Page 166 of The Life of Anna-Tenth Anniversary Edition: Act 2

He grinned and nodded. “Yes.” He leaned down and took a nipple into his mouth and she moaned. “Very much so.” He tugged the ring gently. “I got kinda fond of Travis’ ring.”

Shivers ran through Anna’s body as he licked and sucked at one breast and then the other. “Justin...”

“Mmm, nothing like women’s breasts,” he murmured as he kneaded them with a firm hand. “Your skin is so soft.” His tongue trailed down to her belly and nuzzled it with his nose. His fingers slipped under the waistband of her pants. “God, how many times I imagined doing this to you.” He looked up with a sheepish grin. “And then I kicked my own ass for thinking about you that way.”

Anna couldn’t say it surprised her, but she felt bad that he felt bad. “You don’t have to imagine anymore.”

He stopped, his eyes growing serious. “If Devin finds us before we get to New York, he’ll kill me, won’t he?”

A chill ran through Anna’s body at the thought. “He killed a boyfriend because he was taking my affections away from him.” She gave him a sad look. “That was the engagement ring in my box.”

He kissed the skin above her hip and then slid up to lie next to her. “I didn’t mean to kill the mood.”

Someone knocked at the door before she could respond. Justin sighed and stood, handing Anna her shirt. Before opening the door, he made sure she was dressed.

A guy about their age stood there, dressed in a white shirt and black vest, with a polite and professional smile on his face. “Hello, my name is Ken. I’ll be taking care of you on this leg of your journey.” He glanced at Anna and his cheeks reddened. “I wanted to find out what time you would like to go to breakfast. Or I can bring your breakfast here.”

“Yes, in here is preferred,” Justin said quickly. He glanced back at Anna and gave a shrug and a smile.

Ken nodded. “I’ll get you menus. Would you like your room changed into daytime mode?”

Justin looked back at Anna and grinned. “Yes, thank you.”

Ken went to get menus, and Anna and Justin looked them over while he removed the bedding and folded up the beds. He pulled out the folding table and took their orders. After he left, Anna sat on the couch and Justin sat next to her. “Why are we staying in here to eat?” she asked.

“I was told to keep you out of sight as much as possible.”

Anna nodded slowly. That was wise. Devin had eyes everywhere. She leaned her head against his chest and watched the scenery pass by.

The train pulled into Portland mid-afternoon, and they had an hour to wait before their next train left.

“Devin should know by now,” she said softly as they sat down in the waiting area of the station.

Justin squeezed her hand. “It’ll be okay. He wouldn’t guess that you’d go to Portland.”

Anna twisted her fingers together and watched the people meandering around the station. “Can you call and ask Travis?”

He shook his head. “I left my phone in San Francisco. We’ll get new phones once we get to New York, but no communication until we arrive. It’s too dangerous.”

Anna nodded and stared at the floor. “He’ll kill Ian,” she whispered. “Ian’ll die because of me.”

Justin put his arm around her shoulders. “Anna, Ian believed this was more important than him keeping his life. You need to be free.” He kissed her temple. “For so many reasons.”

Chapter 92

An hour later, Justin and Anna boarded the train to Chicago that afternoon with no problems. They had a private room again and kept to themselves. With a private bathroom and meals brought by a porter, there was no reason to leave. Justin had packed a stack of books to read, and they had also purchased puzzle books and playing cards in Portland to ensure they had plenty to do during the nearly two-day journey across the country. Most of the time, though, Anna was content to watch the world pass by their picture window until the sun went down. She’d never seen such sights.

They talked a lot. Anna gradually shared her story with Justin. Or at least the parts he didn’t already know. Travis had told him a lot, but spending two days confined together gave her plenty of time to share her entire story. He let her cry on his shoulder and smiled when she shared the happy parts.

“I think the only people who know as much as you do are Wilhelm and Kurt. Alex knew everything up until he died.” She fiddled with her ring and stared out the window.

“Why do you still wear your ring?”

Anna looked down at it and shrugged. “I didn’t take it off when I was on drugs and...” She shook her head. “It’s all I have left of Alex. Especially now.” She didn’t even have his picture anymore.

On Monday afternoon, they arrived at Chicago’s Union Station and had over four hours to wait until their New York-bound train departed.

Justin held Anna’s hand as they walked into the busy main waiting area. “I’d love to take you out to dinner, but I don’t think it’s safe to go out on the streets.” He sighed. “In fact, I think it’s best we find a little corner to sit in and stay there. They have security cameras that might pick up your features. Keep your head down. There’s no doubt Devin knows you’re gone now, and will definitely be looking for you.” He kissed her cheek and led her to a wooden bench along the side of the wall. “This is why we took the train. It’s the last place he’ll think to look.”

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