It makes me feel tense for an entirely different reason to think about that… Meeting her family. Sitting across from her parents at a dinner table. Shaking her father's hand and lying to his face about how we met. It's absurd and dangerous, and Sal will have a heart attack. But the way she's looking at me makes it clear this isn't negotiable.
"You want me to meet your family?"
"Yes. If we're doing this, then you don't get to be a shadow in my life. You have to be real. And that means being part of my world, not just pulling me into yours."
I stare at her, and my mind is already racing through the logistics. How do I explain who I am? What I do? How do I sit in a room with her family and act normal when I'm the man who kidnapped her and forced her to work for me?
But Riley's watching me, waiting for an answer, and I realize she's not going to back down on this.
"Alright," I finally say, "I'll meet them. But you have to understand that if we slip up or say the wrong thing, it could destroy everything."
"Then we won't slip up."
"It's not that simple."
"Yes, it is. We just have to be careful. We come up with a story, we stick to it, and we don't give them any reason to doubt us."
I shake my head, but I'm smiling despite myself. "You make it sound easy." Riley's gone from law-abiding citizen to partner in crime so easily.
"It's not easy. But it's worth it."
She's right. It's worth it. She's worth it.
"Come on," I say, sitting up and pulling her with me. "Let's take a shower. We can figure out the details later."
She laughs and follows me into the bathroom where I turn on the water and wait for it to heat up. Once steam fills the small space, Riley steps under the spray, tilting her head back and letting the water run through her hair. I step in behind her and reach for the shampoo, squeezing some into my palm as she turns to face me, and I start working it through her hair, my fingers gentle as I massage her scalp.
"What do you think they'll say when I show up?" she asks quietly.
"Your family?"
"Yeah, I mean, I've been gone and then after weeks of no contact I just walk in and tell them I'm fine?" I can definitely see her point. It's not normal, and everyone will have their questions.
"They'll be relieved, baby," I say as her eyes shut tightly.
"But what do I tell them?"
"We'll come up with something. Maybe you were in an accident and lost your memory." I pause as I think that one through. It even sounds too fake. "Maybe you were staying with a friend and your phone died and you couldn't reach them… We'll figure out a story that makes sense."
"Okay, Mr. Smarty Pants, then how do I explain you? Especially after my phone pinged in a warehouse owned by your family…."
I rinse the shampoo from her hair to give myself time to think, and she turns to face the spray, her eyes closed. I've never had todeal with this issue because I've never had any person I've taken captive remain alive after their usefulness ran its course. Every part of this is daunting.
"You tell them we met during your time away and that I helped you. That we fell in love."
"It's not exactly a lie," she mumbles.
"No. It's not."
She turns back to me and picks up the soap, lathering it in her hands before pressing them against my chest. I feel the tension in my shoulders start to ease as she works her way down my torso and around to my back. When her arms are fully wrapped around me, washing my back, I pull her against my body so her tits press on my soapy chest.
"The FBI's going to be a problem," I say. "They've been investigating your disappearance. If you suddenly show up and say you're fine, they're gonna want to know where you've been. And they're not going to accept a vague story about memory loss or dead phones."
"Then we give them something they can't disprove…" She looks thoughtful for a moment and then sighs. "I think we tell them the truth."
I laugh heartily and turn us both so the water is running over my soapy back and down between us. Riley closes her eyes against the spray and I take the opportunity to kiss her lightly.
"And you think it'll work?" I find it hard to imagine that telling the FBI everything Riley has done will go well.
