Page 58 of Redemption's Inferno

She looked up worriedly. “We’re still going?”

“Of course.” His mind was already thinking ahead, though, and he was going to take the financial hit by not cancelling his reservation and simply making another one. All their friends knew where they were going tonight, and if someone was double-crossing him, he wouldn’t allow them such easy access.

“Go on,” Dante encouraged her. “We’ll take care of this.”

“Go right home, yeah?” Chains gripped her chin. “Don’t stop at the store or anything. Make sure you set the alarm when you’re inside the house.”

“But—”

“Please?” He put a tender hand on the tiny bump in her abdomen. “If not for me, for the baby.”

“All right.” She took his keys. “You’ll come home when you’re done? If you’re going to be a while, please text so I don’t worry.”

“Promise.”

* * *

Though everything was delicious, the incident with the car put a damper on their romantic evening and Emilie could see how much it had upset Chains. His shoulders were tight—even in his magnificent, new Brooks Brothers suit—and though he laughed and smiled, it never reached his eyes. He seemed to be on alert, constantly assessing the room and its occupants. Finally, after they’d had dessert, Emilie put her hand over his and waited for him to look at her.

“I know you’re upset about what happened today,” she said softly. “But why are we out if you’re not paying attention to me? We could have done that for free at home. And I wouldn’t be wearing these stupidly high heels that are killing my feet.”

He grimaced. “I’m sorry, love.”

“Do you want to go home?”

“No. We’re checked in to a hotel under one of Dante’s aliases and I’ve already got the key and had our bag delivered. No one knows where we’ll be except Dante and Becca, and they know not to tell anyone, not even Viggo and Jamie.”

She could practically see him emotionally distancing himself and she knew if she didn’t do something quickly, she would lose him. It wasn’t the way she’d wanted this to go, but she wasn’t sure what else to do. “Chains? Do you love me?”

His head snapped to attention and he met her gaze. “What?”

“You heard me. Do you love me?” She didn’t say anything else, letting her question sink in and watching the emotions flit across his face.

“Sweetheart, I…” He broke off, unable to answer, so many things running through his mind he wasn’t sure what to say.

“Either you do or you don’t.”

“Do you love me?” he countered, stalling for time and trying to get his emotions under control.

“Yes.” She smiled.

“Emilie.” He gripped her hand and brought it to his lips, gently caressing the skin as he kissed it, his eyes never leaving hers. “You weren’t supposed to steal my thunder.”

She blinked. “Wh-what?”

“I was supposed to say it first. Now you’ve put me on the spot.”

“You can say the words later—just answer yes or no.”

He scowled. “Seriously? Did I not just answer you?”

“Then stop thinking about which island in the South Pacific we can run off to and hide on. Stop thinking about what it would take for you to leave. Stop ending us before we’ve even said I love you. I’m not going anywhere. If someone is going to come after me, show me how to protect myself. Tell me where a safe house is. Give me some secret number you punch into a phone that signals the MI6 bat cave, which immediately summons help. Let’s come up with a code so if someone kidnaps me and allows me a phone call, I can give you a signal of some sort… Help me learn what I need to know so I can stand by your side. Because if you leave me now, not only will I never recover, I’ll hunt you down and tie off your nuts until they turn blue.” She didn’t blink the entire time she was talking and Chains could only smile.

“As far as I know,” he said, caressing her palm with his thumb, “MI6 doesn’t have a bat cave.” Though he wasn’t letting it show, this woman had just yanked his soul from his body and put it somewhere he would never find it. Her words moved him like nothing else ever had. Her blind devotion was perhaps a bit naïve, but the fact she’d obviously thought about this and knew they needed a plan affected him in a way he wasn’t prepared for. He did love her, but he hadn’t been planning to say the words tonight or anytime soon; he’d thought it was best to wait, see what happened. Fate wasn’t going along with his plan, however, and though she’d forced his hand now, it suddenly didn’t bother him in the least.

“You can’t run away,” she reminded him. “We both know how well that worked for me.”

“But you were running from a ghost,” he countered. “The shit in my past is a real threat.”

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