Waking her up was something he hated to do. It was obvious she was exhausted, and she had to come back here again in the early morning. Easing out from under her, he waited for a moment to see if she’d wake up. Her eyes stayed closed, her face so peaceful. Bandit rested near the fireplace, and the kittens were curled up together in the laundry basket on the old blanket inside it. If Chelsea went home, she’d have to carry the kittens and the leash for the dog. At this time of night and being tired—no, he couldn’t do it to her.
Kneeling next to the couch, he gazed at her sleeping face. God, she was so beautiful. So perfect in sleep. Could they get her back to where she was before? Her figure was already filling out with the meals she’d been eating with them, and her complexion had started to glow again. The pasty, white, sick look was easing away.
“Oh, pixie, you don’t know how much I’ve missed you.” Leaning down, he kissed her cheek. When she didn’t stir, he whispered, “How much I love you.”
After placing another kiss to her forehead, he stood, covered her with one of the fort blankets, then set about locking up and shutting off the TV. One small light was left on in case she woke up disoriented, but after a full day with an almost four-year-old, she had to be tired.
It was impossible to move away, but he had to work tomorrow. His job required his full attention, or it could mean danger to many. Touching her cheek one last time, he finally crept up the stairs.
Chelsea opened her eyes as the creek of the front door sounded. Disoriented, she glanced around. Theo’s house. His couch. They’d been watching a movie, and she must have fallen asleep. And he’d left her here?
As Theo zipped in, she pulled herself to sitting and shrugged off the blanket he must have thrown over her. God, he looked good. Sweaty t-shirt clinging to his lean muscles and shorts showcasing his strong calves and thighs
“Hey, good morning. Did you sleep all right?”
Pushing her hair out of her eyes, she nodded, still groggy.
Bandit came in behind him on a leash and trotted over for a scratch.
“It was late, and you fell asleep. I didn’t have the heart to wake you, especially since you were coming right back here this morning. Hope that’s all right.”
“Yeah. You went for a run?” He’d done that almost every morning when they were together.
Moving toward the kitchen, he smiled at her. “I figured, since you were here with Jordan, it would be fine. I took the dog. Thought he could use the exercise. Good thing, too, since a car almost ran me off the road. Bandit jumped up and pushed me to the side. Someone who hadn’t had enough coffee yet, apparently. Normally, I don’t get a chance to go in the mornings. I’ll sometimes do a run on my lunch or after work if Jordan goes with Angie or to a friend’s.”
He’d given up so much for Jordan. She should have been here to help. If only she’d been stronger. Stood up to her father better. Stood up to him at all.
A few moments later, he popped back through the kitchen doorway. “I put coffee on and am heading up to take a shower. Do you need anything?”
She glanced down at her rumpled clothes and frowned.
Theo stepped closer and her nerves tingled. “Some of your clothes are still upstairs in that little dresser in the corner.”
He’d kept her clothes? Why would he have done that?
When she heard the shower start, she dashed upstairs into his room and over to the corner dresser. Opening the drawers, her heart leaped. It was everything she’d left here. Including her underwear and a few bras. Like it hadn’t even been touched. Well, except the silky nightgown she’d worn after they got married. That was in disarray as if it had been shoved in hastily.
Reaching inside, she picked out a pair of capris and a short sleeve top. The weather was supposed to be fairly warm today. The lacy bra and panties she chose were so unlike what she’d worn at the estate in Westchester. There had been no need for anything sexy there. Was there a need for it now? Doubtful. It would perhaps give her some confidence. Something she’d been sorely lacking in lately.
As she dropped the clothes on the large double bed, the bathroom door opened, and Theo appeared with a beige towel wrapped around his waist. Holy cow. The man had always been gorgeous, but the five years apart had definitely matured him. She turned away, not wanting to stare. Well, she did want to stare, wanted to study him like an art student studies museum paintings, but things were still too awkward.
“You found the clothes. Good. Let me throw on my uniform, and you can use the room to change.”
When the closet door opened, she turned around to sneak a peek. The sight stopped her cold. Beside his pressed olive green pants and gray shirts hung her wedding dress.
“You kept it.” Her voice was barely above a whisper. What did this mean?
When she’d turned away, he had slipped on a pair of boxer briefs, and he now pulled on his uniform pants.
“I couldn’t very well throw your wedding dress away, pixie.” The torment in his eyes slashed through her, uniting with her pain to intensify it.
“You had every right to hate me after what you thought I did, abandoning our daughter.”
Snapping his pants and buckling his belt, he advanced. “I won’t lie and say it never bothered me, but even when I was walking all night around the house when Jordan was colicky, I never hated you.”
A few of her sundresses hung behind the lacy peach one. “You kept all my clothes.” Confusion drifted through her mind, making things foggy.
She startled when his fingers touched her cheek. They felt wonderful as they caressed from her forehead to her chin.
