original story by @beckyninja
Adapted Excerpt from the original manuscript
You jerked awake, thoughts muddled. Shoving blankets and pillows aside, you sat up in what Titus referred to as your “nest”. The artificial light remained off, and only a few stubby candles flickered. Still the night cycle.
You rubbed your eyes and tried to remember what had awoken you. Then you heard it. Deep, panting gasps, almost animal-like in their intensity. The chemical tang of Astartes sweat filled the air.
“...go back to sleep, Little Healer.”
Something in his voice worried you, and you scrambled out of your pile of cloth. Or tried to, anyway. A pillow shifted under your feet and you tumbled back into your nest with a yelp.
A strained huff from the cot. “Clumsy.”
Grumbling and now fully awake, you stood, straightening your sleeping robe around you. “Are you all right, my Lord?”
He did not sound all right.
In the dark, your thighs hit the edge of the cot and you toppled forward, hands landing on scarred, warm skin.
“I’m so sorry, my Lord! I just wanted to- eep!”
Hands came out of nowhere, dragging you up and forward until you sprawled on what could only be an impossibly large chest.
“Stay.” This close, you heard the unsteadiness in his voice. “I need….”
You understood. “Nightmares?”
A deep sigh was your only answer. Something bumped the top of your head, pressing into your hair, and you felt a warm rush of breath.
“Your scent is… calming.”
“Um. All right, then.” You hoped he didn’t notice the way your breath quickened.