Evelyn Felix Sleeps with Her Boyfriend

Evelyn Felix needs to escape. 

A snake curls its way around her ankle, its touch a fiery lick across her skin. 

Escape… Where can she go? 

She knew a foot hanging over the side of the bed could bring out what lurks in the shadows, but she hadn’t considered a monster crawling under the covers to find her other leg. It continues its soft caress as she squints hard and rolls over to face the weight beside her. She crooks her free leg up high to her chest for protection. But before she can gather her courage, hot breath fills her nostrils, and her eyes fly open on their own.

Theo Skinner. 

The man of her dreams. 

The menace in her dreams. 

She tries to kick free, but his snores only falter for a moment before he sinks back into a peaceful slumber. She rolls onto her back, lying flat and focusing on the little green light of the smoke detector. The snake continues its climb over her knees and up her body. Fangs—Lips find her cheek in the darkness for a sleepy kiss. A tender gesture to subdue her senses. 

She could run away. Scramble for the pillar of cool air that soothed her exposed foot before the snake found her. But she can’t escape. The monster’s heated touch covers every remaining bit of her flesh it can reach. Its grip only tightens as it settles across her shoulders.

Evelyn’s skin tries desperately to offer a reprieve, but her sweat just pools at every point of contact with the sheets around her… How cruel of her body to add dampness to this heat engulfing her!

She surrenders. 

Tucking herself into his embrace is the only way to get the rest she so desperately craves. He squeezes her to his chest. His musky scent soothes her. The true solace, though, is the rhythmic breeze that now cools that damp fabric barely covering her exposed back. Evelyn is brave. She can handle the furnace that is Theo's body against hers because she trusts the fan will continue to find her again and again in its rotation through the night.