“Office duties only. And just for a few hours. I spoke to the boss, and he said that was fine by him as long as I was up for it.”
“And are you?”
“Yes, if I can sit and watch shit daytime TV, I can sit in front of a computer.” I shrugged. “And I went for a gentle jog at lunchtime, no problem.” I flexed my bicep and laughed, making light of the situation. “I’ll be back to full fitness within a few weeks, you wait and see.”
“Mmm, okay then, but don’t exhaust yourself.”
I grabbed her around the waist and pulled her close. “Don’t baby me, baby.”
She laughed and looped her hands around my neck. “Okay, I just care about you, that’s all.”
“Care?”
“I love you.”
My heart squeezed. It felt so good to be loved, and treated like I was loved after everything I’d been through with Sarah. Sarah, who’d made me feel worthless and unlovable. “Well, I love you a whole lot, more than you can imagine. You should know that.”
She smiled, her cheeks balling. “You do?”
“Yes, surely you can tell.”
“That a big bad thug is in love with me…maybe.” She giggled.
I slid my hands to her ass and used her buttocks to drag her onto my body. “You know what I’m going to get tomorrow, from the station, don’t you?”
“What?”
“Think about it.”
“I don’t know…I…oh!” Her pupils dilated, something that always happened when she was thinking about sex. “Are you really? Can you?”
“Yep, a good sturdy pair so that I can make that dream of yours come true.”
She wriggled. Little minx knew just how to grind her pelvis onto mine to give me a semi.
“Be careful,” I growled against her ear, “or I’ll have you over the counter right now and dinner will burn.”
She brushed my hair back from my face, smiled, but then it dropped.
“What’s up?” I hated to see anything other than a smile on her face.
She swallowed and glanced away.
“Hey.” I cupped her chin and turned her back to face me. “Start talking.”
“I just…I’ve been thinking.”
“About what?”
She sighed, a small, tight sound that was laced with stress. “Jeremy.”
“Okay.” I paused. “And what have you been thinking?”
“That maybe I should try and find him. He’s my twin, after all, and although awful things would have happened if I’d stayed with The Way Forward, or at least I think they would have, they didn’t actually happen. They didn’t happen at all. Perhaps…I’ve been…”
“Hasty? You’re thinking maybe he wouldn’t have gone through with it?” I stroked the back of my thumb down her cheek. I was eternally fascinated by how soft her skin was. “You can’t hate someone for something that didn’t happen. Something he was told to do but didn’t.”
“I know, that’s the way my thoughts have gone lately, I just…”
