Page 21 of Rafe

“This is a nice place,” he remarked, his voice carrying a note of genuine appreciation.

“Thank you. Please, sit down.” She gestured toward the sofa.

Rafe inclined his head, indicating for her to lead the way, and then he followed her. As she settled onto the cushions, his eyes drifted toward the curtain that subtly concealed her sleeping area.

“Is this all open?” he inquired, easing himself beside her, ahint of curiosity in his voice.

“Except for the bath. I didn’t care for the bed being out in the open, so I bought the dressing screen.” Maggie shrugged.

“It looks nice.” Rafe inhaled deeply, as if gathering his thoughts. “Maggie, I don’t want you to think I regret—”

“Oh, but you do, Rafe.” Her voice was gentle yet firm, tinged with understanding.

“No. No, I don’t. It’s just that…” He hesitated, as if searching for the right words.

“What?” she prompted.

“I wonder how Fred would feel about it.”

“Fred? Why would he care one way or the other?” she asked, her brow furrowing slightly in confusion.

“You’re his daughter-in-law.”

“Not really. Look, Fred and I are close. I love him like a father, but he has no say in who I’m with, or is it because I’d be with you? You think that would bother him?”

“I’m not sure how he’d feel about you being with me. What happens if we do get together and I hurt you—”

She inhaled sharply, a quick intake of breath that filled the moment with tension. “Not like that. Maggie, I would never raise a hand to you. What if I broke your heart, or you broke mine? We break up, whatever. Who do you think Fred would be disappointed in? Me. He’d be disappointed in me. Not you. You’re like a daughter to him. You can do no wrong. God help the man who hurts you ever again. Fred knows what his son did to you, and I’m positive he doesn’t want to see you hurt. Inanyway. I never want to make that man disappointed in me. Not after all he’s done for me.”

“So, we’re supposed to ignore how attracted we are to each other because of Fred?” she asked, a hint of incredulous amusement in her tone.

“Well, it sounds stupid when you put it that way,” Rafemuttered, a sheepish smile tugging at his lips.

Maggie laughed “Rafe, before we worry about how Fred feels, maybe we should find out how we feel?”

Rafe shifted closer to her on the sofa, his fingers gently threading through her hair as he gazed deeply into her eyes.

“Do you know what my thought was the first time I saw you?” he asked, his voice a soft whisper that hung in the air between them.

“No, what?” she breathed, her heart fluttering in anticipation.

“I wished I had met you first.”

“I wish you had too. I hated being married to him.”

“So, why did you marry him?”

“I’ll tell you sometime, just not tonight.”

“Alright.” Rafe stood. “I guess we can see if this will go anywhere.”

“I’d like that,” Maggie replied, her voice barely above a whisper, filled with a mix of anticipation and vulnerability.

He nodded thoughtfully. “Okay. I’d better get going then.”

Maggie watched him as he walked to where his hat hung on a peg. She then rose and moved toward him.

“So, now what?” she asked, her eyes searching his.

---