Page 3

~ SAM ~

I rolled her onto her side, her back to my chest, slipped an arm over her waist, cupped her breast, buried my nose in her neck, and breathed her in.

A strange thing happened as we lay there silently. Our breathing began to sync. Was she aware of it?

I didn’t want to move and break the spell. It was incredible to me, looking back over the past few weeks and realizing where it had brought us.

God makes everything work together for the good of those who love Him and follow His purpose for them… It was a verse I’d taught a dozen times, and an ongoing debate with the guys in the prison.

How can this be good? The question was always delivered with a sneer and a hand waved towards the walls around us.

Even outside, in the real world, the accusation arose again and again, usually wailed when a person felt like their life was falling apart.

How can this be good?

It was a question I’d been asking God from the second I knew Bridget had given me up to the Feds .

No one ever liked the answer. Including me: Sometimes it takes a hard voyage to reach a great destination. But in my experience, it was always worth the journey.

Of course, that was easy to say right now, skin-to-thrumming-skin with my wife in a fancy hotel room several hours drive from anyone who’d care to break our peace. It would feel a lot more shaky in a few days when we had to go back and be apart again.

Yet… right now, we were here . And I wouldn’t change this place for anything.

Bridget’s breathing had slowed and evened out, but when I thoughtlessly squeezed her tighter against me, she sucked in, then stretched.

“That was awesome,” she murmured, putting her hand on my arm. I nodded against her neck, stroking my hand up and down her body, trailing fingers along that beautiful dip in her waist, over her hip, down her thigh, then back up.

I thought she might go back to sleep, but a minute later she gave a heavy sigh. I had one arm under her head which left that limb sticking out in front of her, my hand slack. She played with my thumb, tracing the lines in my hand, then flicking my nail.

And a minute after that, the rest of her got twitchy.

“You okay?” I murmured in her ear, a tiny niggle of unease starting in my chest.

She gripped my hand and nodded. But she stayed quiet.

“Talk to me, Bridge,” I said, pulling back to roll her over to face me.

She came willingly, but didn’t meet my eyes until I tipped up her chin and growled at her.

Then she huffed a little laugh, but the smile fell away quickly. Her eyes stayed on mine for a moment, then dropped to where she played a hand up and down my chest.

“I’m scared,” she said quietly.

I blinked. She never admitted when she was scared in the moment. I was half convinced she wasn’t capable of fear.

“Scared of what?”

“Scared I’ll fuck this up,” she mumbled, her chin dropping further like she was ashamed. “Scared I already fucked it up by getting you caught. Scared you’ll end up back in prison and it will be my fault. ”

It all came rushing back in then—how I’d broken my own rules and come after her, desperate to make her see that her life was worth living. Only to discover that she’d set a trap for me and there was an FBI team waiting to arrest me.

The bonfire of anger and resentment I’d felt that night burned in my throat, but I swallowed it back.

Either she felt me tense, or she perceived that I was still grappling with it, because she lifted her eyes hesitantly and put her little hand to my face. “I didn’t know it was you, Sam. I really didn’t. I would never have—”

“I know,” I muttered. “You don’t have to keep saying it. I know.”

“But that’s the thing. I kinda do. Because… because I’m afraid you’re going to hate me if this goes the wrong way.”

I sighed—it was exactly what I feared, too. But I had a lot more practice than her at finding peace and security despite the circumstances. And I knew picking apart all the ways I could blame someone else for the shit in my life wasn’t going to help. I had as much responsibility as she did about getting to this place. If I hadn’t been dabbling in this dark stuff, convinced I’d never find a way to make peace between the two sides of myself, we wouldn’t be here.

But then, we wouldn’t be here.

I tightened my grip on her and pulled her closer against me. When she sighed again, I tipped up her chin and forced her to meet my eyes again.

“We’re married now. They can’t force either of us to testify. We’ll stay silent about this until they take us to Court and then they’ll have no choice but to go forward. They don’t have a case without you, Bridget.”

She nodded and her hand slipped around my neck, clinging like she was afraid I’d pull away. But her eyes were dark.

“I never wanted to do this to you.”

I needed a breath to push the darkness and rage of Cain aside before I could answer her with the forgiveness I’d want if I’d made that mistake.

“Let’s get this clear for the last time, babe. I know you didn’t plan to get me put away. But it’s a risk now. We aren’t guaranteed anything. That means we have to make the most of the time we’ve got. ”

She inhaled deeply. “What will we do when we go home? It’s going to be months until the case starts.”

God, my skin felt too tight at that thought. But I did my best to stay close and calm. “We’ll both do everything we can to get to the end. Me free, you no longer having to work with Jeremy. Between now and then we’ll do nothing but be honest . Be the most reliable and attentive Defendant and witness ever. Our lawyers will love us, because we’ll do whatever they tell us to do in the prep. No one’s going to think to ask if we got married on the way, you know that.”

Bridget’s lips twisted. “Jeremy says he’s going to coach me on my testimony.”

I wanted to punch that fucker in the ear. “So, let him coach you,” I growled reluctantly. “You won’t lie. Be compliant. Be yourself. It’s only once we get into the courtroom that you have to refuse… all we can do then is pray.”

Bridget snorted and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, because God’s going to walk into the Courtroom and demand your release.”

“No, Bridget. Because He knows things we don’t, and He’ll show us the way—”

“Court isn’t the bible, Sam,” she said tightly, pushing out of my arms and rolling over to get out of bed. “This whole thing is in the hands of very flawed people.” She walked quickly into the bathroom. The door of the shower rumbled, then water rushed. I lay there, waiting while she showered off. She was back in a couple minutes, the hair at her temples damp as she picked up yesterday’s jeans and started putting them on.

The fact that she wouldn’t meet my eyes was bothering me. I sat up, keeping my eyes on her, waiting for her to connect.

But she was sinking deeper. I’d watched her do it a dozen times—with me, by herself, with others around. She had this place she went in her head, where she pulled away from the real world.

When she yanked a sweatshirt on after the jeans—no bra—and turned away, I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and caught her arm, tugging her back to stand between my knees and making her come back to me.

“Bridge… we’re in this together now, right?”

She nodded, but there was something wary in her eyes .

I didn’t break eye contact. I couldn’t—she’d flee. I could see it. Her movements were getting jerky, and even standing here, one hand on my thigh and her eyes caught in mine, one of her legs jiggled. She bit her lip and watched me like I might get mad.

The thing was, a part of me wanted to. The Cain part. That side of me was dark. The old me, whose pride and need was more important than anyone else’s.

But that wasn’t who I was anymore.

I made myself put aside the pride that made me want to tell her that it was her fault we were here and if anyone had a reason to be upset it was me. It was true. But she had already acknowledged that. Hammering her with it wouldn’t get us anywhere.

“Listen to me,” I said as softly as I could. “I was just thinking about how fucking impossible it is that we’re here now. Have you thought about that?”

Her eyes went wide. A moment later she nodded slowly.

I put my hands on her hips and held her there so she couldn’t step away. “The way I see it, God brought us together. The circumstances that got us here couldn’t have lined up any other way. And you’re the perfect woman for me, Bridge. The only one I’ve ever met who loved both sides of me. Don’t tell me God’s not in that.”

Her lips tipped up on one side. “Are you saying we’re soulmates, Sam?” she whispered. Her eyes twinkled like she was joking, but I felt the way she leaned a hair closer.

“Better,” I said without hesitation.

She arched one brow.

I smiled. “You were made for me, Bridget. Literally. I got you. You’re my One. My fucking wife— that blows my mind. But it’s real. The only thing that can tear us apart now is us. ”

She blew out a breath and lifted her hands up to cup my face. “You’re a crazy person.”

“Takes an expert to spot a pro.”

She snorted. “Smart ass. Good thing you’re also hot.” When I didn’t return the compliment the same way, but sat there staring at her, her jaw dropped and playfully shoved my chest. “I see how it is—you put a ring on it and now I’m not hot anymore? ”

I growled and raised my brows. “Babe, I get blisters just looking at you.”

“Whatever,” she rolled her eyes and turned away, but I grabbed her and brought her back.

“I was teasing, Bridge.”

“I know. I’m not mad. I’m just… four days, Sam. Four days until you have to meet your probation officer, and I have to see Gerald. It’s nothing. And we aren’t going to be able to live together when we get back until after it goes to court because they won’t know—”

“Hey, hey…” I pulled her up against me, all the way, wrapping my arms around her waist and holding her against me, which made my cock twitch when she wriggled. “Some of this is going to suck, babe. But I’ll tell you the part that won’t: The next four days. This is our time. So, tell me what you want. Tell me what sounds good. Let’s do it while we can. All of it. Anything.”

“Anything?” she asked quietly, her brows high.

“Anything,” I said, stroking her hair back over her shoulder. “Let’s make some memories while we can.”

She leaned down to kiss me softly, then whispered. “Thank you. And this is your last chance… do you really mean anything?”

I tipped my head too. “Anything that doesn’t involve me seeing you in another man’s hands, yeah.”

Bridget rolled her eyes. “You have the best hands. Any other guy’s would be surplus to requirements.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

She leaned in and kissed me, longer and slower this time. Within moments I was getting hard—then even harder when she slid a hand down my body and started stroking me.

We were both breathing harder. “Anything?” she whispered against my lips.

I nodded. “Any memory you want to make with me.”

Our lips still touched, so I felt it when her smile grew bigger, then turned wicked.

Clasping at hand at the back of her neck, I nipped at her lip, then locked eyes with her. “What’s going on in that sneaky little mind of yours? ”

She reached up to take both my hands and hold them as she leaned all the way into me and kissed me, harder this time. My cock leaped. I would have grabbed her ass and pulled her into my lap, but she was holding my hands too tightly.

Then she stopped kissing me and opened her eyes. “Thank you,” she breathed.

“For what?” I asked, staring at her mouth, waiting for the next kiss.

“For this.”

And then my little she-devil bolted for the door.