The Four Stages of Loving Dutch Owen - Debra Kayn Page 0,70

PERMEATED the darkness. Dutch opened his eyes, listening for the sound that woke him up.

Against his side, Marla Marie twitched. He raised his head as she cried out.

He turned to his side without displacing her and rubbed her back, hoping to soothe her back to sleep.

She jolted at his touch, sitting up in bed. He caught her hand. "Hey, you're dreaming."

She sniffled, inhaling a shaky breath. He sat up with her. "Do you want me to turn on the light?"

"No." She buried herself on his chest.

He grabbed the pillow and shoved it under his head, and wrapped his arms around her. Stroking her head, he stared straight up at the ceiling, trying to focus in the dark.

She fidgeted. He gave her several minutes to calm down, so she could sleep, but she kept moving.

"Want to talk about it?" he asked.

"No." She sat up and slipped out of bed.

He got up and flipped on the overhead light. Marla Marie left the room naked. He followed her into the kitchen.

She opened the fridge, stared at the contents, and then shut the door.

"Marla Marie?" He held out his hand. "Let's go back to bed. It's four o'clock in the morning."

She slipped her fingers into his palm and went with him back to the bedroom. He waited until she'd settled on the bed and covered her up before he shut off the light and joined her.

Snuggled up against him, she fell asleep. But her odd behavior continued to bother him.

He stayed awake until the sun came in the window. Slipping out of bed, he grabbed his jeans and went to make coffee.

In the kitchen, he rubbed his hand over his head. He knew everything about Marla Marie but having her dreams cause her pain bothered him.

He wanted to know what happened in her thoughts. She'd always had an irrational fear of him leaving her. While he was in prison, she'd suffered alone. But he was here now.

If she held on to any worries, he could help calm her enough to sleep.

When the coffee finished dripping into the pot, Marla Marie walked out of the bedroom with a blanket wrapped around her.

She kept walking until she reached him and leaned against his bare chest. The warmth from her sleepy body penetrated the early morning chill. He tipped her face and kissed her softly.

She blinked her eyes open and smiled. "Morning."

"Mm-hm." He ran his hands through her hair, pushing the strands down her back. "Want some coffee?"

"Sure." She yawned, not moving away from him. "I have to work tonight."

"There's a club meeting this afternoon. I'm going to sit down with them. Afterward, I'm going to see if someone has a truck I can borrow."

"What for?"

"We need a lawnmower. The grass in the yard is past my knees."

She continued to study him. "Are you thinking about changing chapters?"

"Thinking about it."

She raised her brows.

He waited for her to comment, and when she refrained from saying anything, he said, "What do you think? Should I make the move permanent?"

"Well..." She moved away and turned around to grab two coffee mugs they were now in possession of, thanks to borrowing one from the pool hall. "If you want."

She glanced over her shoulder, biting her lip to contain how much the news made her happy. He winked. Though he would decide on his own, he understood what the idea of him wearing a Moses Lake Chapter patch meant to her.

It was a sign that he planned to stay.

She poured them each a cup of coffee and handed him one. He took a drink and lit a cigarette.

"You got up early." She eyed him over her mug, holding the blanket around her with one hand. "I didn't even feel you move out of bed."

"You were sleeping hard." He paused. "What was going on with you last night...this morning?"

She shrugged and took another drink before meeting his gaze. "Just dreaming."

"About?"

She shook her head. "I can't remember."

He pulled the ashtray closer, flicking his ashes in the small glass dish. Forcing her to talk about what had scared her could make it worse for her tonight when she got into bed and tried to sleep, so he let it slide.

The blanket slipped, baring her breast. He took in her nipple, all rosy red from him sucking on it last night after they got home from the pool hall. He wondered if there were other parts of her the same color.

"Turn around, Marla Marie," he said softly.

She slowly turned. He stubbed his cigarette out and took