“My mom says that too.” He really liked the color he’d put in her face. Liked this casual banter as well.
Leighton laughed. “She sounds like a very smart woman.”
Great job ruining the moment, Apollo. But at least she wasn’t running off or shoving him away. “My mom is pretty amazing.” He visually traced Leighton’s face, thought of all she’d been through. All she’d fought and endured, yet came out stronger, tougher. “You’re a lot like her.” He smoothed the hair around her face. “Right down to your dark hair.”
“I can’t believe kissing me didn’t hurt your jaw,” she said.
“If you’re really in doubt, we can try again so you’re sure.” He stole another kiss.
She sniffed and looked down, more color infusing her olive skin. “And here I thought you didn’t want me.”
He frowned. “Do what?”
“When you said you ‘didn’t want’ and got interrupted—I thought it was me you didn’t want.”
He sniffed and shook his head. “No…I’d planned to say I didn’t want to lose you.”
Lips parting in surprise, she studied him.
“But then I got gun-shy, wasn’t sure I had you to lose.” He stroked her cheek. “You are so beautiful.”
“Apollo—”
“How about ‘Owen’ in our kissing moments?”
She arched a rueful eyebrow at him. “Plural?”
“If that means more than one, yes, please.”
This time, she gave a full-on belly laugh, then rested her head back on his arm that hooked around behind her, the brush of her hair taunting him. “I’m so glad we’ve had time together, that we could relax. That I could find out you’re so funny.” She reached up and tousled his hair, which he felt to his core. “Handsome, despite the bleached hair.”
Hold up. “You do know that was only done so you wouldn’t recognize me when I walked into the palace, right?” he said quietly, still attentive to the operational security thing.
“What idiot thought bleached hair would do that?”
Owen nearly busted a stitch or two laughing. He had to remember to tell Pike she’d called him an idiot. But…was that a curled lip? Disgust? “You don’t like the bleached hair?”
She wrinkled her nose.
The simple gesture seemed as if dark storm clouds had hidden the sun from him. “I’ll shave it at first chance.”
She gave a disbelieving laugh, then straightened to look him head-on. Considered him. “You’re not serious, are you?”
“Anything that gets in the way of you looking at me how you were a minute ago has to go.”
Sentimentality coiled through her pretty features. She touched his face. Eyed the stitches on his jaw. “You nearly died today protecting me… I did nothing to protect you?—”
“Not your job. Besides, remember the elephants—” Owen jerked straight. “Elephant!”
Leighton eyed him as he dug in his pocket. “What?—”
“I got you something. Completely forgot about it.” He tugged it out and let a necklace of braided black cords with a charm that had an elephant inside a ring dangle before her.
Her eyes went all melty as she reached for it. “The circle of protection,” she murmured, her words thick with emotion. She slipped the necklace on and touched the charm at the hollow of her throat. “How does it look?”
“Perfect.”
“This is so sweet,” she said, fingering the elephant. “Thank you—but how? You didn’t have time or money.”
