Sarita runs up to me, her arms open for an embrace, but I hold up my hand to stop her. “You don’t want to do that.”
Her eyes widen as she takes in my scar, the fading bruises along my cheek and jaw, and the thin, red line across my collarbone. I purposely chose a blouse that didn’t hide it when I got dressed this morning. A little childish, but I don’t care.
“Dani, I am so sorry,” she says, her gaze riveted to my cheek. The burn is healing well—according to the doctor I saw yesterday—but I’ll have a scar half the width of my pinky finger and just as long for the rest of my life. “I didn’t know—“
“So, you didn’t bother to read my notes. Or call me. My phone was on. I was back in the States. Wouldn’t have been hard.”
Pushing past her with a small box under my arm, I head for my desk as she hurries after me. “You have to understand,” she says. “It was late and we were about to go to press without a front page story.”
“Oh, I understand.” I set the box down with more force than necessary and whirl on her. “Now it’s your turn. Because of what you did, a good man was arrested, put on a plane in full restraints, beaten multiple times, and locked in a cell so small, he couldn’t sit up or straighten his legs. Oh, and the whole cell block was kept at near-freezing temperatures. He was deprived of food and water and not allowed to sleep for almost three days. And the only reason he’s not still down there, the only reason he didn’tdiedown there, is that he has enough friends and family with connections—including me—to coordinate a rescue mission, risk their lives, and get him out.”
Sarita says nothing. Good.
“Understand this. I have no faith in this paper at the moment, and I likely never will.Youcould have killed all of us. For a story. I don’t want to see your face ever again. I’m going to pack up my desk and get the hell out of here.”
She nods, and when she heads back to her office, I scan the room to find a dozen people staring at me. The ones I want to keep in touch with already have a way to contact me. The rest…they’ll fade in my memories, replaced by new coworkers I’ll meet in a few days.
It only takes me ten minutes to dump my few personal items into the small box. My nameplate, a laminated copy of my first byline, two lipsticks, a tube of hand cream, and an emergency roll of deodorant. The final item? The picture of me, Austin, and Trevor outside my parents’ home.
I used to think the photo showed three happy people. Now I know the truth. Austin was happy. Trevor and I…we were in love. We just hadn’t admitted it. I can see it in how our heads gently angle towards one another. The look in our eyes. The closeness of our hands.
He broke my heart two months after that photo was taken. But with everything we just survived, my memories of that night don’t hurt so much anymore. What we have now is so much stronger than anything we could have had then.
We fought for our love and we survived. I set the picture in the box and stand up, taking one last look around. I’ll miss it here. But now, it’s time for me to go home.
* * *
Trevor
Her key rasping in the lock dissipates some of the tension keeping my shoulders locked tight. I’m out of my chair and at the door before she can do more than turn the knob.
I don’t know why today was so hard. It’s been ten days since we landed back in Boston and started carving out a life together. Just yesterday, we finished moving into this two-bedroom unit across the hall from my old place.
“Welcome home,” I say, my voice rough and strained. Easing the suitcase handle from her grip, I roll it into the bedroom where her half of the closet sits mostly empty.
“What’s wrong?” Dani follows me, and when I turn around, I almost slam right into her. Taking the opportunity, I wind my arms around her waist, trapping her and easing the constant ache I’ve carried since she left for the airport this morning and refused to let me drive her.
“I need to do this on my own, Trev. All of it. I promise, next time I have to fly somewhere, you can drop me off. Or come with me. But this…I need to face them on my own.”
Dani’s hands frame my face. “Trevor…”
“Nothing’s wrong, baby. Not anymore.”
“Try again, tough guy. I’m not buying it.” She flicks open the top button on my shirt and presses a kiss to my chest. “Your shoulders are like granite. And that’s nota testament to your superior fitness.”
Another button, another kiss, and I sink down onto the bed with her in my lap. “They’ve upped the salary on that job offer three times.”
Her derisive snort wrinkles her nose, and fuck. She’s the most beautiful woman in the world every day, but even more so in this moment. “Tomorrow, the movers are going to show up with all of my clothes, a coffee table, a desk for my home office, photo albums, and Mom and Dad’s wedding china. Maybethen, you’ll believe I’m really not going anywhere.”
I lay her down, slipping my hand under her shirt to find her tattoo. My fingers trace the slightly raised skin, finding her true north. Mine too. “I believe this.
“It’s a start,” she whispers against my neck. “Make love to me, Trevor.”
Her blouse slides up easily, and I kiss a line along the center of her stomach until I reach the bottom of her bra. “Gladly.”
Undressing Dani is one of my favorite things to do. Every time, I find a new spot that gives her goosebumps. Today, it’s the curve of her hip as I kiss my way to her mound. Her scent, her essence, surrounds me in our new bedroom with the dark purple comforter she picked out to go with my gray sheets.
My first taste has her moaning, and I pick up the pace, swirling my tongue through her folds. When I slip a finger inside of her, the moans turn into mewls and whimpers, and the only words I can understand are “more” and my name.
