Orphan To Unbreakable Queen - Chapter 98: Chapter 98

The bed was small. After Aubree got in, she immediately pressed herself against the wall, curling up into a tight little ball.
Bowen, a disciplined sleeper, lay rigidly on the far side of the bed, which surprisingly created a distinct gap between them.
But that was all.
The space was still cramped. One turn, and they'd bump into each other.
Aubree gripped the quilt tightly in both hands, her entire body rigid with tension. Enveloped by Bowen's unfamiliar scent, she felt like she could hardly breathe.
The church at night was eerily quiet. Despite the distance between them, Aubree could hear his heartbeat with startling clarity.
"Thump... Thump..." His heartbeat was strong and steady.
Curled up under the quilt and facing the wall, Aubree found sleep impossible in these circumstances.
Before long, Bowen's breathing grew slow and steady.
Is he asleep?' Aubree wondered.
It was getting uncomfortable to lie in the same position for so long. After hesitating for a couple of seconds, Aubree cautiously turned over.
Sure enough, the bed was tiny. Even through the quilt, Aubree could feel her arm brush against Bowen's.
As she lifted her head, Aubree's body went rigid in an instant.
Unbeknownst to her, Bowen had turned onto his side, his face now mere inches from hers.
If I'd moved just a fraction more, our lips might have met,' Aubree thought to herself.
Aubree gazed at Bowen's impossibly perfect face mere inches from hers, her heart pounding wildly out of control.
Perhaps sensing her gaze, Bowen's eyelids fluttered. He cracked his eyes open slightly, his gaze still clouded with sleep, looking utterly groggy as if lost in drowsy confusion.
"Just sleep." As if acting on instinct, Bowen reached out and casually ruffled Aubree's hair. "Don't fuss."
Bowen's scorching breath made Aubree shrink back, her whole body tensing. His rough voice sent a shiver down her spine.
Aubree jolted and instinctively burrowed deeper under the covers, suddenly feeling awkward and tense all over.
But Bowen only stirred briefly at her touch, then fell motionless again.
Peeking through half-closed eyes, Aubree stole another glance at Bowen and muttered under her breath, "Why do you have to be so damn handsome?"
In the darkness, Bowen, who was supposed to be asleep, curled his lips into a smirk. Silently, he mused, 'How else would I catch your eye if I weren't handsome?'
After what felt like ages, drowsiness finally crept in. Aubree's eyelids grew heavy, and she drifted into a deep slumber.
Almost the moment Aubree drifted off, Bowen stirred beside her, rolling onto his side. His eyes gleamed intensely in the darkness, betraying no hint of the drowsiness he'd feigned earlier.
"Bree?" Bowen called softly, but received no response.
After being wound up tight, Aubree fell into a deep sleep almost instantly.
Bowen smiled and reached out to caress Aubree's face. It felt warm, delicate, and incredibly soft. Unable to resist, he gave her cheek a gentle pinch, only pulling his hand back after he'd had his fill of the delightful sensation.
In the darkness, Bowen lay on his side, his gaze burning with gentleness as he stared at Aubree.
After gazing at her for what felt like an eternity, Bowen slowly propped himself up and planted two soft kisses on Aubree's forehead. In a gentle murmur, he said, "Good night. Sweet dreams."
After doing all this, Bowen lay back down, inching closer to Aubree through the quilt.
The room's air conditioner was on a timer. It was a small space, and running it all night would have made it unbearably stuffy.
In the dead of night, the room temperature dropped. Aubree, with a delicate constitution and prone to cold hands and feet in winter, soon began to feel the chill.
Still deep in sleep, she instinctively snuggled toward the warmth.
At some point, her hand slipped under Bowen's blanket. The warmth seeped in, and Aubree relaxed, the tension melting from her face.
Unconsciously, Aubree had burrowed under Bowen's blanket, tucking her hands and feet against his chest, her body instinctively curling into his warmth.
Bowen had woken up the moment Aubree reached out her hand. But really, who in their right mind would turn down such a sweet, unconscious embrace? So instead of stopping her or waking her, he quietly lifted his quilt to make room for her.
With the girl he adored curled up in his arms, Bowen would have to be a saint, or made of stone, to keep his composure.
Bowen felt the delicate warmth of her body in his arms. His Adam's apple bobbed as heat consumed him, his blood running hot. Yet she slept undisturbed, her body instinctively seeking his warmth, pressing closer with each drowsy shift.
Bowen thought to himself, 'This is sweet agony.'
He was burning up with desire, yet he couldn't act on it. Gritting his teeth, Bowen forced himself to fall asleep.
Here, Bowen got tormented by desire, while at Ellis Heights, Alvin was also on the verge of a breakdown.
Hugh called to say that Bowen wasn't home and asked Alvin to come to Ellis Heights to help look after the guest. Alvin, considering that Bowen was still his uncle, after all, went. But the moment he saw Isla on the sofa, his jaw nearly hit the floor.
Alvin thought to himself, 'Seriously, is this how an uncle sets up his nephew?'
Isla knew Bowen had a nephew, so she immediately recognized Alvin and latched onto him, bombarding him with endless questions about Bowen.
Left with no choice, Alvin steered Isla into the study and fired up a game, hoping to distract her with some mindless fun.
The plan worked... Maybe a little too well.
Alvin glanced at the clock and realized it was the wee hours. He looked over at Isla, who was still trash-talking with others in broken Lumanonian in the canyon. He sighed and looked up at the sky. 'Did this plan work a little too well?' he thought wryly.
"Oh! Alvin, I can't beat him. Get over here and help!" Isla said.
Alvin could only reply, "Coming!"
Aubree spent the first half of the night wound up so tight she couldn't sleep a wink, but in the latter half, she slept like a baby.
When Aubree woke up the next morning, she thought the church bed was surprisingly comfortable. 'The mattress beneath me feels springy and just the right firmness...' she thought. 'Wait, no! Hold on a second! Mattress?'
As her mind cleared, Aubree remembered that there was only a wooden board with two quilts, no mattress at all.
"Did you sleep well?" Bowen's husky, teasing voice rang in her ears. To Aubree, at that moment, it was like a bolt of lightning striking her brain, leaving her a blushing, frazzled mess.
For the first time, she felt completely disconnected from her own body.
Aubree swore she scrambled off Bowen at breakneck speed. 'That had to be Guinness World Record material,' she thought frantically. 'Can someone please explain how I ended up practically sprawled all over Bowen?'
After scrambling off Bowen, Aubree finally took stock of the situation. 'Wait, why was the quilt that should have been covering me now kicked down to the foot of the bed? And how did I end up curled up against Bowen's chest like this?
'But that's not even the worst part. Judging by the way I woke up, it's painfully clear that I must've been the one who crawled into Bowen's bed all by myself.
'Bowen slept stiff as a board, but I practically coiled around him like a snake. Honestly, he wasn't to blame in the slightest.'
Bowen, his hair tousled from sleep, propped himself up on one elbow and quietly watched as Aubree sat frozen on the bed, a triumphant smirk flashing in his eyes.
"What's wrong?" Bowen asked.
Aubree turned stiffly, swallowing hard. 'I distinctly remember Bowen's clothes were buttoned up all proper when he first got into bed,' she thought in a fresh wave of horror. 'So those undone buttons... Was his half-exposed chest my doing?'
"N-no, nothing," Aubree stammered, hastily averting her gaze, guilt flickering in her eyes.
Bowen glanced down, then chuckled softly. "Oh, I don't mind a bit."
Aubree's face instantly burned crimson. 'Seriously, is that even the point?' she fumed inwardly, utterly awkward.
Even though he'd just said he didn't mind, Bowen still let out a theatrical sigh. "But Bree, you're quite the restless sleeper. This morning, I honestly thought it was sleep paralysis. You had all your arms and legs wrapped around me like an octopus. I couldn't budge an inch and just had to wait for you to wake up."
In her haste to scramble over Bowen and get out of bed, Aubree almost ended up kneeling right on top of him.
Enough already! Seriously!' Aubree groaned inwardly, her face burning with embarrassment.