Page 65 of The Redemption of Remy St. Claire

But it worried her. Despite her best efforts, she stiffened.

“I can sleep on the other side of the bed.” He offered the words without judgement.

“No.”Breathe. He just told you it’s not a big deal.“As you said, it’s not my concern. I trust you, Rusty. I trust you won’t push. I thought I might be ready for more, but you were right to stop when you did.” She paused. “How did you know?”

As if sensing what she wanted to know, he used his free hand to ease aside her hair, exposing her neck and ear. “You enjoyed yourself. That was my goal tonight. To make sure you liked what we did.”

“But what about you?”

“Oh, sweetheart, if you think that kiss didn’t do something for me, you obviously don’t understand anatomy.”

Amusement flashed. “I know that an erection meant you were enjoying yourself.” She sobered. “I guess I’m asking if it was enough.”

He placed a kiss to her exposed neck. “It’ll always be enough. Having you here in my arms is more than I could ask for, and I’m grateful. Now sleep, my little one. We have two rowdy toddlers to corral tomorrow.”

Secure in his arms, and buoyed by the knowledge she could trust her new husband, she let go, falling into a deep sleep.

Chapter twenty-eight

BythetimeRemyreturned to her office Wednesday morning, she appreciated the reprieve. For the two weeks after her parents’ deaths, Calleigh’d been catatonic in her grief. She’d been such an easy child to manage. Now, in hindsight, Remy could see how much her sister had suffered.

Because now she was seeing the real Calleigh. The girl didn’t have Mira’s intense energy, but how many kids would?

Mira was a firecracker—playing hard and napping even harder.

Calleigh, however, was able to get a few words in edgewise and was getting better at standing up for herself.

There had been several little spats, but Rusty ignored them and they were soon resolved. True to his word, he never took sides.

They’d taken the girls to the local mall to sit on Santa’s knee. Remy found the concept a little creepy, but she had pictures of having done the same thing at that age. They had one photo of each girl with Santa and then one of both. The Santa was generous with his time and temperament, which she appreciated. She certainly wouldn’t have the patience to deal with children all day.

Returning to her office, even with the mountains of paperwork awaiting her, was a blessed relief. She was barely settled when Zach appeared at her door, an odd expression on his face.

“How was the honeymoon?”

She blushed, remembering her husband’s advice.Remember the kisses and not what had come later.“Everything a honeymoon should be.”

Zach arched an eyebrow, saying nothing.

“The family time afterward was special though, Zach. Thank you for the time off. We enjoyed the Mission City Christmas Parade, and Monday, we took the girls to the aquarium. I thought it might scare them, but it fascinated them. Rusty prepared them by reading lots of dolphin and whale books.”

“He seems like a good man.”

“He’s the best.” Simple and truthful.

“You don’t seem to have any reservations.”

She met her boss’ intent gaze. “Were you expecting some? I know very little time has passed, but he’s the one, so why wait?”

“So it’s not just about Calleigh?”

“Am I going to lie and say I don’t feel reassured I have someone I can depend on to help me raise my sister? Of course Calleigh factored into the equation. She’s my responsibility, and that means everything to me.” She paused. “It goes both ways, because I can offer Mira the security of a second parent.”

“What about her mother?”

That question Remy dreaded as she asked herself the same thing about ten times a day. “Sissy is Mira’s mother, and I am her stepmother. You know what happened that day. He eventually confided the whole story. You could’ve told me.” She tried to keep accusation from her voice.

“As I said back then—wasn’t my story to tell. I’m glad he told you everything. I’ve been getting updates from her parole officer—Sissy’s clean, attending meetings, and abiding by all the conditions of her parole.”

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