47. Ellie
Chapter forty-seven
Ellie
Cleo brought some lavender essential oil and a diffuser, and has been pumping it into the living room since they got here hours ago. Whoever said lavender is supposed to help you relax has never had to wait for their husband to come back from a dangerous mission.
Or maybe this is me relaxed in this scenario. Imagine me without the lavender.
I have been pacing across the living room of the safe house, off and on, for the past two hours, when Asher catches my eye. He’s grinning down at his phone like he hasn’t a care in the world.
“Why are you smiling?” I snap. Okay, that was a bit much. “I’m sorry, I’m just on edge and I don’t understand why you aren’t.”
“It’s not that I don’t care; it’s that I’m choosing not to think about it. If anyone can be trusted to stay safe, it’s Hunter. He’s annoyingly competent and cautious.”
That’s true. I take a deep breath, give the lavender another chance, and remind myself that he’s going to be fine. “So what’s so good on your phone?”
Cleo, who’s passing behind Asher’s chair with a plate of cheese and crackers, leans down and peeks at his phone when Asher doesn’t answer.
“A text from Celeste.” She straightens. “Celeste, as in Milky Way’s Celeste?”
Asher sighs. “Yes. We’ve become friends since I started helping her with her shelves and stuff.”
I’m about to ask for more details when my phone rings. It’s Hunter!
“Hunter?”
“Hey, Ells. It’s over. I’m alright. We’re all alright.”
I exhale and all the tension exits my body, then I collapse beside Cleo onto the worn plaid sofa. “Oh, thank God. And Dylan?”
“It was as bad as we thought. He’ll be gone for a long time.”
Relief. I feel like so much weight has lifted off my shoulders that I’ve floated up to the clouds.
“I’m coming to get you, Ells.”
“No. You rest, you’ve got to be exhausted. Most everything is packed up. We’ll head that way soon.”
“No, Angel. I couldn’t just sit around waiting for you. I’ve got some things I need to take care of, but I’ll make it quick.”
“Okay. If you’re sure. You’ll tell me what happened sometime?”
“Of course.” He sighs. “I sure wish y’all weren’t two hours away. I need to wrap my arms around both of you.”
“I know. But we’re fine. I guess I could send Asher and Cleo on home.”
“Wouldn’t you rather they stay? You’re safe either way. But when I get there, they can leave and we can celebrate. Just us.”
Is he saying what I think he’s saying? His voice definitely had a suggestive tone. “It’s only been three weeks since I had the baby. I can’t—”
“Oh. No. No. That’s not what I meant.” Hunter clears his throat.
My face flames and Cleo bursts out laughing. She’s clearly pieced together what just happened. Or she can hear him.
“What?” Asher asks.
I narrow my eyes at Cleo before she can open her mouth.
“Uh, huh. Okay, well. I can’t wait to see you.”
“Same. I love you, Ells.”
“I love you too.”
When there’s a knock at the door, two and a half hours later, Asher looks out the window and confirms it’s Hunter. I fling it open and there’s my husband. His eyes take me in like he’s never seen me. There’s a desperate need that I know is reflected in my own gaze.
He smiles as he glances behind me at Audrey asleep in Cleo’s arms.
“We’ll be somewhere else,” Cleo says, and I assume the three of them disappear into the house somewhere.
Hunter and I collide. He squeezes me tight as I bury my face in his chest.
We stand in silence for a moment until he pulls back to see my face. “You’re safe, Angel. You and Audrey are safe.”
I close my eyes when Hunter slides his hands over my neck, his thumbs tracing my jaw.
When our lips meet, there’s an urgency to his kiss, like he’s been bottling up the need for it over the last several hours.
But when I push up on my toes and press myself into him, a sigh escapes him and I feel him relax.
He slides his hands under my thighs and picks me up. His kisses become slow and languid, like we have all the time in the world to be here exploring this relatively new side of our relationship.
I slide my fingers into his hair and feel him smile against my lips. Now that Dylan is no longer a fixture in the back of his mind, happiness is radiating from him. He’s more like the Hunter I remember, and that makes me happy too.
“As much as I want to do this for hours,” Hunter says, breaking our kiss but continuing to hold me as he walks inside, closing the door behind him. “I need to hold Audrey.”
It was late when we got home; the three of us settling into bed in our room floating on drowsy clouds of happiness.
We slept—nighttime feedings aside—until ten this morning. After a breakfast of whatever we could find in the house, I suggested we invite the family for lunch at Hickory Log. I was really in the mood for barbecue.
Hunter had been in favor of the plan, but once he had to stop kissing me so we could leave, he’d been a little less supportive.
He meets me on my side of the truck so he can carry Audrey in. “I know everyone’s inside, but we could go home.” He jokes but his eyes tell me he’d love nothing more than to take us home and resume our earlier activities.
I bring my lips to meet his briefly, then pull back, but he catches me around the waist. “I’m hungry. My so-called breakfast is already gone. And I’m looking forward to barbecue.”
“If my wife wants barbecue, my wife gets barbecue.” He presses me against his body and kisses me more thoroughly. If I weren’t so hungry …
I turn, heading toward the back seat to get Audrey, and Hunter wraps his arms around me from behind. I’m loving it until he lays a hand on my belly.
“Oh, don’t touch there. It’s still very loose and jiggly. It’s not very attractive.”
“Trust me when I say I’m still very attracted to you. It’ll go back to where it was or it won’t. It doesn’t matter to me, personally. It’s not your torso that I’m in love with.”
I spin in his arms, leaving enough room to get my hands between us. “Would it be weird to say I’m in love with your torso?” I run both hands up his front, wishing it was skin instead of the flannel I’m touching.
He laughs. “That’s a lot of pressure. Do you know how much I like the hushpuppies here?”
I look up at my sweet husband, and there’s a lightness in his eyes that I haven’t seen since before he showed up and rescued me from Dylan. “They do have the best hushpuppies.” I sigh happily. “Alright, the pressure’s off. I don’t love you for your abs.”
He laughs then suddenly looks serious. He wraps his arms around me, holding me close then nuzzles my neck.
He whispers. “I love you, Ells. I was wildly attracted to you before. And I’m wildly attracted to you now.
And in a few weeks, or whenever you’re ready, I’ll make sure you know just how attractive you are. ”
I shiver. I expect to feel embarrassed, but standing here in his arms, everything feels right.
Cleo, Ansel and Cameron meet us outside the restaurant. Cleo looks tired.
“Hey,” I say and wrap my arms around my friend. “Thanks again for coming to the safe house. I know it was a big ask.”
“It wasn’t. I was glad to help any way I could.”
“I remember the first trimester well. It was a big ask. And I appreciate it so much.”
She smiles. “We’re actually leaving. I got in there and the smell started to make me sick.”
“I want to see Audrey,” Cameron says as he comes to a stop in front of her still in the car seat hanging from Hunter’s arm. “Does she always sleep?”
“Definitely not,” Hunter answers.
Ansel chuckles.
“But she does sleep a lot,” I add, ruffling Cameron’s red hair.
He cocks his head to the side, still considering her. “She’s kinda boring now, isn’t she? Maybe I can play with her in a year or something.”
I grin. “I’m sure she’d like that,” I assure Cameron before turning to his sister. “I hope you get to feeling better.”
“Thanks, bestie. Come on, kiddo.” Cleo takes Ansel’s hand and starts walking toward their car. “See y’all later, and happy Dylan-Is-Gone Day to all who celebrate.”
“Here, here!” I smile, but something twists inside me. I’m happy he’s gone, of course, but I can’t help but think of Audrey and how one day she’ll know her birth father is a criminal. One day, she might want to meet him. Will he still be in jail?
I glance down at her, then up to the man who will actually be her father, and I’m filled with gratitude. There’s no one better for her, for us, than Hunter.