“I know,” she said. “But we’re finding it a bit of a challenge to just sit around with nothing to do. That’s not how we’ve lived our lives.”
“Just try to think of this time as a vacation,” Jude said. “An extended vacation while you figure out what to do next.”
“So we should just sleep late and lounge around the pool reading?”
“Well, since the pool is indoors, you could do that.”
“And what a pool it is,” she said.
“Duncan doesn’t do anything by half measures,” Jude told her.
“I’m coming to understand that. I mean, he wants to build us ahouse.”
“You do realize that he has an ulterior motive in doing that, right?”
Angela glanced at him as she slowed to take a curve. “He wants to keep us close by?”
“That’s part of it,” Jude said. “But keeping you here on the estate also means it’s easier to keep you safe. The estate is more secure than any other place he lives. So as long as you’re on the estate, he doesn’t have to worry about your safety.”
“And that’s why Annie lives here too?”
“It is. She wanted to move out on her own, but Duncan didn’t want her to move away from the estate. Her cabin was the compromise.”
“Has Duncan made any sort of decision about letting people know about me?” she asked. “So we can go into Serenity instead of having to go to Coeur d’Alene every time we want to buy something?”
“He hasn’t let me know anything,” Jude said. “I’ll talk to him again and see what he’s thinking.”
He suspected that she wasn’t keen to challenge Duncan if he put her off. Annie had no problem challenging her dad on things she didn’t like, but he knew that Angela didn’t have the same confidence in her relationship with him.
Hopefully, that would come in time.
Jude watched her profile as she concentrated on driving. The afternoon sun caught in her light brown hair, highlighting subtle gold strands he hadn't noticed before. He forced himself to look away.
“You’re doing really well,” he said as she passed the house again.
He’d thought Kiara might be standing outside waiting, but she wasn’t.
"I've always been good at following instructions."
The simple statement carried a weight that made Jude's chest tighten. He wondered how much of her life had been spent following instructions out of fear of punishment.
As they rounded a curve in the road, Angela spoke again. "I'm sorry about how I acted after our shopping trip. It was childish."
Jude hadn't expected an apology. If anyone should be apologizing, it was him. "You have nothing to be sorry for."
"I do though." She glanced at him briefly before returning her attention to the road. "I made things awkward by asking personal questions, and then I got upset when you gave me honest answers."
"Angela—"
"It's okay," she continued. "I understand your position. I just… I need to keep things professional too. I don't want to make your job harder than it needs to be."
The words hit Jude like a physical blow. She was trying to protect him from her own feelings, putting his comfort above her own hurt. It was so typical of what he was coming to know about Angela—selfless even when she was in pain.
"Pull over," he said quietly.
Angela's eyes widened in alarm. "Did I do something wrong?"
"No. Just… please. Pull over."
