The thought that he might offer more... She tamped down even the idea. "I had hoped to stay with one of my sisters until I find work."
"Don't you have a pile of your daddy's oil money stashed away somewhere?"
"Not if I leave here."
His arms tightened around her protectively. "If you need anything..."
She smiled against his chest. How like a man to assume she was helpless. "Thank you, but I will be fine. Of course I have to pass licensure boards in the United States, but then I plan to find work."
"Licensure boards?"
Worries took a momentary back seat to the immediate pleasure of surprising him. "I am a nurse."
He didn't disappoint. He hefted her shoulders up far enough where she could see his shockâand pride. "A nurse? No shit?"
"No shit."
They laughed together as she cuddled back against his chest. "I graduated from the university last year." Took a cruise with her parents, so happy and carefree only weeks before her world exploded into hellish mayhem. "My bachelor's degree may not be as prestigious as my flight surgeon sister's medical degree, but I can support myself anywhere I choose to live."
"Anywhere?"
Had she pushed too hard for a sign from him? These man-woman dances were new to her. "But of course first I will need to take care of those licensure issues. So I imagine I will be spending some time with my sister in Virginia."
His chest rose and fell under hers and she could almost hear the thoughts shuffling around inside his head. Finally a deep sigh lifted her higher before he said, "Virginia, huh? I know this restaurant I like to go to whenever I am up in D.C., not too far away from where you'll be."
Her fingers convulsed against his arms with hope that maybe she could hold on to this moment after all. Have another such moment with this man. "A restaurant?"
"On the water. I think you'll like it."
He fell silent again. She sensed he would not be offering her any more just yet, but recognized the wealth of commitment in that simple statement coming from such a stark man. He kissed her hair, toyed with a lock. And just that fast, that simple, her heart tumbled.
She loved him. Truly loved this man.
She let the notion settle. Where was the joy? Instead she was terrified because the flash of love showering through her illuminated hundreds of tiny flaws and lies within her, leaving no unexposed corner to tuck them away.
Selfish wishes had no place here between them. This was no longer about her keeping her secrets. It had become about him, and being worthy of him, because somehow one day this man would see into her soul.
And she desperately wanted a someday with him.
There was only one way to have it. Tell him the truth now. She would have to pray that his innate sense of honor would understand she really had no choice before and that he would forgive her.
"Drew," she.repeated, savoring the feel of his name on her lips in case she never had the right to say it again. "I need to tell you something I have been keeping hidden."
Chapter 16
The daylight exposed everything.
Sydney closed herself in to hide from the bright sun's rays, her arms wrapped around her stomach. She hunched ever so slightly during her brief walk within the small fenced area. Changes in the schedule unsettled her. Why a lunchtime walk when they always, always, walked after supper during the cooler part of the day?
The high-noon rays baked her skin and the top of her head until sweat trickled between her breasts. Kayla and Phillip strolled a few feet ahead, side-by-side most of the time these days. Their growing bond seemed so obvious to her she feared their captors might see it, too. Exploit it. Soon, she wouldn't have to worry any longer.
Stored heat from the ground saturated up through the soles of her sandals. Still, she didn't dare complain or sacrifice the too brief taste of freedom.
Today more than ever she wanted to be outside, that much closer to Blake.
Scanning the stark stretch of rocky desert broken only by high, barbed fences, she marveled that he had made it in, stayed hidden even now. Where was he? She shifted left, right, tried to sense his eyes on her. Craved the connection.
For the first time in nearly four months, she dared dream about afterward. She wasn't naive enough to imagine she would escape this hell without some emotional scars. She wondered if it would be easier to move forward with someone who understood the nightmare as Phillip and Kayla had done. Or would any relationship need to be a fresh start with no connections or reminders of...everything.