Page 74 of French Escapade

Élodie

The ER admin gives me my health insurance card back. This is turning into a habit. It’s the second time in two days. That’s some sort of personal record I don’t want to beat anytime soon.

Ken’s waiting for me in the reception area. Even though he seems dead tired, he stands and smiles as soon as he sees me. This makes me happy.

“What about Madison?” I ask.

“They are keeping her under observation for the night.”

“Is she okay?”

“Yes. Arkady gave her way too much of the drug, so, just to be on the safe side, they want to keep her here a bit longer.”

I nod as he puts an arm around me. “Come on, I’ll take you home.”

We start walking, and then I have to ask. “Home where? Are you up to driving to Cannes? You haven’t had a good night of sleep since…”

“Ted got us hotel rooms real close.”

“That’s great!” I’m so happy I don’t have to worry about going back to my place. “I love Ted. He’s the solution to all my problems. I think I’ll ask him to marry me.”

Ken stiffens, and I tilt my head to look at him. His smile has gone. I stop and turn to face him. “You understand that was a joke, right?”

I think it’s relief I see on his face. That’s when I decide to tease him. “Now, tell me Kenneth Dylan. You wouldn’t be the jealous type?”

He scratches the back of his neck. I noticed this is what he does when he’s embarrassed and it makes me laugh. “Oh my God! You are jealous!”

He smiles. I move closer to him, and despite the pain, I put my hands around his neck. I need to touch him. He rests his hands on my waist.

“Ken, do you remember I took a bullet for you tonight?”

“I do, and I’m not sure I’m happy about it,” he grumbles.

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want you to put your life on the line for me.”

“Would you have done the same for me?”

“In an instant, with no second thoughts.”

“So we’re on the same page, and do you know why?”

He shakes his head.

“Because the idea of taking a bullet in the vest was less scary than never being able to do this.”

It’s a very light kiss, like a feather on his mouth. I stand on my toes and touch his lips. I move my head back.

His eyes are ablaze. He’s drinking me up, and a second later, his mouth is on mine. His palm slides up my back to my neck and comes to rest in my hair. His kiss deepens, his tongue finds mine and invites it to an erotic dance.

All my senses are awakened. I forget how tired I am. How worried I was. I lean against him, wanting more.

But Ken puts an end to our embrace. He rests a hand on my cheek and looks into my eyes. “I’m not very familiar with the laws of your country, but I’m pretty sure that if we keep going like that, we’re probably going to break one.”

I smile as he takes my hand and leads me to the car. I don’t care where we’re going, as long as I’m with him. I’ll follow him anywhere.

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