CHAPTER SIXTEEN
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Almost three years later
Don’t open the third drawer of the second desk in the first room.
R AMON EYED THE card poking out of their closed bedroom door with amusement. He recognised the handwriting. And he was totally going to open the third drawer of the second desk in the first room.
He’d been away two nights but as Elodie was in the middle of an escape room refit, she’d opted not to travel with him on this trip. He’d missed her and he was beyond glad to be back—even more so now he knew he was in for an evening of amusement with his deliciously creative wife.
He’d jettisoned some of his work so he had more time at home. Ashleigh was halfway through a degree up in Edinburgh. And amazingly his relationship with Jose Ramon had improved. His aunt was wary and that was unlikely to change, but it was at least better.
In the third drawer he found a cupcake with a birthday candle. On the base of which was a sticker: Games Aplenty.
The games room, obviously. They’d set one up not long after she’d moved back in permanently—part home office for her, playroom for them both. They pitted their wits against each other with board games, card games, codes, ciphers and the occasional use of handcuffs and blindfold. It was Ramon’s second favourite room in the house. Their bedroom being the first, of course.
‘I know you’re here,’ he called out. ‘Probably watching me fumble around like a fool because you’ve set up hidden cameras.
Elodie had used some of her usual tricks to send him on a wild goose chase around his own home to find her. One clue meant the opposite: he was told to ‘reflect’—in other words hold the clue to the mirror. The second time he went into the games room, she was reclined on the plush chaise longue that was also a new addition. She held a stopwatch—timing him. She must’ve been hidden behind the curtain the first time. Minx . But he didn’t mind because she was wearing the pink silk wedding dress and the diamond collar and—if his eagle eyes didn’t deceive him—nothing else. No underwear, no shoes. He paused, transfixed by the queen of hearts. He adored her—all this about her.
‘Should I get on my knees?’ he muttered, sinking to the floor beside her before she could answer.
Her eyebrow arched coyly. ‘I love how fast you are.’
He hesitated, eyes narrowing. ‘Maybe you’re not a clue. Too obvious. You’re a diversion. Dangerous.’
The look of chagrin mixed with delight on her face confirmed it. He stood up again and scouted the room for something else that he’d missed the first time. Something that was out of place. It wasn’t hard to spot. A faux Fabergé-style egg was artfully placed on a low table. Bethan’s work, no doubt—delicate and clever. He carefully clicked the lock and it opened. He stared at the wrapped date nestled on the silk cushioning inside. He pulled out the date and set the egg back on the shelf. He unwrapped the date and waggled it at her with a what he hoped was a bemused look.
‘You need a clue?’ She teased archly. ‘Sure. I love you.’
Her voice was a touch breathless. His chest tightened; he would make her more so. Because he knew that while she meant it, she also played with him.
‘Red herring,’ he teased back.
She giggled and her whisper this time came with a self-conscious shrug. ‘I couldn’t think much beyond the literal...’
He paused. He was holding a date. Literally.
‘So we’re celebrating an actual date ...’ He swung back towards her. He slid his hands up her silken legs in a teasing gesture, aching to push the pretty dress out of the way so he could feast on the treasure he adored beneath. But he knew her outfit was another clue. ‘It’s not our wedding anniversary.’ He kissed her knee and remembered the cupcake with its singular birthday candle. ‘Not your birthday. Nor mine.’
She smiled. Her eyes were luminous.
‘Yet this is a very important date...’
Elodie shivered as she watched him work through the silliest, most important clues she’d ever come up with. The man was far more than her match. She loved this—having him return to her. Travelling with him. Living a life so full of laughter and joy, she’d never have imagined it to be possible.
‘You’re here, another delicacy for me to enjoy.’ He cocked his head. ‘I think I am meant to unwrap you.’
‘Well, duh...’ She was sitting here in all her finery, basically begging him to ravish her.
His eyes glinted. ‘A double cross. You weren’t the diversion, you’re the goal.’
He opted not to go from the hem, but slipped the slim straps from her. Lowering the silk so her breasts were exposed. She was so sensitive. Bursting with the secret she wanted him to work out. He cupped her breasts. She shimmied on the soft cushion, wanting her dress to slip further. He got the message. She arched her hips so he could slide the silk down to her ankles. That was when he sat back and studied her—now naked aside from the diamond collar.
‘Temporary tattoo.’ With his forefinger he slowly traced the Roman numerals she’d stuck on her skin. It tickled and her lower stomach quivered. ‘Two numbers,’ he said.
She held her breath now.
‘Aside from the numbers themselves, I suspect their positioning is significant.’ He breathed. ‘You think these things through. Your belly.’ He looked up, his gaze burning directly into hers. ‘Day and month. This is just over seven months in the future.’
‘Yes.’
‘The egg was a clue on more than one level.’ His hand cupped her belly.
‘Yes.’
‘You’re having my baby.’ His voice roughened with possessiveness.
Her ‘yes’ was smothered by his kiss.
Ramon could be fast. Decisive. Powerful. All of which was exactly what she needed him to be in this moment. He had her on the floor beside him, stirred to desperation in seconds. Because the embers always burned hot and it took the lightest of breaths to fan the flames high.
‘You’re not showing yet, but it won’t be long.’ He gasped as she battled to undo his damned trousers. ‘Oh, Elodie, I’m so excited.’
‘Me too.’ She was caught between laughing and crying. ‘I’m so glad I asked you to marry me—’
‘If you consider it asking ,’ he said, and ground into her with a growl of satisfaction. ‘More like you demanded. Best moment of my life. I love it when you demand that I do things with you.’
‘I have some more demands right now.’ She arched, happily pinned by his weight.
‘Go on then.’ He pressed deep and gazed down at her with the most adoring smile she’d ever seen.
She curled her arm around his neck and huskily gave the orders she needed him to fill. ‘Love me hard. Love me always. Never let me go.’
‘You mean you haven’t got the message yet ?’ he breathed. ‘There’s no escaping how much I adore you. You’re mine.’ He punctuated the claim with a deep thrust. ‘I’m yours.’ His hands laced with hers. ‘We’re locked together forever, darling.’
‘Yes.’