His sweater rode up a little, showing me the lower curve of a slightly rounded belly and a line of green descending from his navel into his jeans. Almost like a happy trail, but not one made of hair.

I jerked my gaze away when my skin grew warm, standing up after him and smoothing down my wrinkled shirt. After helping Greid blow out all the candles, we went into the hallway. He’d lit all the candles out here when he answered the door to get our food, so soft, warm light glowed over the dark walls and up the twisting staircase.

It felt oddly intimate in a way that made my breath catch, especially as Greid followed me instead of immediately retreating into his bedroom. I realised why when he asked, “Do you want some water for bed?”

“Oh.” I stopped at the foot of the stairs. “Yeah, that’s probably a good idea. The burger and fries were really salty.”

Now that I was up, my bladder was shrieking in protest from the gallon of soda I’d drunk over the course of the evening. I followed Greid into the kitchen and politely thanked him when he filled a glass with water and handed it to me.

“Oh, hold on,” Greid said as we went back into the hall. “I have something for you.”

I watched as he ambled over to the console table by the front door and pulled open its long drawer. Retrieving a big brown envelope, he carried it over and held it out.

“The old man gave me this.” His lip curled with disdain as he glanced at it. “He told me what was in it. I haven’t opened it. Obviously.”

It was my medical record. I slowly took it from him, seeing that it was still tightly sealed. Abruptly, my eyes got a little hot, so I kept my head bent. Now I really wanted to hug him, but I refrained. We weren’t there yet, but I was confident we’d get there eventually.

Honestly, he already felt like a friend. I hadn’t ever had a true friend in my life—one who actually knew me. And even though Greid technically didn’t know me yet, it… felt like he did.

Maybe I just didn’t have enough of a personality to be a deep well of humanity to discover. Maybe I was as beige as the house I’d spent most of my life in. That was kind of depressing to consider.

“Thanks, Greid,” I said, my voice thick.

“Sure.” He shifted a little, half in shadows in the dim candlelight, then huffed. “Look, I know you’re a grown adult, but I just wanted to… Um, it might be weird for you to sleep in a new room and with, you know, city noise outside. So I just wanted to say that if you get freaked or can’t sleep, come and knock for me. Or go and watch TV in the living room or whatever. It won’t disturb me. But I’ll be happy to keep you company, Beryl. Whatever the time.”

God, he was so fucking nice. He was a total sweetheart, and I was hit with an overwhelming wave of gratitude toward him. Clutching my water and the big envelope so I didn’t throw myself at him in a hug, I nodded.

“Thank you.” Lifting my head to give him a smile, I said, “You’re a sweet guy, Greid.”

His ears fluttered wildly. “Shut up,” he grumbled, which made me laugh. “Well, um, goodnight, Beryl,” he said shyly. “I hope tonight was—Sorry if it was really boring.”

“It wasn’t. It was perfect. Thank you for dinner.”

“That’s okay,” he mumbled, ducking his head as he turned to walk to his bedroom door. “Night.”

“Goodnight, Greid.” I didn’t move until he’d closed his bedroom door, then I blew out all the candles in the front hall before making my way up the stairs, extinguishing each one in the wall sconces as I went.

I noticed he’d lit them all the way up to the third floor for me, which made me smile. And made my chest get a little tight. After feeling for the door handle, I opened my bedroom door and was met with the soft warmth spilling from the lamp I’d turned on earlier. The room looked even cosier at night. Shadows filled the corners, but I didn’t mind it.

After setting the glass on the bedside table and shoving the envelope in a drawer, I hurried to the bathroom to pee. As I brushed my teeth, I wandered back into the bedroom to draw the curtains, then stripped off my clothes and stuffed them in the empty laundry hamper.

By the time I was climbing into bed with clean pyjamas on, I could barely keep my eyes open. The sheets were cold at first, but the fabric warmed up quickly as I settled under the thick comforter. My gut tightened when hints of Greid’s scent drifted into my nose. Whatever laundry products he used smelled really good, and nothing like the smell of all our sheets and clothes in the compound.

Just as he’d shrewdly guessed, I had been worried that I’d panic when I was alone in a new bed with the sounds of the city drifting in through the open window. But I was too tired and full to be freaked out, and the memory of Greid’s snorting laughter and quiet voice played on a loop in my head as I drifted off to sleep.

OceanofPDF.com

Chapter Fifteen

Beryl

It took me a few seconds to work out where I was when I woke up.

My stomach still felt uncomfortably full as I rolled over and gazed blearily at the little clock on the nightstand. 7 a.m. It seemed some cult habits would be harder to break, even though I was dog-tired.

I knew I wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep, and I could hear the city already awake beyond my window. Excitement made me push back the warm covers and slide out of bed. My first proper day out of the cult. What would I do? Would I be brave enough to go wandering on my own while Greid had to work?

I took a shower in the gigantic rainfall enclosure, then stood in front of the wardrobe staring at my clothes. Just rows of pale coloured shirts and flowy pants.

You’ll be able to buy whatever you want once you have a job. I pulled some out and got dressed. Of course I couldn’t change everything at once. Some things would take time, and I wasn’t going to accept handouts from Greid to speed the process along. That wasn’t fair, and it wasn’t what I wanted.

I hadn’t washed my hair, so I gave it a quick brush before doing my skincare. Then, belly jumping with excited nerves, I left my bedroom and went downstairs. As I reached the bottom step, I heard a sound in the kitchen, so I headed that way to find a very, very tired and grumpy-looking Greid standing at the open fridge, wearing—

“Is that a tent?” I asked, staring at the huge fall of soft, dark fabric covering him all the way to his ankles. It had sleeves. And a hood, which was pulled up over his head.

Greid froze with a spoonful of yoghurt halfway to his mouth. He cleared his throat and narrowed his eyes at me. “It’s not a tent. It’s a… It’s just a blanket onesie thing.”

My mouth twitched as I took a step closer and cocked my head. “I thought onesies had legs as well. That’s just a tent. I could literally sleep comfortably under there, it’s so huge.”

Greid’s face spikes went crazy at that, and I suddenly wondered if—shit, maybe he didn’t have anything on under there. Thick white socks covered his feet, and I thought I could see a hint of grey sweat cuffs peeking out from under the tent, but…

Then I suddenly wondered, was he comfortable enough with me yet for any kind of teasing? Immediately feeling guilty, I said, “Sorry, I was just joking. It looks super comfortable. I kind of want one.”

Greid grunted and shovelled the yoghurt into his mouth, then closed the fridge and dumped the pot in the trash.

“How come you’re up?” I asked, sidling over to the butcher’s block and watching as he rummaged through a cabinet. “I thought you said you usually slept in late.”

“I didn’t want you to wake up and feel all weirded out.” He sounded so disgruntled that I couldn’t help but smile. Greid was not a morning person. “Fuck. I’ve run out of coffee.”