Saraphine

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Saraphine was sitting restlessly on the sofa watching Daniel with a great deal of amusement and annoyance. She had been here three days and had so far been unable, or not allowed, to do anything more than hold down the sofa.

"Would you like help with supper?" she offered.

"No, I got it," Daniel replied, carrying a smoking pan to the counter.

"I can help you around here, Daniel. I'm good with cooking and cleaning."

Daniel shook his head, nearly tripping over a bucket of soiled mop water he had yet to toss out. "I can take care of things."

Saraphine rolled her eyes. "Daniel..."

"Saraphine, you've spent your whole life cooking and cleaning. I don't want you to have to do it ever again."

Saraphine laughed. "That's hardly possible. I can't very well spend the rest of my life sitting on the sofa."

"Sure you can. And you'll look beautiful doing it."

Saraphine stood up. "Surely if I choose to help with the cooking and cleaning in my own home that's a form of freedom. Isn't it?"

Daniel sighed with defeat. "Yeah, I reckon." Then he smiled. "We'd probably eat better too. I just can't get the hang of cookin'."

Saraphine was laughing as she joined him beside the stove and took over the meal. After they had eaten and cleaned up the dirtied dishes, they curled up together upon the sofa.

These were Saraphine's favorite moments with Daniel. When they sat in comfortable silence and she listened to the sound of his heart beating steadily beneath her ear.

But Saraphine knew they'd been avoiding things they needed to talk about. "Daniel, we need to talk."

"Words of death," he muttered.

She glanced up at him but from this angle she could only see the scarred side of his face ad he was avoiding her gaze. "How did you get away from them?"

Daniel shifted and Saraphine knew he didn't want to answer.. but she also knew she wanted to know.

"Do we really have to talk about that? We're together now."

Saraphine lifted her head to kiss his scarred cheek. "Please Daniel?"

A chuckle rumbled from his chest. "You always did know how to get what you wanted from me."

"And how's that?"

He smiled. "By asking."

Saraphine refused to let him charm his way out of answering. She remained silent and he sighed. "I lost consciousness while they kicked me. When I woke up I was in the barn. I don't reckon they knew I was coming 'round. They were all jawin' away. I was laying there half dead but when I heard them talking about you—about what he planned on doing to you...."

Daniel's jaw popped. "I managed to get to my feet and snatch a gun. I shot two of them. I was aiming at Samuel but he hid behind the others. I surprised them and I might have even got a few more shots off but my damn legs were so weak, I feel sideways and one of them shot me in the shoulder.