Page 31 of A Matter of Time
“Shhh. Don’t say anything. This is perfect without words.”
Held securely in his arms, Angelina didn’t want to hear any false declarations of love. Didn’t men always say they loved you, after they had sex? Saying it now would mean nothing to her and besides, she had made it clear she wasn’t looking for love. Richard had a body as close to physical perfection as she had ever seen and she was certain she wanted to be with him because she was drawn in by sheer animal magnetism, not by love. Now that she had experienced his lovemaking, she was certain she could move on from the heated desire she had been experiencing when she was around him. They would be friends, as they’d agreed, but nothing more. She wouldn’t open her heart to him, not when she knew he would no doubt move on, as soon as the next-best-thing came along. Experience had shown this was always the case.
If she examined her emotions more closely, Angelina knew she was the one who sabotaged her relationships – in every single instance. She’d never given any man the opportunity for more than a casual dalliance, because she truly believed, deep down, that no man would stay with her for the long haul. Why should Richard be any different?Because he is,her mind quietly whispered.
Angry with herself, Angelina disentangled herself from Richard and stood up.
“Where are you going, love?” Richard propped himself up on his elbows to watch her.
“I’ll be right back.” She grabbed her robe and headed out toward the kitchen. She needed a few minutes away from him, to gather her thoughts. Lying next to him she’d been overcome with emotions which were clouding her thoughts, so she decided a little space was best right now. Pouring herself a glass of water Angelina sat at the kitchen table and gave her traitorous heart a stern lecture.I can’t become attached to him. He told me so himself. He’s not staying; he’s going to leave soon.
Richard intuitively knewAngelina was at odds with herself. They had agreed that they would only be friends. She had insisted that was what she wanted, and yet she was the one who had sent them down this path. She was the one who’d drawn him into her bedroom, she’d clearly wanted to make love with him and now, Richard suspected she was experiencing remorse over the decision. He decided he wouldn’t push her. This was something she had to come to terms with on her own and he would wait for her to decide on their way forward, one way or the other. He lay there in the silky, soft sheets, longing to have her beside him, but he wouldn’t pressure her.
He lay awake for more than half an hour, before the door opened softly, revealing Angelina’s slight figure in a shaft of light from the hallway. “I’ve brought you some water,” she announced, holding out a glass.
He let the cool liquid slide down his throat, realizing he had been parched. How sweet it was, of her to think of him. He placed the glass down and opened his arms to her, holding his breath to see how she would react. Angelina climbed into the bed and lay across his chest and Richard wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to his heart. He gently kissed the top of her head and closed his eyes. Sleeping with her in his arms was everything he wanted at this moment. She had granted him this opportunity, but what would the morning bring?
Chapter 16
The sun was barelyvisible through the coastal fog, but as it peeked through the windows, Richard knew morning had indeed arrived and he’d spent the entire night with Angelina in his arms. He lay perfectly still, not wanting to disturb her, as the nights events came flooding back. He’d slept fitfully, spending most of the night reliving their love making and wanting to do it again, but Angelina had put the wall up around herself once again.
He had also listened for anything out of the ordinary that might break the silence of the night, remembering their intruder. The first order of business today was to find out who was following Angelina and why. With that thought in mind, he carefully got up from the bed without disturbing her. His gaze fell on her face for a long moment and he was quite certain her angelic beauty was unparalleled. Tearing himself away, Richard threw on his jeans and marched across the hall to the room where Nick was sleeping.
“Nick!” He shook his friend who, for all intents and purposes, remained completely unresponsive. “Nick!” He tried again, pulling off the blanket and removing the pillow from beneath Nick’s head.
A groan from the bed confirmed he had made progress. “What do ye want of me?” Nick rolled onto his back and covered his eyes with his arm. “’Tis too bloody early for this, Richard.”
“Angelina’s in danger! I must speak with you now.” Richard stood upright, towering over Nick, his eyes blazing with the desire to solve this problem. He nudged Nick with his foot, to prevent him from falling back to sleep.
“Alright, alright! I’m awake. What’s this ye say about Angelina being in danger?” Nick sat upright, before grabbing his head. Richard knew he was probably suffering the ill effects of all the drinking he’d done the day before. “Water, please?” he managed to croak out.
“I’ll get the water; you get up and meet me in the kitchen. Whatever you do, don’t go back to sleep,” Richard threatened.
Richard went into the kitchen to pour a glass of water and waited impatiently for Nick. He sat at the small kitchen table and tapped his fingers on the tabletop in irritation. Finally, Nick appeared and sank into a chair opposite Richard, who shoved the glass of water in his direction.
“I can see yer angry, Richard, but do not misplace yer anger on me. I’m here now and I’m listening. Tell me what’s got a thistle up yer arse.” Nick took a long drink of water before placing the glass back down on the table and meeting Richard’s glare with one of his own.
Richard proceeded to tell Nick what had happened the night before and how Angelina thought someone had been following her for a while. “Can you think of anyone who might want to follow Angelina?”
Nick appeared to be contemplating what Richard had just told him, and took a minute or two to respond. “No. I cannae think of anyone,” he finally admitted. He joined Richard in rhythmically tapping the table with his fingers.
“We must find out who and why. We cannot allow any harm to come to her.”
“Calm yerself. We’ll keep her safe. One of us must be with her at all times, until we know exactly what is going on.” Nick got up and refilled his glass before he began rummaging through the cabinets, obviously in search of something.
Angelina’s voice came from the doorway, startling Richard. “Aspirin are in the cabinet next to the sink. Just above the glasses.” She retrieved the coffee pot from the counter and eyed the two men. “Coffee?”
Angelina had caughtthe tail end of their conversation and she wasn’t happy.
She began preparing the coffee and from the corner of her eye, saw that Nick had found what he needed for his hangover. “I can take care of myself, you know,” she announced, irritated that these men were planning to handle this situation as if she were a helpless female. “I heard what you were saying and it’s not necessary for anyone to stay with me. You’ve seen me fight.”
“Yes, we have, but that doesn’t mean that you’ll never come upon an opponent who could overwhelm you and do you harm. And it may not be a single attacker, whomever is after you might send more than one man to do the job.” Richard seemed to be visibly gauging her reaction before he continued. “It could happen to any of us, Angelina, not only you. I’m not suggesting that because you’re a woman, you need our protection. All I’m saying is there is strength in numbers. We are stronger together than we are apart.”
She had to admit he made sense, but it went against everything she believed in to need a man’s help with anything. She silently continued working on breakfast, giving herself time to ponder what he’d just said.
The difficulty was, she wasn’t certain shewantedto have Richard around all the time. While she had been happy only moments before about being wrapped protectively in Richard’s arms all night and the earth shattering love making that she’d experienced, she wasn’t sure what to do about Richard in the long term. One minute he was the one holding back and then it seemed it was Angelina who was back-pedaling. This back and forth volley of emotions was driving her crazy.
They both needed to make up their minds about what they wanted and put an end to their mutual suffering. A casual fling might work for her, but she had the feeling that wasn’t what Richard wanted. It would be all or nothing for him and she wasn’t sure she could do that. She never had before and even though what she felt for him was different to anything she’d felt for anyone in her past, she was afraid to make herself vulnerable to any man, even Richard. And the prospect of having Richard babysitting her while this stalker was following her – well, she certainly didn’t like that idea. She needed time and space to figure things out.
