Jude:Me too!
Angela was glad to hear that. It made her feel like she wasn’t alone in the desire to be reunited.
She hurried up to her room and grabbed her thick coat, then went back downstairs. Watching the time, she lingered in the mudroom.
When it was five minutes from the estimated arrival time, Angela pulled on her coat and boots and left the house. The air was brisk, but not unbearably cold, so the walk to the helipad wasn’t too bad.
Maybe she shouldn’t be going to meet Jude there, but she couldn’t stay away.
She had just about reached the helipad when she heard the distant whomp-whomp of the helicopter. A black SUV and a large UTV were waiting there, and Derek waved to her when he spotted her.
Angela waved back, then went to stand at the edge of the helipad. She pulled her scarf up over her mouth and nose to keep them warm, then shoved her hands into her pockets.
When her gaze found the approaching helicopter in the sky, she didn’t look away, watching as it continued to grow in size until it hovered over the helipad.
Angela ducked her head as the wind whipped up as the machine slowly lowered to rest on the painted H on the helipad.When the propellers slowed, the door opened, and people began to disembark.
She spotted Jude right away, and though she wanted to rush over to him, she stayed glued to the spot. He was probably still on the clock, so she didn’t want to overstep more than she already had by showing up there.
As she watched Jude, her heart rate increased. He was followed out of the helicopter by Duncan, who laid his hand on Jude’s shoulder.
Jude turned to face him, and the pair appeared to have a brief conversation before Jude spoke to the other men who’d gotten off the helicopter with them.
Suddenly, he swung in her direction and walked toward her. Angela’s heart pounded against her ribs as he neared, and she couldn’t stop herself from running to him.
He didn’t hesitate to enfold her in his arms when they met partway on the helipad. Angela wrapped her arms around him and held him tight.
“I’m so glad you’re back,” she murmured. “I missed you so much.”
“I missed you too.” Jude seemed reluctant to let her go, and Angela was just fine with that.
“I hope it was okay that I came out to meet you.”
Jude loosened his hold on her enough so that he could look down at her. “Duncan told me I’m off the clock now, so it’s fine.”
She hugged him tight again, then stepped back. “Do you have to go to the security building?”
“Just to pick up my luggage later,” Jude said. “But Duncan said I should come for dinner with the family.”
“Oh, I’d like that very much.”
Jude bent and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Me too.”
Hand-in-hand, they wandered along the road back to the main house. Angela felt like she was walking on air.
It had been such a long week, but it was finally over. Jude was back, and Angela felt like she could breathe easy again.
CHAPTER THIRTY
For Jude, arriving back at the estate had felt like coming home in a way it never had before. Of course, he’d never had someone waiting for him to return. And he’d certainly never had someone waiting at the edge of the helipad the way Angela had been.
The sight of her there, bundled up against the cold, had settled something inside him. And when Duncan had told him that he was off the clock—essentially freeing him to reunite with Angela the way he wanted to—he’d wasted no time in going to her and taking her in his arms.
They’d ended up sharing dinner with the family, then they’d gone to the library, where Jude had turned the gas-powered fireplace on. In the cozy warmth of the space, they’d talked for a few hours, catching up on all the things that hadn’t been easy to discuss over text or during the few calls they’d had.
And every day over the next two weeks, they’d continued to spend time together. Those meet-ups had become the highlight of Jude’s day.
On several evenings, Angela had accompanied him when he’d worked out in the gym at the rec center. She’d even exercised herself a couple of times, but she had made it pretty clear that she much preferred to just watch him rather than participate herself.
