Page 63 of Captive Heart

Micah stilled. "Is that an offer or a question?" he asked, trying to keep things light.

Melody shrugged. "Both, I guess. I want to make you happy, to give you what you need."

Micah smiled and felt it all the way to his soul. "There's time enough for that sort of thing, sweetheart. Let's take it slowly and jump one hurdle at a time."

“I think I’d like to try some of that stuff with you," she admitted shyly, not quite brave enough to look him in the eye.

Micah reached up and cupped her face in his palms, pulling her down while her hair spilled around them like a silken curtain, cutting them off from the outside world, so he could communicate his appreciation with a kiss.

"We'll get there, sweetheart, we have all the time in the world to explore this thing between us," he whispered against her mouth before he gave in to the urge to make her his once more.

After years of avoiding any kind of commitment because of the way he felt he'd let Sara down, he was surprised to realise that he meant it.

40

Melody felt as if she was living in her own little bubble of happiness. Okay, so maybe it hadn't been that long, only a little over a week, but so far, everything had been perfect.

So perfect, that all the different feelings she’d been harbouring about Micah were blending and coalescing until she finally recognised them for what they were.

Sure, there had been attraction and gratitude and, if she was honest, no small amount of reliance as well as a feeling of security which was impossible to quantify. But she had deliberately sifted through them, thanks to Micah's constant cautioning of her motivation.

She had poked and probed at each individual emotion for its cause and durability, and in the end, there had only been one viable conclusion.

She loved him.

She wanted to spend the rest of her life right there next to him, looking after him, learning from him, healing with him, creating a family with him. Even if that family turned out to be just the two of them.

Would he be content with that? Or would he want more? Would he want the children she might not be able to give him?

If she told him how she felt, would he still think she was still motivated only by gratitude? Would her confessions of love frighten him away? She was desperate to tell him how she felt, but for the first time in her life, a different kind of fear kept her quiet.

In the meantime, Micah was affectionate and attentive. Every night, he joined her in the big bed in the boudoir, even if they didn't have sex, and somehow that meant even more to her than the delights he continued to show her and teach her about. It was little things like that which had her falling even deeper than she thought possible.

Perfect.

Right up until yesterday anyway.

Last night, he had sent her off to bed alone with some excuse about staying up late and not wanting to disturb her. But the fact that he hadn't joined her, was the thing that disturbed her the most. She’d spent almost the entire night awake and unsettled, tossing and turning in a vain attempt to sleep, and second guessing anything and everything that popped into her mind.

Now she felt tired, both physically and emotionally, and Micah's attitude this morning wasn't helping matters, either.

He was unusually withdrawn, and even though it was a Tuesday and officially one of his days off, he had holed himself up in his office, as if he didn't want to see her or speak with her.

It wouldn't have been quite so bad if he'd gone out for the day. At least then, she wouldn't have felt quite so deliberately side-lined.

Melody tried not to let it upset her. The last ten days had been pretty full on after all. He probably just needed a little bit of alone time. She wasn't completely successful in her efforts, though, and doubts and uncertainties bombarded her usual common sense and pragmatism, setting her nerves on edge and pushing her into imagining all kinds of unpleasant scenarios.

Had he had enough of her? Was he bored with their relationship? Did she do something wrong? Was she too needy? Had she not been enough to satisfy him? Was she just too damaged?

She tried to quell the nasty little voices in her head, but they were unappeasable, whispering scenario after malicious scenario until her head was whirling and she just couldn't sit at a loose end any longer, with so many destructive thoughts pounding in her head.

Determined not to give in to her despondency and head back to bed like a sulky child, Melody decided to make a start on restocking the bar. The shipment had come in that morning but wasn't usually dealt with until the following day. Melody had helped Micah with the job several times now, so she knew what she was doing.

Hell, if he really was busy, then at least she'd be helping him out. And the job required enough attention that it would take her mind off of the other stuff. She hoped!

Three hours later, Melody collapsed into one of the comfy chairs in the seating area adjacent to the bar with a bottle of water. It had taken longer than she expected, doing it on her own, and she still wasn't so proficient that she was quick at it.

Still, it had helped somewhat, since she'd had to concentrate on where everything went as well as checking through the packing slip.

---