Chapter 14 #3
Was she? She covered her mouth to hide her expression. It wasn’t funny. But it kind of was. “You are rarely flustered, my husband.”
“It’s your fault, looking all…” He gestured to her as if it was obvious what he meant.
“Looking like what?”
“Like you do in those leggings. I bought them because I figured they’d fit, but wow, you should wear them all the time. Except not in front of other people. Just around the house, when we don’t have company.”
“You’re teasing me.”
“You started it.”
“What?” That wasn’t what she’d meant. “I am not…”
“If you say so.” But his eyes were still very dark.
“If you like them, then I will get more.”
“Great. Can we change the subject now?”
“I would only say one more thing.”
He nodded, and she got the feeling he wanted her to hurry up so they could stop talking about this, which she found very odd. Of the two of them, he’d been the bold one six years ago. He’d been the one to lift her and carry her to bed when she’d been too shy to initiate anything.
She shouldn’t need courage to speak boldly to her husband, but she gathered it anyway. “I would not mind if you touched me.”
He groaned. “Sweetheart.”
“What?”
“You’re not helping me focus.”
“What is there to focus on?”
He barked a laugh and reached for her hand. “We have stuff to do today, and what you’re referring to…that’s not on the list.”
“Perhaps it should be.”
“Please stop.” But his body wasn’t listening to his words because he pulled her to her feet and drew her into his arms so fast that she gasped.
She was still catching her breath when he backed her against the wall, wrapping an arm around her and tugging her close.
His eyes were burning when they met hers.
He cupped her face, and she leaned into his hand, wanting to close her eyes and experience the feeling of him there, but not wanting to miss anything.
She rose to her tiptoes and leaned in, sliding her hand over his shoulder, pulling him close.
He bent his head.
The phone rang on the table.
His exhale was half groan, and he touched his forehead to hers. “That.” His lips were a breath away from hers. “That’s why.”
It took her a moment to remember what they’d been talking about or why they’d wasted any time talking at all. “I thought there was another reason you didn’t want to be with me. Another woman.”
Something flashed in his expression, there and gone before she could name it. “You are the only woman I’ve ever loved.”
The phone rang again, and he stepped back and ran a hand down his face, then turned and grabbed it off the counter.
She leaned against the wall and tried to calm her buzzing skin and jumbled thoughts.
“It’s Michael.” Ethan accepted the call and tapped the speaker icon. “Hey.”
“Car’s ten minutes out.” Michael, as always, didn’t waste time on pleasantries. “You two ready?”
Ten minutes? She hadn’t realized they’d be leaving so soon. That explained what Ethan had wanted to focus on.
He met her eyes. “Yup. We’re ready.”
“It’s a long drive, so I want you moving ASAP. Driver goes by Chin. Your wife there?”
“I’m here.” She shifted to lean her hands on the back of her chair.
“You know the town pretty well?”
“The main road and the area around the hospital. I used to jog the trails.”
“Okay, good. I’ll get you more information as you get closer.”
“What about the supplies we need?” Ethan asked. “Her uniform, my papers?”
“I’m working on it. I want you two in and out of Fuyin today, before Lu Feng catches wind of you. He’s still sniffing around Changsha. That work? You two still good with the plan? If you’re not, you need to tell me now.”
She looked at Ethan, who seemed a little more ruffled than he’d been when he’d stepped out of his bedroom that morning. His eyes were still dark, but not with desire. He looked fierce and frightening and beautiful.
He held her gaze, and she heard again everything he’d said to her that morning. She didn’t blame him for being angry about all of this. If she could fix it any other way, she would.
But there was no other way.
Ethan’s shoulders dropped, and he shifted his attention to the phone on the counter. “We’re good to go.”
“Great. Car will be there in seven minutes.”
Michael ended the call, and the room suddenly felt quieter than it had before.
Ethan tucked the phone into his pocket, then held a hand out to her. When she took it, he drew her against him for one long moment without saying anything at all. She rested her cheek against his shirt and listened to his heart.
It was steadier than hers.
“Lord,” he said, “protect this woman.”
“And her husband,” Mei Lin added.
“Both of us. Help us get the evidence and escape without incident. And then get us out of China.”
“Amen.”
He held her a little tighter. Then he shifted, kissed the top of her head, and stepped back. “Let’s get our stuff together.”
She walked into the bedroom and grabbed her things.
He hadn’t slept away from her because he didn’t love her but because he wanted more than he thought she could give. That was all.
And if she’d seen anything else, it didn’t matter. She trusted her husband, and that was that.