Chapter 42

One day in the middle of December,Dallas woke up in the night.A sound had startled him out of his sleep,and it took him a moment to realize it was his bedroom door opening in the dark.

“Can I come in?”Noah asked,like he didn’t know the answer.

“Of course.”Dallas held the corner of his comforter up.

Noah walked quickly to the bed and crawled in.He burrowed against Dallas and held on tight.Dallas didn’t question it;he knew Noah had something on his mind.

They had slept together a few times after the storm,when either of them needed the comfort of another in their bed to keep the negative emotions at bay.They hadn’t made love,but they’d taken to bathing together again and more often than not,those evenings ended in the same way—although much more gently—than that one time before the storm.