Sleeping through the Beauty (3 page)

They sat in silence for a long time before Rose finally spoke. “I have dreams about you.”

Phillip had been staring off at nothing on the other side of the room, but that made him look at her. Her cheeks were now flushed and he suspected it was from more embarrassment and not her earlier struggles.

Rose met his eyes, but only briefly. “I always have the strangest feeling when we are together that we were good friends, but I know that isn’t so because I just met you after I came out of the coma. But every night before I drift off to sleep, a feeling comes over me that we used to go for long walks and we would talk about everything possible. When I sleep, I can recall events from your childhood and bits and pieces of what you want of out life.” She met his eyes again. “That’s crazy, right? I don’t really know you want to learn how to fly a plane one day or you and Roger never once celebrated Christmas with your parents.”

When Phillip shifted his weight, their knees touched. While he would have liked to keep that contact, he moved his leg before answering, “I came to see you every night since the first time I brought your mother last Christmas Eve. I talked at first to tell you how the plans for your foundation were coming along. Whenever I had questions, I asked you even though I knew you couldn’t answer. I wanted you to be a part of the strategies you had worked so hard on for the children. It didn’t feel right to take your plans and carry on without you, so I did the only I
could at the time. I talked to you.”

Trying to explain the unexplainable made him nervous, so he stood and began pacing. “Before I knew it, I was telling you all about my life. I had read all of your journals to discover how you wanted the foundation set up and I found so much more in your journals than that. I knew to do so was prying but I couldn’t stop from reading about your thoughts. So even though you didn’t know me, I was discovering who you were and who you wanted to be. In a strange sort of way, it was like we were friends. With every visit, I talked to you about my life and during that time, I was slowly coming to realize I had wasted so much on it doing what other people expected out of me.”

He stopped pacing and faced her. “Every night before I left, I asked you to wake up because you were missing so much of your life. I could see what I had missed in my life and I didn’t want you missing yours. You had too much to give and too much still to do with it. I wanted you to realize how much your family missed and needed you.”

He glanced away and focused on a table lamp. “In the end, I was telling you how much I needed you.” He met her eyes again and held his arms straight out as if surrounding. “I grew to know you during that time in a way I had never taken the time to know myself or anyone else. I was wrapped in what was wrong with the things I had no control over. I can’t change my parents, or how they feel about me. It took meeting you and reading your journals finally to see everything I was missing out on. You’re ten years younger than I am, but you already know more about life than I ever did. I wanted to be a part of such a bright life if only on the sidelines watching you conquering the world.”

He dropped his arms and looked at his feet. “You asked earlier why I was here. I’m here because even though you don’t know me, I know you and if you don’t mind, I would like to be a part of your life if only in some small way.”

He walked over and knelt at her feet. “So let me help you while you’re regaining your strength. Please let me be some small part of your life. I promise not to be anything other than a good brother-in-law. I promise to not to ride up on a white charger unless you really want or need me to. You want to know why I’m in your dreams. It’s because while you slept I told you my hopes, hurts, and dreams. Since I already knew yours, it seemed only fair you should know mine.”

Rose reached out and touched his face. She closed her eyes as if memorizing the feel his skin. When she reopened them again, she smiled. “You don’t have to come riding up a white charger, but would you walk by my side in the wedding next week? I don’t think I’m going to have all of my strength back by then. You’re right. Friends need friends. With you by my side, I don’t have to worry about falling. I knew for some reason that I always feel safe when you are near me.”

Phillip had butterflies in his stomach as if the wedding were his own. Instead of standing in the front of the church next to his brother, it had been decided he would meet Rose at the top of the stairs and hold onto her arm as they descended them. Each step up to meet her he had found it impossible not to stare at her in her lovely gown of yellow.

She was a vision in a long dress made of sheer silky layers of the palest yellow he had ever seen. Her hair was put up in soft curls in the back with a few wisps of curls by each ear. If he had ever thought she looked like an angel before, the sight of her at the top of those stairs had taken his breath away. But since he had promised himself he was only going to be Rose’s support and big brother he forced his heart to settle down and to keep his eyes off the soft swells of the exposed tops of her breasts.

One of the many things he had discovered about her likes and dislikes while reading her private journals was that yellow was her favorite color. That was why he had carried a bouquet of some type of yellow flower to her every night at the nursing home.

The moment he reached the top of the stairs, he smiled but didn’t voice out loud how stunning she was. They were finally becoming comfortable being around each other so there was no reason for her to know he thought she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, so he stared straight ahead and focused on reaching the bottom step without any mishaps.

The same words pumped through his brain with each second. “I’m happy being some part of Rose’s life. I’m happy with that. I am. I really am.” By the time they made it to the front of the altar and the two of them went their separate ways, the words had almost become a full-fledged tune with chorus and the added bonus of the organ music. When the wedding march began playing and everyone else’s eyes were focused on the bride, his eyes looked over every inch of Rose and the words felt like a betrayal to his heart. How could he ask his heart to stop feeling such love? Here he was standing before God and he couldn’t lie any longer to her or himself. It was time to stop tormenting himself. There was no way he could ever be this close on a day-to-day basis and just be her friend. So what did that leave?

So that was why between the vows being exchanged and the preacher pronouncing Roger and Donna husband and wife, Phillip made a huge life decision. He hated being a lawyer, so why not quit and finally study aviation as he had always dreamed of doing? Nothing was keeping him here. Roger had begun a new life with Donna. He no longer needed a big brother in order to have his much-needed family. Their lives had branched off and were going in different directions. Phillip made the decision and then waited to feel an expected pain at the thought. But none came. As if it were all a dream, he watched Donna and Roger kiss, and then turn to walk back down the aisle together as husband and wife.

Phillip walked over and met Rose in the center of the altar. As soon as he took her elbow, they began following the happy couple down the aisle, but about three steps into the march he sensed the moment Rose’s strength gave out. Fortunately, the past week’s experience had left him fast enough to catch her before she fell to the floor. Even though several women gasped, he didn’t stop, but carried her out of the sanctuary and back up the stairway. He pushed through the first door and sat Rose into the nearest chair.

He grabbed a straight back chair and pulled it over next to hers. He leaned forward and placed his elbows onto his knees. “You did good.”

Rose rolled her eyes, but after a moment, she laughed. “Yeah. I didn’t cause a scene at all, did I?”

Phillip joined in with the laughter. “I don’t think anyone noticed.” He sat back and draped an arm over the back of his chair.

She looked at her hands and twisted then on the top layer of her dress. “What were you thinking?”

He lifted an eyebrow as if asking what she was talking about, even though he suspected he knew exactly what she was referring to.

“In the middle of the ceremony I could see the moment you came to some life changing decision. If you don’t mind me asking, what was it? You did say we were friends the other day. Friends share life changing decisions, don’t they?”

It was painful looking into her stunning eyes. They only reminded him of everything he was never going to have. He sat forward again. “It suddenly occurred to me how much I hated my job and what I really wanted to do was learn study aviation. The day I told my father that was I wanted to study, he told me no son of his would waste his life studying something so stupid and useless. You see, the Sinclairs produce nothing but doctors and lawyers. Any other line of work is considered far beneath the family name. I was supposed to follow in my father’s footsteps even though he has never been a part of my life. Back then, I was still naïve enough to believe that if I did as he wanted, then maybe I would finally win his approval.”

He sat back and stared off toward the corner of the room. “Of course I never did. I don’t know why it took me so long to decide I had to live my life as I wanted to live it because this is the only one I have.” He met her eyes again and shrugged as if the decision wasn’t that monumental. “So you see, my big decision is to quit my job and go back to school. Crazy, huh?”

This time it was Rose’s turn to lean forward. “You know what I think?”

He leaned forward too until their noses were almost touching. “What are you thinking, my lovely Rose?”

She grinned. “I think you need a lady in shining armor to come riding up to your rescue.”

He couldn’t stop the foolish grin. “Yeah? Do you happen to know where I can find one of those?”

She reached out and ran a finger down the side of his face. He had no choice but to close his eyes against the sensation.

“I know where there’s one. She dreams of the man she loves every night and keeps waiting for him to tell her he loves her again. He did once, you know, but she was sleeping.” She placed a fingertip under his chin and forced him to look her in the eyes. “Now that I’m no longer asleep, do you still love me, Phillip? I remember every single whispered word. I know what makes you happy and I know what makes you sad. But you’re in much need of a rescue, my own dear sleeping beauty. You need someone to stand by you while you finally realize your dreams. I’ll fight every single enemy you have to help you realize them. I would fight to the death to win your love again. Do you think you’ll ever love me again like you did while I was sleep? I’m right here, Phillip. If you let me love you forever, I will.”

Phillip dropped to his knees, buried his face in her lap, and closed his eyes against the feel of her fingers running through his hair. When he finally lifted his face, he took her face between both hands. “I have loved you asleep and I have loved your every waking moment. If you ever are ever in need of rescuing, I am your knight in shining armor and if all you need is my love, then I am that man from your dreams. I will love you with very beat of my heart for every moment of my life. I would gladly pledge my heart to yours.”

Phillip touched his lips to Rose’s for the first time. He then trailed kisses across the bridge of her nose and each cheek. “There’s nothing quite like finally waking up and realizing there’s so much worth living for and discovering that I have an abundance of love to give. I’m never going to forget there’s too much to see and feel ever to sleep through my life again.” He touched the loose curls on the side of her face to feel if her hair was as soft as he remembered it to be. “I’ll love you until time stands still and even beyond that time if I have any say in the matter. If you’ll marry me, we’ll fight all of our battles together. I don’t know of anyone who’ll be able to hurt us as long as we stand together. What do you say to forever with me, my sleeping beauty?”

Rose placed both hands onto the sides of Phillip’s face and smiled. “I would say that forever is nowhere long enough to love you. We’re already dressed for a wedding. The church is full of friends and family. What’s stopping us from starting our forever today?”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bio

Regina Puckett was born, raised and still resides to this day in Tennessee with her childhood sweetheart and husband.  She has two grown daughters and four grandchildren.  She is the author of sweet romance novels, short tales of horror, inspirational short stories and children’s picture books.

If you want to know about the author and her books please stop by her blog.

http://reginapuckettsbooks.weebly.com/blog.html

Other titles by Regina Puckett

Love is a Promise Kept

Sleeping through the Beauty

The Beauty in the Beast

The Magic of Snow