Page 30 of Rescued By the SEAL

“Oh, we sure do.” He grins from ear to ear. “You are going to write for as long as you want, as long as you need to, and I’ll serve your every need while you do. Any food you want, I’ll sort it. Anything you need to drink, I’ll be there to do it for you. Think of me as your writing assistant or your butler.” He bows playfully. “I’m here to support you with everything.”

The love I feel for this man expands and grows in my chest as I look at him, as I feel him supporting me in every single way. He’s lifting me up in a way that I really need right now, and it makes me feel even more toward him. I love him with every little part of me. He’s my world.

26

LANDON

Ring, ring… Ring, ring… Ring, ring…

Urgh, I’m not ready to get out of bed yet. I’m having just the best night ever here, and I’m not ready to leave Heather behind. But the phone is ringing insistently, and my instincts scream out that this is a call I need to deal with. I force my aching body upright and slide out of the sheets to go and get it before it wakes Heather up too. She looks so adorable lying there, sleeping peacefully. After the busy week she’s had writing, she needs this lie in and I don’t want to interfere.

“Oh, Max,” I whisper as I see his name on my screen. “What’s going on now? This had better be good news. I can’t deal with bad.”

I pick up and Max greets me right away. I can tell from his tone of voice that this is going to be a positive conversation, thank goodness. My shoulders sag forward as I feel relief flooding through my body. I really do need this, Heather too.

“So, what do you have for me, Max? I assume something has happened on your watch. Am I right?”

I bounce from foot to foot as I wait for him to answer. Anxiety zig-zags all the way through my body as he seems to take a while to get to what he wants to tell me. Although that could just by my impatience because every moment feels like an hour.

“Well, I can assure you now that everyone surrounding your father and his gang are now either in police custody or under investigation, and now I know for sure that no one else is after Heather.” Oh, thank goodness. I feel a million times better with this knowledge. “She’s safe, she doesn’t need to remain in the safehouse. You guys are more than welcome to come back.”

“Oh, I see.” Why doesn’t that feel like good news? Of course, I’m more than happy to hear that Heather is no longer in danger, but the idea of leaving our safehouse where we’ve had the best time is a lot. I don’t know if either of us is ready to face the real world just yet. Hiding out in what has quickly become Heather’s little writing retreat is a dream for us all. “That’s great.”

“I thought you would be happy about it. It’s been a bit of a drama, hasn’t it?” Max laughs. “I’m sure you’re eager to get yourself out of that nightmare and into another job. I’ll find you something great to sink your teeth into.”

That statement would have filled me with excitement before, but now it leaves me cold and shocked. I don’t want to throw myself into a new job just yet because I don’t like the idea of leaving Heather. Certainly, not for something dangerous which could get me in trouble. It isn’t worth it anymore. It isn’t what it used to be. Not when I have someone waiting for me.

“Right.” I don’t want to tell Max yet. I don’t know what I’m going to do. Nothing is set in stone. “Well, that’s good. I’ll just talk to Heather now and let you know what we’re going to do and when. Is that alright? Do you need information right now?”

“Nah, take your time. You can let me know whenever. I have everything under control over here. You’re alright.”

Thank God Max is a nice guy, a good guy. I know that things got a little weird between us for a little while, but he’s always been awesome. I never have to worry about him treating me like shit no matter what I decide. That does make me feel a little better about everything. But I’m still confused. It doesn’t make any difference to that. I don’t know what will happen.

We say our goodbyes before I head back into the bedroom to check in on Heather. She’s just stirring, waking up, and I can’t stop myself from smiling ear to ear. God, she’s beautiful. Whatever happens next, I don’t mind as long as I’m with her.

“Who were you on the phone with?” she mumbles with her eyes barely open. “I heard you before. It sounded serious.”

“It was just Max letting me know that we don’t need to stay in the safehouse anymore. Everything is all sorted.”

“It is?” All the color drains from her face as her eyes now snap wide open. “So, we need to move out and go somewhere else? Wow, I wasn’t expecting this day to come around as quickly as that. So, we need to get packing, do we?”

“Yeah. Why, are you not looking forward to going back home? You are always welcome to come and stay with me.”

She shrugs one shoulder, not quite meeting my eyes. “I don’t know if I want to go back there at all now. I kinda have the feeling that I want to go somewhere new. I know that might seem a bit weird, but I like the idea of being somewhere else. Somewhere new. I know that might be a lot to just drop on you like this, but I need a change.”

Poor Heather looks like she has the weight of the world on her shoulders as she tells me this, which isn’t what I want at all. I grab her and pull her in for a hug. I hold her close to my chest while I let this wash over me. She wants to move somewhere else, to start afresh, and obviously, I want to stay with her. She’s the love of my life and I can’t imagine life without her.

“Okay, then we will move somewhere else,” I finally tell her. “I’m cool with that. I want a change too.”

“You do?” She pulls back to look at me. “Because I don’t want to pull you away from your life.”

“I don’t mind leaving things behind. Especially if I get to be with you.” I cup her cheek in my hands and smile down at her. “All I want is to be with you. Honestly, I don’t mind where in the world we go as long as I’m with you.”

She smiles softly at me and rests her hands on top of mine. “Are you sure about that? Because I don’t want you to make a snap decision because of me. This isn’t just a snap decision. It’s something that I’ve been thinking about for a while.”

That does stun me, actually. I’m surprised that she’s been considering this and hasn’t talked to me about it at all. But should I be shocked? I mean, she’s clearly turning everything on its head with her career and love life. Why shouldn’t she want to change her home too? She isn’t going to be comfortable living where she was kidnapped and where her father lives. That’s probably a big part of it. After that argument with her father, she’s not likely to want to be near him ever again, which is a shame.

“I do want to go wherever you want to, but I think there is something we need to consider first, before we go anywhere.”

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