Hey sorry there was more of a delay than i planned on. I worked some extra hours this week so I've either gone or beat when I am home. =(
But now here's an update - cahpter 23 is here! Enjoy
TIME
I was made to believe Id never love somebody else
I made a plan, stay the man who can only love himself
Lonely was the song I sang, 'til you came
'Half of My Heart' by John Mayer
_
"What're you doin'?" Billy muttered.
Natalie was laying on top of him and had just pulled the sheet from where it was draped around her waist to tuck up over there heads.
"It's bright out," she explained, referencing the fact that even though it was morning the sun was bright off of the snow.
"The sheets white; light's getting' though," he informed her, though he didn't care; he'd let her do whatever the hell she wanted - starting the day off with some morning sex usually put in him a more favorable mood.
Natalie shrugged, though this was true; his bed consisted of white sheets, a thin black blanket, and a black comforter. She grazed her teeth over his nipple for questioning her decision and he grunted softly, squeezing her side. She just chuckled and propped herself up on elbows to look down at him.
Sun may be getting through the sheet but it was muted and fell across his face lightly. She dropped a kiss to his mouth and just kept watching his face. He was relaxed - as relaxed as he could manage while awake - and she liked it.
"What?" he questioned her, hands skimming along her back contentedly.
She shrugged and traced part of the tattoo on his shoulder for a moment.
"…don't you wish we could just always stay like this?" she sighed.
"What, naked? Hell yes," he smirked.
"Not that, just…here. Just us, away from everything."
He made a semi-agreeable face and nodded a little.
"What're you sayin'?"
"Nothing…just that it's nice. No gang…no parents…no school for me. It's peaceful…relaxing. Like our own little world for a little bit…"
He nodded more fully now, seeing what she was getting at. Like a little sanctuary, he could relax when they were alone and just…well, just be. She allowed it, drew him out. It was like there own little bubble, like nothing else existed for a while…but the bubble was easily breakable. You can't shut out the world for long, not in his life.
"What time's it?" she murmured after a few quiet minutes.
"…10:30," Billy informed her, raising a hand to tug part of the sheet down. "You gotta get to the library?"
"…I want to stay here," she sighed, turning her face into his chest.
"Go ahead," he chuckled.
"I can't," she groaned.
It was exam week; she didn't have all day to waste, though she certainly wished.
Billy threw the sheet away to get her started, smirking as her naked form was exposed. She sighed exaggeratedly but climbed out of bed to throw on clothes. She watched Billy do the same, straightening his shoulders and checking his phone - his peace and relaxation slowly fading away as he prepared himself for the day.
"Hey," she cut him off when he reached for the door, stepping in front of him. "I love you."
He grinned and dipped to kiss her softly, planting his hands on the door to either side of her.
"You could say it you know," she teased; she knew he'd rather show it than say it but it was nice to hear sometimes.
"You know I do," he grumbled in her ear.
She nodded and kissed him before getting the door for them. He caught the hem of her shirt and pulled her backwards into his chest when she stepped out.
"I love you," he growled in her ear, biting her neck lightly before letting her go.
He liked that she didn't whine and nag him about his shows of affection, which interestingly made him more prone to give-in to what he knew she quietly wanted.
Natalie smiled and waved good morning to Joe and slipped into the bathroom.
It had been a few days now that Joe had been out and she still liked him a lot; she was fairly confident the feeling was mutual. She'd found that he and Billy had a lot of the same physical mannerisms, but their personalities weren't very similar; though she loved Billy, she was thankful for this because two of him would be too much.
When she got back out Joe had moved from the couch to the table and Billy was rummaging around in the cupboards.
"So are you not making breakfast," Joe pouted.
"Nope. No time, and I'm not your maid"
"Ain't askin for a maid; I'm asking for a chef
Billy snorted at that, dropping boxes of cereal onto the table and then milk - milk could always be trusted to not be expired around here these days.
"Well I'm not that, either, smartass," she flicked his ear.
"Hey," he grabbed her wrist and kicked her leg lightly.
Thus ensued some kind of sibling-like roughhousing, which Billy merely rolled his eyes at. He allowed it, though, because Joe was Joe - he could be trusted to hold back appropriately.
"Alright, alright. Cut the shit," he finally shook his head when stools started to teeter dangerously. "Christ…"
They both laughed but did stop and Natalie kissed Billy's cheek and poured herself some cereal.
"Wheaties? …big fuckin' surprise," Joe chortled.
"I know, right," Billy snorted, feeling in line with that comment.
"…what?" Natalie looked between the brothers.
"All-American college sweetheart eating her breakfast of champions," Joe explained, waving at her bowl.
"What's that even supposed to mean?"
"Ain't nothing' bad, just a joke," Joe shrugged.
Natalie frowned, unsure if she'd be eating Wheaties with them again, and grabbed the cigarette Joe had just lit and stubbed it into the ashtray.
"Hey - bitch," Joe groaned.
"Watch your mouth," Billy warned in a bored tone, digging into his own cereal.
Joe only grumbled and got a new light.
"So, I think Paige and I are going to get our own place sometimes this semester. Just some little apartment," Natalie happily informed, pleased with their planning.
"What?"' Billy rose an eyebrow.
"Yeah, we've been talking about it and it'll work. We found a place"
"Found a place?…where at?"
"Right by - what?" she frowned, catching Billy's less-than-pleased look..
"Nothin'; I just didn't know you'd planned on movin' out," Billy shrugged. "…why don't ya just move back in here?"
Joe pretended not to pay attention but his eyes widened. His big brother was asking a chick to move-in - he internally smiled.
"Well…I just don't want to go from living off my parents to living off you. I want my own place for a while, ya know?"
"Ya don't fuckin' live off me," Billy scoffed.
"C'mon, you know what I mean," Natalie sighed, turning fully in her seat to face him. "Besides, I know you like having a place to stay to get away from everything sometimes…"
Billy said nothing - he couldn't deny that.
"…and now you don't have to sneak in the window.
He gave a curt nod to that and rubbed his chin.
"Can you two afford a safe place?"
"Yes," Natalie chuckled. "We found nice apartments near the campus that are reasonable prices cuz they're right by a bunch of students. I have money saved from summer jobs and I'll get a job to keep up."
"Where you gonna work?" Billy not questioned, trying to get all the details.
"Well I thought you and Joe could show me how to sell drugs…"
Joe choked on his milk and Billy pinned her with a severe look.
"Whoa, I'm kidding," she assured him quickly. "Of course I'm joking. My Aunt said I could do work at her office - filing and answer phones and stuff."
Billy nodded at her real, acceptable answer.
"So you've had a job before?" Joe commented.
"Yes I've had jobs before," she rolled her eyes.
"Why? You're family's pretty loaded."
"So? They help me with stuff, but that doesn't mean having my own money for my own stuff isn't nice."
He conceded to this and she turned back to Billy.
"Are you upset? Sorry about the bad joke," she offered.
He shrugged if off; he supposed it was funny now….actually the visual was ridiculous - not that he'd actually ever let it happen.
"Are you mad me and Paige are getting a place?" she asked him seriously.
"…just surprised," he decided. "Ya moved back in with your parents just to move back out…"
"I'm thinking it's probably a good time to…get some more independence since it looks like I'm stuck on a plateau until I get away from my dad," she rolled her eyes. "Look, babe, it's not that I don't love that you offered I could stay here - I do. This'll give us both places to get away to…you know, if you're upset you can come over and I can come over to get away. You'll always be welcome over.."
He nodded and waved away her need to explain.
"Alright"
She quickly finished the last of her cereal and went to go take a shower.
"Babe, I love that you offered," Joe crooned with a grin.
"Watch it," Billy pointed at him from where he was perched on the stool lighting a cigarette. "But speakin' of work…"
"Yeah?" Joe coaxed him.
"We haven't talked about what you're gonna be doin'…I'm assuin' you still want in, yeah?"
"The fuck kind of question is that? You know I do," Joe threw his hands up. "The hell did I get locked up for if I didn't!"
"Okay - keep it down," Billy settled him.
He glanced at the bathroom door but the water was running so they were good.
"I just needed to check, geeze. Now don't bitch, but you know I'm startin' ya light for a while; the last thing I want is you getting' picked up on a parole violation."
"Yeah yeah"
"I ain't shittin' with you, Joe," Billy told him sternly. "They'll be hard on ya, especially at first, so ya need to watch yourself."
"Okay, so what am I doin'?"
"…I need you to sortta keep an eye on Natalie between helping' at The Office," Billy informed him.
"Sortta keep an eye on her…what ya worried about, Riley and those fucks?"
"Nah, I think we run that problem outta town…it's Bones"
"Huh?"
"He's hinting he knows I got some girl…I don' know why he gives a rat's ass but I don't like it."
"Damn…"
"Yeah, so I just want you following' her a bit, ya know?"
"…ain't that what her old man's kindda doin'?" Joe frowned; he didn't want Natalie mad at him.
"No! I ain't askin' you to spy, Joe; just make sure Bones ain't around. I'd tell her but she already had to worry about Ethan and his halfwit friends, so I don't want her worryin' about this, too. Not if I don't know if there's even a reason to."
"M'kay," Joe nodded slowly.
"What's your problem?"
"I dunno; I just feel kindda bad is all"
Billy rolled his eyes in annoyance at his brother. It was simple, so what the fuck?
"Ya feel bad about, what, helping me keep her safe?" Billy narrowed his eyes.
"What? No, that's not it! Don't accuse me like that," Joe rolled his eyes.
"Look, it's not a big deal. You feel bad tailin' her, then just hang out with her, alright? If she says she's running off somewhere, tag along or somethin' if she doesn't mind," Billy simplified for him.
"Alright, yeah; Billy, don't worry. I can do that. I'll hold it down for ya," Joe assured him.
"I know you will," Billy nodded, clapping him on the shoulder fondly. "Thanks."
"You got it, man. So…babysitting and weighing out drugs, that's me for now?"
"Don't call it babysitting, but yeah…that's you. Just for now, bro; don't worry. We'll just give your PO time to get swamped and focus on somebody else."
"I get it," Joe nodded.
"And you really are helpin' me out in a big way"
"I know…gotta keep little Shepherd around for ya. And you told me you weren't gone over anyone," Joe snorted.
"Shut the fuck up"
"What?" Joe laughed. "Don't worry; it's adorable," he joked, patting Billy on the head.
Billy slapped his hand away with a grunt.
"No, seriously; what? What's so wrong with it?"
"Nothing's wrong with it, but I don't need ya hasslin' me about it. Got it from Bones last night; I don't wanna hear it."
"Whoa," Joe defended himself; holding up his hands. "I don't mean anything by it, not like him. I think it's great; she seems great."
Billy nodded, staring forward at the wall as he sucked on his cigarette.
"She is"
"And you thought I was weird for wanting a girl," Joe smirked.
"Yeah, well…she ain't most girls," Billy shrugged.
She certainly wasn't like girls he knew, who were always backhanded and always wanted something.
He heard the shower turn off and then Natalie took a while getting around. She dressed, dried her hair and muddled around. When she came to join them again they were sprawled on the couch getting ready to head out to The Office.
"So whattcha doin' now?" Joe asked when she approached and stood behind the couch, caressing Billy's scalp.
"Hiding in the library," she chuckled, trying not to get too stressed. "I have a final paper to finish and tests to study for."
"Sucks to be you," he snickered.
"Yeah, I don't want to go," she sighed.
"You're almost done," Billy reminded her; he'd found that telling her to blow of exam studying only got him a mini-lecture about how she had to make herself because it was important.
"Mmmhmm," she sighed, leaning forward to nuzzle his neck. "What're you guys doing today?"
"Work," he answered simply. "How long are you gonna be hittin' the books?"
"I don't know. Probably for quite a while and I'll probably go home after"
"Ah, why bother?"
"I'll probably study a little more tonight and I have to get up early for my test"
"You can do that here"
"I shouldn't. I have to make sure I get good sleep -"
"You can do that here, too"
"- and get up early. I don't want to wake you up or get kept up if the guys come over."
"You know I'd kick 'em out, but whatever gets you through the next few days without losing it is fine by me"
"I'm not losing it," she scoffed, straightening up to go get her things to go.
She came back, kissed Billy, and waved to Joe. Once she was on campus she holed up in the library at a table on the top floor. She ventured out for lunch with Joel, and then was back at it for a couple hours. She went home and had dinner with her parents, then. Vince was there, too, so she hung around with him for a while before going to her room to finish a paper and then finally take time to relax before bed.
Natalie curled up on her bed watching TV, taking time to not think through her school work so that she'd actually be able to sleep. She was almost getting ready for her self-imposed bedtime when her phone rang; she smiled to see Billy's name flashing.
"Hey"
"Hey yourself. Whattcha doin'?"
"Watching TV and I'm going to bed soon"
"Already? Damn."
"My exam is at 8:00am"
"…ya never have class that early," she could practically hear his frown.
"Exam schedule isn't like the normal course schedule"
"…fuckin' weird."
"What're you doing?" she smiled.
"Just got back to the apartment; we were out gettin' Joe a tatt"
"He wanted another one?" Natalie chuckled; he already had various tattoos scattered about.
"Nah, the tattoo"
"Hmm?….oh," she stopped her question, realizing he meant that Joe finally got a tattoo formally symbolizing his gang affiliation.
"Yeah. Oh," he chuckled.
"…I'm glad you guys had fun," was all she could really say to that.
"Yeah we had a few drinks to celebrate"
"Jealous," Natalie groaned; she couldn't wait to relax again since she'd been uptight the last few days.
"Quit worryin; you're done studyin'."
"For now, yeah…" she sighed.
"Fuck; you studyin' all day tomorrow, too?" he muttered darkly over the line.
"No," she chuckled. "No, I'm not as worried about my other exams as I am this one…plus I had that paper. Why - you miss me?" she smirked to herself, feeling a little pleased with the idea.
"Yeah, I want ya here"
"…why, because you're horny?" she snorted, flicking channels on her muted TV.
"The fuck kindda question is that?" he snapped. "You know I just like having you with me…," he muttered.
"I know - sorry. Is something wrong?"
"Nah - Tommy, what?"
It went quiet on the other end of a few minutes before he uncovered the received her again, cursing under his breath.
"Do you have to go?" Natalie asked understandingly.
"No, he's just being an idiot - came in to see if we were having phone sex," he snorted.
"Oh…so are you going to ask me what I'm wearing?' she laughed.
"…is it something interesting?" he felt compelled to ask just in case.
"No," she yawned, stretching where she was laying.
"Alright I'll let ya go. Come over after your test"
"I will. Bye"
"Later"
Natalie rolled out of bed to get ready to sleep, washing up in the bathroom before changing and crawling into bed. She wasn't really one to get overly anxious about tests, but Genetics was probably the hardest class she'd taken yet and she was pretty antsy about it, so much so that she didn't sleep well.
She didn't feel better until after she was done with the exam; at that point, there was nothing worth worrying about because she couldn't change it. That was here only test of the day so she headed over to Billy's, and she wasn't surprised when she let herself into a silent apartment. Quietly, she set her things down and eased Billy's door open. He was sprawled on his stomach taking up a good majority of the bed with his face on her pillow. She left her shoes on the floor, shed her coat, and softly crawled onto the bed.
"Hi," she whispered with a soft smile when his eyes snapped open.
He made a sleepy sort of noise and curled his arm around her and pulled her towards him where he was laying. They didn't talk just then; Billy closed his eyes again and Natalie cuddled in, securing the blankets up over her shoulders.
A few hours later they were both awake and she kissed his chin, torn between hunkering back in for sleep and getting up to get some work done.
"How'd the test go? Kick it's ass?" he asked, voice groggy.
"Jury's still out"
"At least you can relax"
"No, not until all the tests are over," she shook her head tiredly.
He hummed to let her know he heard but didn't have a comment - hell if he knew what it was like to care about grades. So instead of empathy he twisted out from beside her to sit up and nudge her to lay properly on her stomach. He straddled her waist and massaged her shoulders and back.
"Shit…that feels so good," she told him with a contented smile.
"Good"
He continued for quite some time and it both relaxed her and woke her up; she felt a little readier for the day as her body loosened.
"Billy, can I ask you something? I was thinking about it the other day when you were talking about Heco…" she ventured.
"Oh, this is gonna be great," he scoffed. "Go ahead."
"You don't do drugs, do you? I mean, I feel like I would've noticed by now but I just wanted to ask…"
"No, I don't mess with that shit. I used to, when I was younger but never serious enough to get hooked hard. Can't keep an eye on everyone and run shit if ya can't think straight."
"Good," Natalie nodded.
"Yeah…most of the guys dabble but sometimes Heco can't keep his shit together," he muttered, trying not to get upset thinking about him.
Natalie hummed her acknowledgement of his comment and he ducked to kiss her shoulder before getting off the bed.
The massage helped but didn't stop Natalie from getting anxious for her other tests as well. She didn't get to truly unwind till they were over at the end of the week, which was a cause for celebration. She went to dinner with Paige and some other friends from school, but promised to meet Billy and everyone at the bar afterwards.
So it was happily that she entered the bar and shed her coat, ordering drinks at the bar with Paige. She waved over to Billy while they waited and he raised his beer in greeting before looking back to the game of cards he had going with the guys. She wore black leather boots which reached over her jeans and a thin, V-neck sweater; she was in a good mood and, well, she was ready to have a few drinks…or more.
"Hey guys"
"Sup college girls; whattch gonna do with three free weeks?" Heco laughed.
"We'll find something to do, I'm sure," Paige shrugged. "Joe, I heard you got inked; let's see!"
Joe smirked and got up, peeling up the back of his shirt to show the tribal tattoos spanning his shoulder blades and partway down his back; Natalie knew they curled up onto his shoulders, too.
"Finished or getting some more later?" Paige asked after nodding in approval of the artwork.
"Probably get more added on later," he shrugged, dropping into his seat again.
Natalie and Paige left the boys to play and they sat up at the bar for a while before making their presence known with the guys again.
"We had to sit by ourselves with a bunch of old boozers cuz you wouldn't pay any attention," Paige laughed, sitting herself in Baggy's lap.
He ignored the comment and pulled her into a kiss.
Natalie was about to sit with Billy when Bodie and Angela finally showed up, and she stayed standing to give Angela a hug instead.
"I'm so glad you're done," Angela laughed. "You were so frickin' antsy about your test last night when we stopped over; c'mon, I'm getting you a shot."
Natalie let herself be led back to the bar and Billy decided not to be annoyed; she was going to be free for weeks and, effectively, all his.
Natalie got pretty drunk relatively quickly and was rather enjoying herself. She, Paige, and Angela sat at their own little nearby table for a while as to not crowd the boys' too much, talking and laughing over their drinks.
"Wanna dance?" Tommy asked, stumbling into Natalie when she got up to finally make her way to Billy again and hopefully actually settle in to sit with him.
"Not with you she don't," Billy answered for her, pushing Tommy aside - Tommy hardly seemed troubled and wandered off.
"Hey babe," she smiled dazedly, sliding her arms around his middle.
"Hey lush," he teased, dropping his head to kiss her.
"Don't make fun; I get to relax. It feels good," she smiled, eyes somewhat glassy.
"Oh I bet you feel good; let me get you a drink…everyone else has"
He guided her to the bar and they each had a shot. Natalie leaned into him and kissed his neck, nipping his throat lightly.
"Aw, no PDA at the bar; you're scaring away customers," Sammy laughed.
They ignored him and went off to the back table again, sticking around for another hour or so.
"We're heading out Joe; if ya want a ride, grab your shit," Billy ordered, standing with Natalie at his side.
Joe hopped up and grabbed his coat, shrugging it on to follow them. Natalie wasn't exactly walking straight and held onto Billy's arm to keep it less noticeable. There was one step outside the door of the bar and Natalie stopped, staring at it for a few long moment, much to the brothers' amusement.
"It's cement, Nat; I don't think you can stare it down," Joe teased her.
She huffed at him and took the step carefully, still holding Billy's hand. She held it loosely now, the tips of their fingers playing over each other before he squeezed her hand tighter and guided her in the right direction when she just continued walking down the sidewalk.
"Mmmm, sorry," she murmured, swinging their hands now.
"For what?" he rose an eyebrow.
"Drinking this much…are you mad?"
"Why the hell what I be mad?" he asked with a short bark of a laugh, as if he hadn't gotten far more shit-faced than she was right now.
She shrugged and walked carefully on the slight heel of her boots.
"In you go, Joey," she gestured grandly, opening the passenger door of the car for him.
He just agreed and climbed into the back. The short drive was quiet and they stepped into the elevator once they got to the apartment since Natalie wasn't going to bother with the stairs.
"Did you know this is the first place we ever kissed," Natalie informed Joe.
"Classy," he smirked.
"He thought I had a boyfriend back then," she snorted.
"Cuz you're a fuckin' liar," Billy reminded her.
"I guess so," she shrugged, leading the way out once the elevator slid to a stop at their floor.
She flopped onto the couch, shimmying out of her coat while Billy and Joe milled around and eventually settled in, too.
"Hey…what do you guys do for Christmas?" she asked after eying the small little tree she'd gotten and put on the end table as a reminder that Christmas was calling.
Both brothers just kind of looked at each other and shrugged.
"…do you guys get each other anything?"
"A drink…? Maybe a lap dance - back in the day," Joe added hastily.
"…that's it?"
"Nah, we usually get each other somethin'. Just…I dunno," he shrugged.
"What're we doing for Christmas?" she asked, twisting in her seat to look up at Billy.
"…you gonna be around for it?" he checked.
"Well during the day I'll be with my parents but I can come over after. What do you want? I've been trying to decide for a while now…"
"Guess not many of your girlfriends know how to give ya advice about what to get a gang lord boyfriend," Joe laughed.
"Ya don't gotta get me anything. We'll just do somethin'," he shrugged, highly unconcerned.
"I'm getting you something," she decided definitively, dismissing his claim that she needn't bother.
He didn't seem surprised by this but rolled his eyes.
"Don't bother; it's not a big deal"
Natalie promptly ignored him and scooted to sit closer to him on the end of the couch.
"…you are a big deal to me," she informed him, kissing his shoulder.
Billy grinned and watched her yawn and rest her head on his arm. He gave it a few minutes before he stood and scooped her up to carry into his bedroom and drop her lightly onto the bed. She moved up to lay against the pillows and watched him through hooded eyes as he studied her for a few long moments - before Billy she'd never been on the receiving end of such intense looks.
He bent over the bed and made efficient work of her boots, dropping them to the floor. He crawled onto the bed to pull her sweater off next, and then moved backwards to unsnap her jeans and carefully shed them, caressing her legs when he moved back up her.
"Billy, I'm tired now," she whispered, though she was sure he could convince her otherwise for a while if he wanted.
He nodded and settled his weight lower on her, laying his head just below her breasts. He tucked his hands beneath her, sliding them up towards her shoulder blades slightly, and just laid there, breathing steadily.
Natalie was surprised but content with this and rubbed his head and neck lightly while she rested her eyes.
Billy was tired, too, and was alright with just laying there and being there with her tonight. She was school-free for a few weeks now and, for the most part, could be his if they wanted, and he liked that. He was very much looking forward to the increased time he'd get to see her and she wouldn't be stressed about exams or papers or group presentations or getting up for class. For the most part, besides the holiday, he was assuming she'd just be staying there almost all the time - he didn't see why she wouldn't.
More importantly, he wasn't only assuming this, he wanted it. He never got sick of her. Sometime's he'd get impatient or a little annoyed, and yes he'd lost his temper with her before, but he hadn't ever wanted her to just leave his presence. Even when she was frustrating him for some random reason, it was better with her there.
Besides, he'd been noticing lately that some of the things he'd roll his eyes or scoff at were some of the things he really did love about her. He'd roll his eyes if she and Joe slapped at each other in some brother-sister-like disagreement, but he enjoyed that she was carefree enough to just laugh about it. He'd act a little annoyed when she reminded him to be careful or stopped to make sure he was alright, but those moments of selflessness were what made her different from everyone else he'd known - they were part of the reason he loved her.
Fuck. Billy Darley wasn't supposed to fall in love. It had never seemed worth it to him; his parents' relationship had definitely never been worth it - his mom had blindly loved his dad and look at the shitty life it had gotten her. He'd discredited "love" early on …it was far too ambiguous and, given what he knew of human nature, couldn't be real because everyone was always using you or lying about something…anything.
But Natalie had broken down his preconceived ideas of relationships and here he was, six months later, and found it completely acceptable to just lay with her. They were in no rush. It still blew his mind a little, and seemed a little weird, but that was alright - he liked it.
Billy felt Natalie's breath slowly even out and her hand stilled on his neck after a few minutes. He stayed where he was for a while longer just feeling her softness and taking in her scent. He turned his face into her stomach and kissed her through her shirt before carefully pushing himself up and getting off the bed slowly.
Standing, he surveyed Natalie where she lay in only her underwear and a tank-top. He grinned and shucked off his pants, followed by his shirt. He slid into bed and pulled the covers up over them before getting his arms around her and tugging her to him. She roused slightly, but only enough to make a small noise, and let him move her closer. He wanted to wake her up but remembered she'd had a stressful week, like he sometimes had stressful weeks, so he let her sleep.
Again, no rush.
Done. Let me know what ya think =)