Bedtime Reads Novels & Stories

Luke joined us, kneeling and wrapping us both in his arms. “No monsters here, buddy,” Luke said, kissing his curls. “Only superheroes.” “I don’t want to sleep alone,” Eli mumbled. I exchanged a soft look with Luke, who only smiled and nodded. Then you won’t,” I said gently. We headed back to the bathroom, where I filled the tub a little more and slipped in with Eli resting against my chest, his breathing slowing as the warmth soothed him. Afterward, we all curled up in bed, Luke reading Eli’s favorite bedtime story; The Boy and the Silver Lion, a book Zephan had gifted him. Luke read out loud with that deep, calming voice our son loved so much. Eli nestled between us, eyelids drooping.

The drawers are jammed with underwear: panties, bras, stockings. What else? The bedside tables... A pair of lamps. A plastic tumbler and a bottle of sparkling water. A clock. A radio. I slide open a drawer: hairbrush. A bottle of paracetamol. Tissues... At the back, a book. 'Poisonous and Psychoactive Plants: a Handbook.' Interesting choice of bedtime reading... I slide the drawer closed again. Something's pulling at me. Something missing. I can't put my finger on it.

“Raf?” But he is gone and I am alone in the lamp. I finish the movie but I have no way to watch another since he just magically made it play. So instead I walk over to the bookshelf and look through the books. He has all the classics and I grab Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. Moving over to the bed I lay down and begin to read. I look at my phone to see that it is nine thirty-seven at night. My eyes grow heavy so I finish the chapter before I lay the book aside. I forgot my clothes so I go and put them in the dryer before I return to bed.

Perhaps I ought to swap to an audio book, that might soothe me whilst I wait. “Hey honey, you asleep yet?” I hear my mother say from the other side of the door. My fairy lights are still on and my bedside lamp, she can see the light no doubt filtering below the gap at the bottom of my door. It’s getting past my curfew and my folks really don’t like for me to be awake much past eleven. I have to be up at half six to fit in a run before school, shower and all the usual stuff everyone has to do. I sigh and reach for the remote by me on the bed. I press the small button which turns my fairy lights off and then hit the switch on my bedside table. I’ve got a small reading light that fits onto my b

She promised. The boys all came running into the room and sat around Selene so she could start reading. Selene read about three chapters before they all fell asleep. Megan, Summer, Cra, Grace and Althea all picked up each one and tucked them into bed. Selene put River in her bed but as soon as she placed River down, River whimpered.

He’d been doing this every morning since the remission results. He’d wait until he thought I was asleep, then he’d rest his forehead against the small curve of my stomach and read whatever children’s book the nurses had smuggled in. Yesterday it was The Runaway Bunny. The day before, Guess How Much I Love You. He read them like scripture, voice rough with exhaustion and something so tender it hurt to hear. Today he finished the book, closed it gently, and pressed his lips to the spot just above my navel. “I know you’re awake,” he murmured against my skin.

Katřina received this as the appropriate response. Dinner. Bath. The bedtime book, which was currently a chapter book that Aiden read two chapters of each night and that Katřina listened to with the quality she had when she was tired enough for sitting still to be easier than moving but not yet tired enough for her eyes to be doing what they were about to do. By the end of the second chapter the eyes were doing what they were going to do. Aiden kept reading for another three minutes after she was asleep because he was at a good part and Katřina would have wanted to hear it.

he whimpered, clearly about to cry. “Your mother has already read you six books, buddy.” Aaron tried to comfort him, although this only seemed to make Alec cling to Rose even more "The whole family came here to hear your bedtime story, just like you wanted, right?" he waved around, to the bed where he and his wife were sitting, and the armchairs where Andy, Jullian and Adele were, all looking at that scene with heavy hearts “It's getting late and we all need to sleep. So why don’t you…”

She took a big breath and stared at the ceiling. Shaking her head. She climbed out while turning off the shower. Wrapping the towel around her. Making her way, out of the bathroom. Putting on more comfortable and loose clothes she sat on the bed. Taking out one of her favorite books, ‘The Cabinet of Curiosities (Prendergast, #3) Lincoln Child, Douglas Preston. She was currently on page fifty. It was just past eight. Tiredness stared to overtake her. Leaning back into her pillows she started to doze off. Her eyes started to close, and she fell asleep with her book in her hand.

The bedtime reading sequence fixed and defended with the consistency of a constitutional provision, deviations met with the quiet disappointment of someone whose expectations have been failed by someone who should have known better. Caden answering Ela's questions remained one of the specific pleasures of the household, showing no sign of becoming routine with repetition. The full weight of his attention was given to whatever the question was, regardless of subject the mechanics of rain, the reason the forest looked different at different hours, what the council was and what Mama did there, why the security team's patrol route used the north path rather than the south path on alternating day