag, hesitating at the last moment to grab a spare shirt off the back of his desk chair before starting to the park. Not that he thought he’d stay. But...maybe just in case.
As expected, it was dark when he got to the park, but he was able to pick his way across the paths in the little communities there until he got to the water. There was clear hesitation, but then he stepped onto the dock, looking at her boat, wondering again how insane he was to get on something that was floating on the water. “Wren?”
Wren wasn't sure when she'd see him again, though he'd been frequent in her thoughts, just beneath the surface, lingering. She was quite preoccupied with him in general, which she knew was probably something Alistair would frown upon, but she couldn't help it. She'd enjoyed him, in so many ways. She wanted to talk to him, but wasn't sure if he'd ever actually return. She thought of going to try and find him but as she walked out the gates of Central Park, she recognized that it would be a disaster. She'd get lost.
So she'd waited. She'd done a lot of readings, she'd gone about her normal business, but at the end of the day, she just...waited.
And then she heard his voice. She immediately hopped up from where she was and went to the door, smiling brightly as she saw his shadow out there. “Samson!” she greeted, walking outside and wondering if her joy was communicated properly. “You've returned, I'm so happy to see you,” she said, reaching out for his hand to potentially help him onto the back porch area, onto the boat.
Seeing her made something inside him unclench, something that he hadn’t even realized was waiting, waiting to see her again, hear her voice. He reached for her hand before even thinking about, holding on to her hand and stepping onto the boat without hesitation. Or it was, then the boat shifted in the water and he gripped the railing, closing his eyes for a moment. On the water. What a dumb idea. He hoped he didn’t drown.
He swallowed hard, then eased his grip on the railing, holding his other arm out for her, wondering...what they were supposed to do. He didn’t see a lot of the women he’d slept with again. Did he kiss her? Hug her? Could he just hold her against him and breathe her in? “Happy to see you too. Sorry it took me so long.” Not that it had been more than a few days, but it felt like ages.
She held onto him tightly. “It's okay,” she promised. “Come inside,” she invited, wanting him in there where they could be warm and alone. “It's alright. I'm just happy to see you at all. I wasn't sure you'd be back,” she said. “But here you are,” she added, then put her arm around him to help him inside, where she shut the rest of the world out once they were there. She drew in the scent of him, such unfamiliar fragrances. But they were uniquely him, and she liked that.
Being inside helped. He couldn’t quite see the water, which made it easier. What really helped though was her, tucked against him and easing every one of his concerns. She felt right when she was against him with her so close, the idea of floating on air was so much more reasonable. “Of course I’d come back. I wanted a reason, but I would have come even if I didn’t have one.” He ran his hand through her hair then pulled her against him again.
“I'm glad to hear that. I'd like you to come see me even if it's just to say hello,” she invited, just so they were all clear on what constituted an appropriate reason to visit. When he pulled her in she went willingly, looking up at him with a soft smile. “I've been thinking about you,” she told him, thinking there was no reason not to share that. She wanted him to know that even when he wasn't here, her mind was still with him.
“Just for that?” Samson asked, surprised to hear that, but welcoming the invitation. “You can do the same for me,” he added. The admission made him smile, giving her a little squeeze as he nodded. “I’ve been thinking about you too.” He hadn’t stopped thinking about her. He’d poured over the code for her transmitter and then spent nights dreaming about her. “What were you thinking?”
“I'd be lost if I tried to stop by and say hello to you,” Wren said. “But I did consider it. Walked out of the park and everything, however I knew I'd never get there,” she admitted. “But I did want to see you,” she confessed. She liked the squeeze, and stood closer to him, even if she was already close. She liked the feeling of being pressed against him. She smiled when he said he'd been thinking of her as well, happy to hear that. “I was thinking that you should return. That I should make you something to eat, that we should spend more time...”
“Now you might, but I can fix that,” Samson said, though he was touched that she considered going looking for him. “It’s okay that you didn’t try. I would have hated if something had happened to you.” He leaned in again, noses touching before smiling softly. “More time what?” he asked, having an idea of what it was, but kind of wanting to hear it from her.
Wren laughed, a blush touching her cheeks. “Just more time,” she said. “Though I have some suggestions,” she confessed. “I did quite enjoy our time together here the first time.” Though she imagined he'd caught on to that fact. She pushed up on her toes a little so she could brush the softest of kisses across his lips. Just a little something, nothing too brash, or too insistent, just something soft and sweet and full of promises.
He wouldn’t have admitted it out loud, but part of him needed that confirmation, that she had wanted to see him again, and like that. He ran his fingers over the blush, and returned her kiss, the same promises in his as well. “You have me,” he promised. “As much time as you want.” Which might not be the case, he needed to check, but at the same time, he was fine with moving most things around to spend more time with her.
Those words sent a little shiver down her spine. She really loved hearing that. Especially considering she'd never quite heard it before. No, she always belonged to everyone else, no one had ever been hers before. And perhaps that wasn't quite what he meant, but she appreciated it anyway. “What if I'm inclined to keep you forever?” she asked. Which a normal person might have understood as being overboard too quickly. That it was likely creepy, after having only met him once. But for Wren, things operated differently in her head. Always had. Growing up in a cult wasn't a normal upbringing, period.
Samson laughed, not even batting an eye at what she said. Probably too fast, probably too soon, but he wasn’t the kind of man to do things in halves and really? Forever with her sounded like a dream come true. He wrapped her up in his arms again and kissed her nose, smile still on his lips. “I could probably be talked into that,” he murmured. “Though you’ll have to let me go home at some point. And I don’t think I’m ready for forever on this boat.”
She laughed. “Okay, so long as you promise to return, you can take your time off of the boat. I know you aren't used to it yet. Though I do think eventually you will be,” she said. Hoped. She hoped he would. Though human beings were endlessly adaptable beings. “Were you planning to stay tonight?” she asked. “I don't have anymore readings to do tonight, I'm quite free. All yours for the evening.” Which she did hope he took her up on. “What have you been doing since I saw you last?”
He’d really thought he’d been going to far in grabbing that spare shirt, but he was glad he did. Because, no, he wasn’t going anywhere. He’d thought in the few days they were apart, that he had control over the situation. Being here with her though, that made him realize that he didn’t stand a chance. He couldn’t say no to her. “I can, if you want me here.” He took her hands, pulling them up to kiss her knuckles. “I fixed your code,” he said, lighting tapping her temple. “I can bring you back online.”
She nodded, still smiling at him. He was so different than Alistair had been. She cherished every moment of that. Then she blinked. “You...” she started, trailing off as she followed what he was saying. She looked nervous. “...you really believe I need it?” she asked. She knew this was what he did, that if she was in his hands they were good hands, but still. It was scary for her. She was far more used to a world where she didn't have the same things. Certainly some of them would be helpful. Like he'd mentioned a map. That would be good, she could venture out of the park. But it was still nerve wracking, thinking about it all.
He ran his thumbs over her palms, nodding. “I mean, I think it will help,” he said softly. “You won’t get lost. You can message me if you need to, or anyone else for that matter.” He moved to sit at her little table, looking up at her. “He cut you off from the world. You don’t deserve that. The world deserves you.”
She would like a way to contact him. That would definitely be nice. She paused and looked to his eyes, before nodding. “Okay,” she said. “I trust you.” She gave a light smile, even if she was clearly still nervous. “You think the world deserves me? I thought I was already a part of it...in my own way.” She supposed that she was isolated, cut off. She just didn't usually feel that way until Alistair died, til they all died.
Samson pulled her hands up to kiss her knuckles again. “As loathe as I am to share you with it? Yes. They do. They deserve you in any way they can have you. Every way. And once you get your transmitter fixed, you can reach more people. Do more readings.” He smiled at her, feeling warm at the idea of her trusting him. That meant everything.
She did like the idea of doing more readings. That she could guide more of the lost. There were so many in this city. She had the means. That was what had her nodding, smiling a little better. “I could help more people,” she said. “I would like that.” She bit at her lore lip a moment. “Will it hurt?” she asked, not sure about anything like this. She had no upgrades herself, the only tech she had in her system at all was the one Samson was going to fix. She didn't really even remember a time before, she didn't know what to expect. It could involve surgery or just him hitting some buttons on the device he’d used to scan her in the first place, she had no idea.
Samson shook his head. “Not at all.” He reached for his bag, digging into it and grabbing the tablet he’d been looking at and the scanner. “I already updated the code, I just have to upload it.” He smiled. “It won’t take long at all. Just a few seconds.”
She felt a twist in her stomach at the idea that it was happening and would happen so fast. But he thought it was best, and so she was going to go through with it. She could help people, be able to talk to him over a distance, it was all for the best, right? She nodded, more to herself than him. “Should I sit down? Where do you want me?” she asked, looking around her place, figuring he would know where would be best. The kitchen table, the couch, one of the free chairs, there was a natural wooden bench.
He got up and turned her, sitting her in the chair he’d been in. “Right here is fine.” He smiled at her once more, leaning down to kiss her once more before grabbing his tablet and kneeling in front of her with only a tiny wince. “We can take care of this, then I’m yours completely,” he said, tapping on the tablet to sync it with her transmitter. Then he tapped the sequence to upload the new, cleaned code and waited as it transferred.
Wren sat down, and was quiet as he did his thing. She noted the wince, and remembered what he'd told her about his own cybernetics. And that he'd had to do them himself. She watched him as he worked, his eyes not on her, and appreciated the concentration on his brow, the look in his eyes. Sometimes, just looking at someone as they were being adept at things was compelling in a way she couldn't describe. About to say something, she blinked as abruptly, her implant flared to life.
For most people, it would be a relief, feeling that connection restored. Feeling it all coming together, tied to the world at large. But no. For Wren, it was a nightmare. She was flooded with sensations that she couldn't sort out, information screamed at her from every direction. It was like a thousand voices were all vying for her attention and she couldn't focus on a single one. She cried out and fell back, instinctualy trying to cover her eyes as if that would ward off everything she was seeing in her HUD, but of course it did nothing. Ads blared in her ears, news feeds played, open chats, there was too much. Everything was too much and she had no idea how to shut any of it down.
Her quiet, peaceful world shattered, and she screamed.
He had no idea what he’d been expecting, but her screaming was not it. It was small miracle he didn’t drop his tablet, at least not from breakable height, when he reached for her. “Wren, Wren,” he urged, pulling her hands from her eyes, trying to get her to look at him. “What’s wrong? What hurts?” It shouldn’t hurt. He’d done upgrades tons of times. It shouldn’t hurt her. He instantly worried he had forgotten something, that there was a line of code set to hurt her if he’d changed it.
She could barely hear him. She was looking around wildly, like she would be able to look past all the things popping into her vision. She couldn't, though, they weren't in the air around her, they were in her eyes. Irrationally, she started to scratch at them. She knew he'd said something and when she spoke it was in a panicked rush. “I can't see! I can't hear! There's so much – I'm drowning! Samson help me!” She couldn't live like this. How did anyone? How did people exist in a world where there was so much information to take in all at the same time? How could anyone hear with so many streams trying to get her to buy things, or join things...she didn't even know what else, half of the things tossed in her direction she simply didn't have experience with in the first place, so she didn't even know how to describe them.
He grabbed at her hands when she tried to claw at her eyes, holding on to them and grabbing his tablet again. “Shh. It’s fine. I got it. I do.” He tapped the sequence one handed, the other holding on to her hand to keep her calm with his thumb brushing over her rushing pulse point. It took two minutes longer than he would have liked, but he managed to re-upload her old code, which would shut everything down, then he tossed it aside and reached for her, already drawing her into his arms. “It’s okay, it’s okay.”
She was crying. Sobbing like a child, and when it all went away again she was relieved. She felt like she'd just been assaulted, violated. When he pulled her into his arms she clung to him tightly, crying with her face pressed in against his neck and shoulder. She was mumbling unintelligibly under her breath, wanting to calm down but that was the worst experience of her entire life. She had no idea how anyone existed in a world like that. Where there were so many things. Like the world around them didn't matter, it was all whatever was on the display that did. How did anyone think? Feel?
Samson was at a total loss for what to do. He’d thought that would help, but it had made her miserable and he didn’t know what to do with himself. He tried to help, running his hands over her back, trying to be soothing to calm her, mind racing about what just went wrong. He kept repeating whatever soothing words he could, soft noises, promising that everything was fine, that he had her and nothing would fall apart, but he felt like they were just empty promises.
Slowly, she calmed down, though it took a while. It was slow, her tears starting to ebb, her heart rate returning to normal. She kept close to him, sagged in his arms. Til finally she realized she needed to move, and she sat back, sitting on the floor and she took in a shakey breath and let it out slowly. “...how do you live with all the noise?” she whispered, voice rough. She kept wiping at her eyes, wincing faintly as the scrapes there stung. Nothing was deep, but she'd managed to scratch a bit before he'd thankfully stopped her.
Samson leaned in to check her scrapes, worried about that, hating that. That he’d done that to her. It was all his fault. “...I don’t know. I mean...I guess I’m used to it?” He turned his sight inward, checking on his HUD, the stream of information, but it didn’t feel weird. And if he was truthful, his fed him even more information than hers would, given how he’d grown up, surrounded by the technology and information. He focused back on her and shook his head. “I’m so sorry. I thought… I don’t know what I thought.”
She knew people did this. Everyone but her. But hers had been shut down, she'd grown up without. The adaptability of the human creature, that was what she chalked it up to. People adapted to the images, the information, the noise, it was all there in their heads from before they even formed memories. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to...” she didn't know what. Freak out? Get hysterical? “I'm sorry.” She felt like she'd failed him. “But I can't... the noise, the pictures in my view, I...” she shook her head and sniffled. “I can't.”
Samson shook his head then reached for her to gather her up in his arms again. “Don’t, don’t apologize. I’m an idiot. I thought I was helping.” But he hadn’t. He’d made it worse. “I can fix it.” He knew he could. He could take the code that Alistar had put in, edit it to make it work for her. Give her what she needed. The maps. The comms. Maybe cut out the rest. He brushed at her hair. “It’ll be fine. I’ll fix it. I promise.”
She trusted him. She could hear in his voice that what happened was a total shock to him, that he hadn't meant to hurt her. She wasn't upset with him. When he pulled her in, she leaned against him. “We can talk about what you want to fix...” she said. She still wasn't sure there was anything she wanted or needed. Could he remove it entirely? Was that a fix? She didn't know but it sounded good to her right now. “It was too much. I didn't know how to control anything, it was like the whole world was trying to scream at me and I couldn't block any of it out.”
Samson took a moment and ran his hand through her hair. “Just what I said. A way to reach me. To keep you from getting lost. That’s it. So I won’t worry about you as much.” He shook his head, turning into her and kissing her hairline, trying to make her understand. He really hadn’t meant to hurt her. “I’m sorry. I ruined everything.” And she probably wanted him to leave now, which was the farthest thing from what he wanted, though he would understand if she asked him to go.
“You didn't ruin anything,” Wren said, voice still ragged from screaming, but she was calmer now. And while she probably would have new nightmares to add to her already prominent ones, she didn't mention that. “You tried to help me,” she said. “You did a good thing. It's not your fault I can't handle it,” she assured him. His little efforts in comforting her were helping, and she felt herself very slowly untensing. “You were just trying to help. I guess I'm just not shareable.” Like he'd said earlier. Maybe she wasn't cut out for that.
He didn’t really think of it as something she couldn’t handle, but he got it. He ran his hands over her cheeks and smiled, though it was a little sadder than before. “Maybe it’s for the best then,” he said softly. “I can stay yours for just a little longer.” Until she found someone else. Someone whose entire belief system wasn’t in turmoil and who was closer to fully functional. Someone who didn’t instantly regret shutting off her transmitter, because the idea of being so dark to the world warred with a belief he’d grown up with, while at the same time he hated the idea of hurting her.
She gave him a little watery smile back, then hugged him again. “I like the idea of you staying mine,” she agreed softly. She gave him a squeeze. “I think I need a bath or something, and some tea. Do you want any of those things?” she asked, pulling back enough to look at him again. She felt exhausted even if she hadn't done anything, like the shock to the system was a little too hard. But she'd feel better after she bathed, when she got some calming tea into her. When she could potentially snuggle up with Samson and talk about his life and everything in it.
At least they agreed on that. “Not sure I’ve ever had a bath,” he murmured. He only had a standing shower in his place and he was pretty sure half the work was done by the UV lights in it rather than the poor water pressure. “Anything to be close to you though.” It was probably admitting too much, but it was all he wanted. All he’d thought about in their time apart. It was why he was so driven to fix her.
“Then come along,” she said. She got up and took his hand, to lead him toward her small bathroom. One thing it did have was a full sized tub, even if the space itself wasn’t large. Basically it was just the toilet and tub/shower combo in there. She used the kitchen sink to wash her hands and brush her teeth. She sat on the ledge of the tub and started the water running, plugging the drain after she got the temperature right. There was a tankless water heater attached to the facilities.
She stood then started to light the many candles she had in the room, something of a ritual for herself when she took baths. Soft floral scents filled the air as the wax began to melt in the jars, and she paused to add a few different salts to the water. Then she turned to Samson, and reached out to begin unbuttoning his shirt.
Samson was a little at a loss, sure he should be doing something for her, but not sure what. He felt awkward and out of place, like he was too big for the space they were in, like he was just trouble for her when that was the last thing she needed. Then she came back to him and he let her undo the first few buttons before cupping her cheeks and drawing her up for another kiss, trying to work his apology into that action.
Wren didn’t need apologies. She understood what happened and she was also the type of person who was incapable of holding a grudge. Her life wasn’t geared toward it, her outlook didn’t function that way. She returned the kiss while she kept undoing buttons, until she ran out of them. Then she slid her hands up to his shoulders to start to push his shirt off of them, out of the way.
As much as he hated the idea of letting go of her, sense did manage to filter in. They had a bath waiting and getting in clothed wasn’t going to work for either of them. When she pushed his shirt back, he took his hands off her long enough to let it drop behind him. Then it was his turn, bunching the fabric of her clothes between his fingers for a moment as he kissed her again, something fast and sweet before he started to work her out of her clothes as well.
She smiled, but kept silent as he disrobed her. Once they were finished, she moved first, to step into the tub, and she scooted forward so he could get in behind her. That way they could relax together, snuggled up in the hot water. It could seep in, relax them both, and she could forget about all the awful things she’d been seeing when he fixed her implant.
Samson hesitated, but only for a moment. There was just something weird about being in a bath. And a bath on a boat. It was all a new experience for him. Still, the draw of Wren and her skin was enough to get him to climb in after her, taking a moment to get settled with his repaired knee, then leaning back into the warm water with a sigh. He hesitated, then pulled her back, wanting her against his chest.
Wren gave him time to get settled, then she very happily went to curl in against him, head against his chest so she could listen to his heart, his breathing. She stayed quiet as her eyes fell shut and she simply allowed the heat of the water to sink into her form, curling around her bones. Eventually, however, she spoke. “Tell me about your day,” she requested. “Or anything you’ve been doing since last I saw you.”
Samson let himself trace his fingers over her shoulder then down her arm to link their fingers together. “I was trying to come up with reasons to come see you. And checking in on Epiphany. She was upset with me. And herself. It’s complicated.”
She smiled at the idea of him trying to come up with a reason to see her. “Come any time you wish to see me, I will never have a closed door to you,” she promised. Then she considered the rest, a light frown flickering over her features. “Why was she upset with you and herself?” she asked. “Perhaps talking it out would be helpful,” she suggested.
“I wasn’t sure if the invitation was extended for that yet,” Samson admitted. “I didn’t know if you’d want to see me again.” He pushed her hair out of the way and kissed her neck, working his way down her shoulder. “I go off grid when I’m here. And it worries Epiphany when she can’t see me.” He twisted a bit of Wren’s hair around his fingers. “What would your people think of me, if they were still here? Of us?” It was answering her question with a question, but he had to wonder if she’d understand where he was coming from better than anyone else.
“It is,” she clarified for him. She didn’t want him thinking he would ever be unwelcome, or hesitating on coming to visit her. She wanted him coming in her direction any time his heart desired. When he kissed her neck, her eyes drifted shut and she drew in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “Does she not know faith?” she asked, curious. “Those I let out into the world with direction I offer to them, their fate is in their hands. I have faith they can make it through, and if they need me again they can return. Does she need to know everything, see it with her own eyes constantly?” It sounded suffocating.
When he asked the last question, she shook her head. “You never would have been allowed to be alone with me for long,” she shared. “You’d be forbidden, and if any indication was made that you were interested in anything with me, and vice versa, you’d be taken away and barred from returning. She shifted a little so she could look back up at him. “And if Alistair was here right now, he’d kill you.”
“She does, but...her people don’t leave. And me leaving the grid, me...abandoning the technology in a sense, that goes against her faith.” Samson kissed her shoulder, her neck, gently things as he lavished on her skin. “Her eyes are the screens,” he explained.
He hooked his fingers with hers, rubbing his thumb over hers for a moment. That was a little upsetting, but in a way, he got it. “It’s similar to her situation,” he said softly. “She might have found someone, like I am for you, but her happiness upsets her people. And she has to choose if she’d rather be their prophet or be happy. And I’m sure if your people were still...if he was still here, you’d not be allowed to be with me, no matter how much you want to.”
“Seems...invasive to me. Untrusting,” she said. But she didn’t sound like she was knocking it, per se, more she was just putting together her idea of something foreign to her. “How do you feel about being outside of her watchful gaze?” That was most important.
“She gets a choice, though?” she asked. She wouldn’t have. Not with Alistair around, who most certainly ruled her entire world. “I would certainly not be able. And I know if I tried to run, he’d find me, bring me back. There was a brief time in the past where I wanted to venture out into the city. I didn’t even make it to the edge of the park before he found me and took me back. Everything in my life came at his approval.”
“She’s still not happy I moved above ground. I think it reassures her to be able to check in on me.” Samson considered her question. “I like being here with you. And I’m not sure I want to share this with her.” He hadn’t wanted to tell her when she asked, that much he was sure of.
He shook his head. “Not really. She broke the rules in a sense. She let an outsider in and even more so into her bed. Our people are unhappy. And she’s more theirs than her own person.” It made Samson sigh just thinking about it. “She doesn’t have an owner, she belongs to all of them, but that might be worse. If she tries to make a decision for herself, the greater good sees it as a reason to panic.” He squeezed her hand. “So like you, she will sacrifice her own happiness for their flawed beliefs.”
It was a real struggle for her to try and understand it, and it bothered her that she realized that she simply didn’t. This was something that was between them, something that was normal for them, a part of their lives, and she couldn’t make it line up in her head. But it wasn’t her place to do so, either. It wasn’t her business.
“I don’t wish to be shared,” she murmured, because that idea she was on board with. Him not making whatever they had something a third party was privy to. Wren didn’t want someone spying on her when she could do nothing to stop it. It seemed to be misconduct to her. She took a minute to answer the rest, however. “So she’s at the top of the pyramid, but the foundation shakes when she goes against their ideals,” she assessed. “What will happen if she does not appease them?”
“I couldn’t bear to share you even if you wanted.” Though he meant more than just with Epiphany. Samson couldn’t see himself standing another person in her life like they were now. He could see why Alistar had been so drawn to keep her to himself.
“I don’t know what will happen. Something. But it’s never happened before.”
She smiled at that. Seemed they were in agreement then. She shifted to press a kiss to the underside of his jaw, letting herself taste his skin just a little. “Then you are living in interesting times,” she observed. “I do hope she will be alright. Let me know if there’s anything I can to do be of service.” She thought about it. “I could see what the cards say,” she offered.
When she kissed him, he threaded fingers through her hair to keep her close to him. “I suppose I am. Though I like this part of my interesting times.” He kissed her softly, enjoying that. “You could. I’m not sure how they would do with her in mind.”
Wren nodded, and kissed him back, before she was shifting around, more to face him so she could kiss down his chest. “We can find out,” she suggested. But that would be after. Right now she had no fortune telling to do. She had nothing in her fate but the next few moments with him, and she planned to make them memorable.
They could, but he was following her train of thought at the moment and without any effort on his part, Epiphany was forgotten and all that existed for him was Wren. His hands trailed over her shoulders, down her back, then back up her arms, reveling in the feel of her skin under his fingers. She was soft in all the places he knew he was rough and it made him hope she could smooth his sharp edges away.