Entering Azaiah's room, Ariana turned to him quickly.
"I'd sleep on the couch".
Azaiah glared at her like she had mentioned something so stupid.
"I won't let you" came his reply.
"You can go shower first" he said pointing at the direction the bathroom was.
Ariana's brain was still trying to process the fact she was going to sleep in the same room with him when she noticed him walking towards the closet.
He was rummaging through his stuff and after a while, he pulled out a grey shirt and shorts.
He walked up to Ariana who still hadn't moved an inch from where she stood.
"You can change into this after you're done" Azaiah said, handing her his clothes.
"Thank you" she reached out, taking the clothes from his hands.
She watched him return to his closet to arrange his clothes neatly, back to the way it was.
She drew in a breath and walked towards the bathroom.
Just like every other part of the house, it was a mix of ancient and modern. Sparkling tiled grey walls and floors, a silver wash basin, a white bathtub and also a walk-in shower.
Ariana stared back at the door, wondering if she needed to lock it. Azaiah would certainly not walk in on her; thus she left the door unlocked.
The bath was needed. She stood beneath the shower, allowing the warm water fall on her skin easing her tensed muscles.
It had been a long day.
After spending a while in the bathroom, she changed into Azaiah's clothes which he had handed her.
His shirt hanged above her knee, looking like a gown itself and the shorts almost reached her ankles, stopping at her calf.
One night, it was fine for a night. Ariana told herself.
She walked out of the bathroom and noticed Azaiah was now in a bathrobe. His black hair was let down and it was then Ariana noticed how long his hair had grown.
It rested below his shoulders, silky and straight.
He was looking out the window when he felt Ariana's gaze on him.
He turned around to meet her eyes that she quickly averted. A smirk appeared on his face. Cute. He thought.
He walked past her without a word and headed to the bathroom and Ariana subconsciously held her breath as he passed.
She looked around the room to notice how it revealed Azaiah's style. Neat and classic.
The room had his scent all over. Invading Ariana's nostrils easily.
She walked towards one of the windows, placing her hand on it and staring at the sky. The night was quiet, not even the sound of the wind could be heard. The only sounds that could be heard was the low cracking coming from the fireplace which was much smaller than the one present in the living room and the sound of Azaiah taking a shower.
Ariana wondered how Yvonne was going to react to all this the moment she reveals it to her.
She knew the girl would probably be wondering where she was by now.
She walked towards the table, where her purse was lying and quickly sent a message to Yvonne. "I won't be coming home tonight. I have alot to tell you but it would have to wait till morning. See you soon".
She placed her phone back into her purse after she confirmed the message had sent. Walking towards the couch, she noticed there were a few paintings hanging on the wall but one grabbed her attention the most.
Her curiosity kicked in and she walked towards it to have a look. The painting was of a little boy holding on to his parents as they walked in a field of flowers at sunset.
Ariana felt the painting spoke about a life Azaiah had longed for when he was young. She traced the painting with her fingers, feeling the pain behind each stroke that formed the beautiful painting.
She turned around to see Azaiah staring at her. She knew he was out of the bathroom because she had smelt his scent before she saw him.
His hair was slicked back and dripping wet and his perfect features became more alluring as the water glided down his skin.
He was in a silk grey robe now which had a rope holding it together. A rope Ariana saw hanging loosely.
A part of his chest was exposed and Ariana heard her heart beat turn into an uneven rhythm. She quickly turned her eyes away from him and a blush crept up on her cheeks.
The air suddenly felt thick and Ariana tried to ignore how his presence threatened to swallow her whole.
"You can sleep on the bed" Azaiah said as walked towards one of the drawers beside his closet, taking out the hair dryer.
"Ok" Ariana's voice almost came out as a whisper.
She walked towards the bed and placed herself on it. The bed was soft and comfortable, making Ariana realize how much she needed a good sleep.
Minutes after Azaiah was done drying his hair, he put out the fireplace and walked towards the bed and nestled himself in it.
Ariana felt her heart skip a beat once more. The bed was big so it was enough for two persons to lie on without touching each other, unless one was a rough sleeper. Who moved around alot.
Ariana had her back facing Azaiah but it didn't help. Her movements were careful and slow to avoid moving closer to him.
She wasn't an easy girl but she couldn't lie to herself either. Azaiah was a breathtaking man and he already had an effect on her she didn't like to admit.
"Your home is beautiful. It's nice to know you grew up here" Ariana said without looking at him. The silence in the room felt like it was choking her.
"It's a beautiful home without any beautiful memories in it" came Azaiah's flat reply.
Ariana found herself turning around to face him. He had his back against the sheets and his front facing the ceiling. One hand bent over with his head resting on it.
Ariana admired how handsome he was and at the same time wondered how this man who looked healthy was down with a fatal illness.
Not everyone who wears a smile was truly happy. She thought.
He had his eyes closed and his long black lashes, rested on his face. He still had his hair down and he looked nothing less than a Greek god.
"Then you should make new memories, beautiful ones".
Ariana knew she couldn't fix what had happened in Azaiah's past but she hoped her words might heal something in him. But instead it brought mischievous thoughts to Azaiah's mind.
"With you I'd be willing to" Azaiah said but Ariana didn't catch it.
"Huh?".
"I said I'm here to listen if there's anything on your mind" Azaiah said, opening his eyes and shifting the topic from himself to Ariana.
"Oh" Ariana uttered. She didn't want to talk about her family and was curious about Azaiah's instead.
But from his outlook, Ariana guessed he didn't want to talk about his family either.
She turned around, her back facing him once again and closed her eyes. Trying to sleep.
"Goodnight Azaiah" she said.
"Goodnight" Azaiah responded before falling back to his own thoughts.
He knew the reason his grandfather insisted on Ariana saying the night and in Azaiah's room was because he wanted something to happen between them but unfortunately, nothing did.
He closed his eyes once more as he tried to drift into the dreamland but sleep was far away from him. So he laid there, unmoving.
Only the upward and downward movements of his chest indicated he was alive.
Minutes had passed and he was still wide awake, he turned to notice Ariana shivering beneath the sheets.
Earlier on, before getting to bed, he had put off the fireplace and opened the windows allowing fresh air to come in but it seemed the cold air was too much for Ariana to bear.
"You're cold?" His voice came out as a question and also a statement.
Ariana who was yet to fall asleep nodded her head.
Azaiah reached out for her arm first, waiting to see her reaction to his touch.
Seeing she didn't flinch, he wrapped his arms around her in a cuddling position, creating more warmth under the sheets.
Ariana slightly opened her eyes to look at him and saw him also staring at her. They locked eyes for a few seconds and Azaiah broke it off by saying "You can sleep now". He closed his eyes, making Ariana do the same.
But behind the closed eyes, Ariana's thoughts spiralled. Rodrigo had never treated her with such intentionality and gentleness.
But she was vulnerable and couldn't place her finger on anything yet when it came to Azaiah.