Adele had pursed her lips but said nothing. Sewing up that man on her kitchen table had changed her perspective a little.
Now Jerry was trying to reconcile the crates and casks he’d counted tonight with the numbers in his ledger, and they weren’t lining up. Far too many rumrunners were getting waylaid—and more and more, they were getting hurt. Something had to change.
“You’re still up?” Adele appeared at his office door in her nightgown, her long blond hair tussled from sleep. He saw the dark circles under her eyes. He saw those an awful lot these days, and he hated himself for causing them.
Marrying Adele had been more than he’d ever dreamed. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe she was his, and that she loved him just as much as he loved her. Secretly he doubted that was possible, because to him, she was the sun. The last two months had been wonderful, full of loving and laughter, but the stress of the business just kept creeping in. He’d promised her a good, safe life, but he’d done just the opposite, and his guilt was weighing on both of them.
Their first argument had happened after the stabbing. The second, when he’d started sleeping with a rifle by the bed. She said she’d seen far too many times what those things could do, and she didn’t want to see it anymore. He couldn’t blame her, but he couldn’t give in on that point.
“I’ll come to bed soon.”
“I can’t sleep without you beside me,” she replied. Her gaze dropped to the dirt on his fingers. “You’ve been doing inventory again.” She sighed and left the room. “I’m going to pour you a bath.”
His mind might have been occupied by the ledger, but his body craved the bath. A few minutes later, he got out of his chair and switched off the desk lamp, though his eyes lingered on the numbers even in thedark. Pulling his shirt off over his head, he followed her into the bathroom. She sat beside the tub, her hair falling down her back, her fingers trailing in the water as she waited for him. He climbed in and melted into the heat. Almost immediately, he felt his muscles begin to relax after yet another day of hard physical labour.
“Lean forward,” she said softly, and when he did, she smoothed a wet cloth slowly over his back. He sighed, loving her touch as he always had. She was constantly healing him in one way or another.
“It isn’t going to stop,” she said gently. “Ernie will never stop coming after you. His anger for you has become an obsession. It’s like hecan’tstop. And it frightens me, Jerry.”
He didn’t say anything. It frightened him, too.
“Everything has gotten worse,” she continued, squeezing the cloth over one of his shoulders. “Dr. Knowles treats more stabbings and shootings each day, and I’ve seen a few of your own rumrunners in there. You may think you’re hiding me from the truth, but you can’t. And you know I don’t like guns in the house. Every time I see that rifle beside your pillow I want to cry.”
“I’m sorry, Adele. I’ll figure something out.”
The cloth pressed across to the other shoulder. A little more pressure. “I need to ask you to do something for me, Jerry.”
“Anything.”
“I want this to stop.”
“I’m trying. I’m working as hard as I can.”
“No,” she said, her hand paused behind his neck. “I mean I want this business to stop altogether. We have plenty of money. You could sell the rest to Dutchie or something.”
He frowned at her, incredulous. “I can’t do that.”
“Give me one good reason. Explain to me why this isn’t enough. You’re out there where anyone could kill you, and you’d never even know who it was. Haven’t we had enough of war?” She sat back, and he saw the tears in her eyes. God, he hated making her cry. “We have everything wecould ever want here. But if someone kills you, none of it is worth a cent. I can’t live without you, Jerry. Not again.”
He’d never really considered that his life mattered until she’d come along.
“Especially now,” she whispered.
He straightened. “What’s that mean?”
She took a deep, shaky breath. “I hate to add one more complication to our lives, but I’m afraid I have. I quit my job today.”
“What? Why? I thought you loved your job.”
She wiped away a tear, but she was smiling. “You’re gonna be a daddy, Jerry.”
His jaw dropped. “You’re pregnant?”
She nodded.
The bathwater sloshed against the sides of the tub as he reached for her. “Adele, why, that’s wonderful news. That’s, oh, I don’t even know what to say!”
She laughed at his confusion. “Are you happy about this?”
