Annie’s expression sobered. “That’s understandable.”
A weight settled on Angela’s chest at the thought of Jim and Craig and the threat they still presented to her and Kiara. Though she’d had plenty of security around her at the estate, and she hadn’t left the grounds at all for the week Jude had been gone, she still felt like she wasn’t as protected as she was when he was around.
When Annie’s phone chimed with an alert, she looked at the screen and smiled. “It’s Cole. I think I’m going to head home and chat with him.”
“Thanks for hanging out with me.”
“I enjoyed it. We’ll talk about the items for the website later.”
Angela nodded, then watched as Annie tapped out a message as she left the solarium, Nyla at her heels.
In the silence left behind, Angela picked up the knitting needles from her lap. She continued to work on her project until her own phone let her know she had received a text.
Jude:Just getting ready to leave NYC. We should be home around five.
Angela glanced at the time. It was almost eleven, so six hours.
Can’t wait to see you! I’ve missed you so much.
Jude:I’ve missed you too. Do you want to get some dinner later?
Angela smiled as she read his question.I’d love to.
She had no idea where they’d go, but most likely, Jude already had a plan in mind.
Jude:See you soon.
Angela set her phone down and resumed her knitting, but she couldn't focus on the stitches. Her mind kept wandering to Jude, to the hours that remained before she'd see him again. Six hours. It felt like it might as well be six days.
She'd never felt this way before, this constant ache when someone was absent.
There had been times when Jim had put her or Kiara in punishment for a day, forcing them apart for the duration. That separation had been horrible, and she had felt intense relief when they were reunited.
This separation from Jude had been different. It had been like an ache that nothing eased. However, the anticipation of being reunited had built throughout the week. And now, all she wanted was to see him again.
She’d always heard the saying that absence makes the heart grow fonder, but she’d never understood the full force of those words until now. The ache in her chest since Jude had left was more than mere longing. It was a constant, low-level humbeneath every moment, intensifying the closer she got to seeing Jude again.
Angela tried to distract herself with everything Annie had suggested—researching new knitting patterns, ideas for the website—but none of it dulled the restless anticipation inside of her.
She wondered if Jude missed her with the same intensity.
It was easy to imagine him focused and all-business while he was away, but she hoped there was at least some small space in his mind reserved for her, some private longing that mirrored her own. Maybe he’d never say it—Jude was not the effusive type—but sometimes she caught a softness in his eyes when he looked at her, and it made her hope all the harder.
She’d never been in love before, and the feelings she had for Jude were overwhelming.
She’d read about love in books—the epic, all-consuming kind that upended lives—but somehow she’d never expected to find herself there, sitting in a sun-warmed solarium, her hands stilled over an unfinished knitting project, heart thumping in anticipation of a man’s return.
It was simultaneously intoxicating and terrifying.
More than once over the past week, Angela had caught herself spiraling into worry: Did she care more for Jude than he cared for her? Was she too needy, too intense, too eager for the next message or phone call?
The rational part of her knew she was being silly—they had only just begun their relationship, and neither of them was the sort to rush headlong into declarations. Yet the fear persisted, a thin thread through the days since Jude had left.
She wanted to believe she could be loved the way she already loved Jude. But did he feel the same?
He was so contained, so measured in his affections. Sometimes she wondered if she was imagining the tenderness in his voice, or if his texts were short because he was busy or because he didn’t know what else to say. Maybe he was just humoring her. Maybe, once the novelty wore off, he’d be indifferent or, worse, disappointed.
The separation had increased those fears, and she’d prayed every day that God would take that fear from her and give her confidence in what she was building with Jude.
