Chapter Ten

The next morning when Ray woke up, his left arm was asleep, but he didn't want to move. Neela was still sound asleep, having not moved at all. He sighed lightly and kissed the top of her head. Her hair still smelled of her floral shampoo from her shower the night before. "When did the world get so perfect?"

Neela shifted next to him, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Mmm." She moaned without opening her eyes. "Ray?"

"Yeah?"

"How long have you been awake?"

"Not long at all."

"Is it breakfast time?"

Ray laughed. "Sure. You want just cereal or want me to whip up some eggs?"

"Cereal's fine." Neela finally opened her eyes but didn't move. It felt so right to be in Ray's arms; she felt safe.

"Okay, you stay here." Ray reluctantly sat up and crawled off the couch, leaving Neela under the blanket. "I'll be back in a minute."

Neela sighed. "Are you off today?"

"No, I'm on five to two, unfortunately. You?" He said walking back over to the couch with two bowls of cereal.

"One to midnight." Neela sat up, running her hand through her messy hair before accepting the bowl. "Thanks. What time is it?"

"Almost noon."

Neela made a face. "I slept late. Was the movie good?"

"Yeah, scary." Ray replied, "I guess Brett was right for once. Hey, I have tomorrow off. I was thinking about going to this new club, it's called The Complex. You interested? I was gunna see if Abby and Luka wanted to go too."

"Um, sure." Neela nodded. "I'll talk to Abby when I go in. We work the same shift."

Ray nodded. "Want some more?"

Neela looked down at her empty cereal bowl before shaking her head. "I need to go wash up before I leave."

Smiling, Ray leaned over and let his lips brush hers. "You have plenty of time."

Neela fell back onto the couch, dropping her bowl on the rug on the way, Ray following her actions. The kiss grew deeper and deeper as Ray slid his hands under her shirt. He felt Neela tense up and started to pull away.

"Neela?" His hazel eyes full of concern.

Neela nodded. "It's okay." Her voice was barely louder than a whisper.

Ray hesitated, to be sure, but then covered her mouth with his. It wasn't long before both their shirts found their way to the floor. After a few minutes, Ray started getting antsy and reached for the waistband of Neela's shorts.

"Mmm, Ray…" Neela pulled away. "I can't… not that, not now."

"What?" Ray was confused. "I thought…?"

"Can we just go… I don't know, step by step, I guess?"

"Yeah, sure, Neela, we don't have to do anything you aren't comfortable with." Ray told her.

"I'm sorry to put you through this, but I just don't want to regret going through this too fast."

"It's all right, Neel. We'll go at your speed. You just let me know." He kissed her nose lightly. "You better get ready for work. You've only got forty-five minutes."

"Bloody hell." Neela muttered, scrambling off the couch and into the bathroom to quickly wash up.

After a minute, Ray heard the water turn off and Neela run down the hall to her bedroom.

"Shit, Ray! Where are my sneakers?" Obviously flustered, Neela came out of her room, dressed in blue scrubs.

"By the door." He replied with a laugh.

"Thanks." She quickly slid them on, pulled her coat on, and sat down on the couch. "Sorry to rush out." She kissed him quickly and stood back up. "I'll see you at five." And with that, she ran out the door and to the El stop.

Ray just shook his head and laughed. "What a crazy girl."