Page 101 of Shadow

Wiping at her eyes to stop the tears, she grabbed a shampoo bottle and set to work washing her hair and put all thoughts of Ripley’s enemies out of her mind. There was nothing she could do about them, and she would not walk away from this relationship just because things were a little scary.

When her hair was clean and conditioned, she shut off the shower and stepped out, wrapping herself and her hair in fluffy towels. They slept on the plane, so she wasn’t too jet lagged, but she was definitely looking forward to her first night’s sleep in London.

After an evening out with Ripley, of course.

She smiled as she put her makeup on, enjoying the fact that she was getting ready for an actual date with him. In the years since they first met, he’d never taken her on a proper date. Something about this evening felt momentous. She would have to mark the date as something special to celebrate in her calendar.

When her makeup was done, she slipped into a cute dress and pulled out a sweater, since London was experiencing cool weather.

Since she didn’t know where Ripley was taking her, she left her feet bare until she could ask him.

If they were going to go for a long walk through London, she would wear flats, but if they were just going to dinner, she would wear heels.

When she was dressed and her hair was tamed with all manner of products for curly hair, she went back to the living room where Ripley and Samuel sat at the table looking at a computer screen.

“His movements before the crash are chaotic,” Samuel said. “It’s almost like...” He trailed off when he spotted her, making Ripley turn his head in her direction.

“Well, hello, beautiful,” he said, standing to meet her halfway across the living room.

Pulling her close, he brushed a feather-soft kiss to her forehead. “We’ll be done soon, baby girl.”

Samuel closed the laptop and stood. “We can be done now. I’m going to talk to the local police one more time and see if I can get my hands on their notes from the crash. We’ll meet up first thing in the morning?”

Ripley guided Olivia to the door with his arm around her waist where they said goodbye to Samuel.

He lifted her hand and kissed it, then winked. “Goodnight, Miss Olivia. Hopefully, you’ll remember our conversation this time.”

Her face warmed with embarrassment as she thought of the last time she’d said goodnight to Samuel Carter.

“Goodnight, Samuel. You should bring Erin to Exposure sometime. It would be great to meet her.”

Samuel smiled. “We’ve been talking about it. Maybe once everything settles for us at Solitaire, we’ll visit.”

When Samuel was gone, Ripley pulled her in and kissed her again.

With a soft growl, he pulled away and tucked a hand beneath her chin. “I’m trying not to get carried away and mess up your makeup, but you’re making it difficult.”

She laughed. “I appreciate it.”

His hand moved down her throat, and her heart skipped a beat as he wrapped his fingers around it. He didn’t apply pressure, just held his hand there, letting her know he could.

She kept her gaze locked with his.

He blinked and shook his head. “No, Ripley. We’re going out,” he said more to himself than to her.

Olivia shrugged. “I’m sure I would have just as much fun staying in.”

Ripley smirked. “Yeah, I’ll bet you would. But no, I’m taking you out. I’ve wanted to for years. But I think something is missing.”

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

He held up a hand. “I’ll be right back.”

He disappeared into the bedroom, and she could hear him rummaging around in his suitcase.

When he came back, he held a long black box which he handed her.

“I wasn’t sure when I should give this to you, but it would give me great pride if you wore it.”

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