The Assistant

Chapter 17

When Immanuel arrived at Winona's apartment complex, it was still dark out. The sun had only begun to rise, and the silence of the morning brought an overwhelming sense of disappointment. He should have been waking up to Winona's quiet breathing. He should have been able to hold her in his arms, kissing on her body until she was awake. And he should have been the one to help her load her trunk. Instead, Denver was doing that for her.

Immanuel rushed over from across the street and pulled the woman to him, stealing a tight embrace. Surprised by his quick actions, Winona gasped. She wasn't even given the chance to see his face before he was kissing her fervently and almost out of desperation.

She didn't fight him, but when she was finally able to break away, she searched his face. He looked exhausted. "What are you doing here?"

Ignoring her question, he asked, "Were you planning to tell me that you're leaving?"

"Eventually, yes." She apologetically smiled at Denver and gestured to the apartment. "Can you give us a minute?"

He nodded and retreated inside, leaving the couple alone outside. When Immanuel confirmed that the front door had been shut, he turned to the loaded trunk with a scowl.

"Why didn't you call me? I would have come to help you."

She shrugged. "He was already over, and he offered."

"What was he doing here?" he demanded to know.

Winona couldn't help but roll her eyes. She shut the trunk and walked around to the driver side. She was going to get in when he pushed the door closed and pinned her against the car. She hadn't even reacted to his quick movements. Instead, she gazed up at him, lips quivering.

"Why was Denver here?" he asked calmly this time.

"He was here to see Savanna, not that it's any of your business." She tried to open her door again, but he grabbed her wrist and brought her hand to his chest. She couldn't tell him that feeling his heartbeat against her hand brought a sense of relief. "I can't do this with you right now, Immanuel."

"Then when? Do I have to wait until you come home? You might decide you want nothing to do with me if I let you go."

With her free hand, she brought it up to his cheek to stroke him. She hated that she had put the sadness in his eyes. "This has nothing to do with you. I miss my family, so I have to go."

"I could come with you," he suggested. His sounded desperate. "I could meet your mom and little sister."

She ruefully smiled and pressed her lips to his, kissing away the pain he felt. "As much as I'd love that, I wouldn't feel right taking you away from Tina."

"Peach, stop it. She'll be okay."

"But will you?" she questioned him. "Will you be okay if something happened to her and you weren't there by her side?"

"Yes," he told her truthfully. "She has Queen. She has family."

"It just doesn't feel right," she said, shaking her head at him. "I want this. I want us, but it doesn't feel right when she doesn't know it's over between you two."

His hands were trembling, so he shoved them into the pockets of his jacket and looked off into the distance. He couldn't look at her without falling apart. "So, I just have to wait for you to come home then?"

"And for her to wake up."

"It could be awhile."

"Then we wait awhile," she whispered. He almost didn't hear her with the rustling wind drowning out her voice. "All the time you spent together, the intimacy between you two, I don't believe she felt nothing. So, she deserves to know before we can move forward."