The Link 3 - The Huntress

Chapter 15 - Sam

I stood in the doorway, quietly watching Natalie washing a pot in the kitchen sink. She was humming softly to a song in her head as her hips swayed ever so slightly. I marveled at how good she looked. She was older, hips a little wider, and she was fighting maturity by coloring her hair. Still, there was a girl inside that hummed and swayed, teasing the boy in me. Not a day went by that I didn't wonder how I stayed so lucky. Natalie was still out of my league, yet she never wavered in her love. And I never wavered in mine.

"You're watching me," Natalie said. I could hear the smile in her words.

"You're wiggling, I'm watching," I told her. I could still make her laugh. She accentuated her wiggle for me. I had no choice but to corral those wild hips. Moving in behind her, I wrapped my arms around her waist and nibbled on her neck. Still as tempting a target as that first time so many years ago.

"It was your turn to do the dishes," Natalie said, leaning into my lips.

"I find if I wait long enough, you'll do it for me," I said. Natalie flicked water into my face. I quickly faked soap in the eyes, which got me sympathy kisses, along with the laughing words that informed me that I deserved it. I did, and delaying the dishes was an oversight, not intentional. Stealing the kisses was intentional.

"Where is Zane?" Natalie asked, her eyes going all dreamy. I knew that look. It was my favorite of all her expressions.

"Upstairs playing with his tablet," I replied, pulling myself closer. "I don't think we'll see him for a while."

"The guest room?" Natalie said as she bounced her eyebrows. I liked the idea and was about to respond when my thoughts became more. "Teegan!" Natalie said as a motherly smile replaced the one meant for me.

"She's coming," I said, "both her and Caleb." They were to the west approaching fast, via a plane most likely.

"Mom! Dad!" Zane yelled from the top of the stairs. He felt her too.

"Help him," Natalie said as our love began flowing in waves through the ether Teegan created. Natalie didn't want Zane traversing the stairs himself. His wounds were healing well, but a fall could undo everything.

"It's Teegan," Zane said, his smile as big as his mother's. "I'm fine," he insisted, waving me off as he used the banister to steady himself. I moved closer to break any possible fall, but let him have his independence.

"She's coming home," I said, marveling at Zane's desire to pretend that getting a bullet in his chest didn't slow him down. "It's good to feel her again."

"It certainly is," Natalie said while waiting at the bottom of the stairs. Backup for my backup, I guess.

"I'm fine, Mom," Zane said, moving to take the stairs more normally. I gave up and let him pass me. He was determined, and I wasn't going to treat him like an invalid if he didn't want me too.

"We should have moved you to the guest room," Natalie said, rehashing an old argument we had with Zane when we first brought him home. He wanted to be near his stuff and didn't want us moving it all downstairs.

"I'm not going to fall," Zane said as he reached the bottom. Natalie visibly relaxed when his feet were firmly on the ground. He tolerated a kiss on the cheek then moved toward the couch.

"When is she getting here?"

"A couple of hours, maybe three," I said, trying to calculate how fast a plane flies. It felt like she was over the Midwest, this side of the Mississippi.

"We have to call the McGuires," Natalie said. The words didn't feel right.

"No," I said, "I'll go pick them up. The visit is meant for us, not for others." It was hard to put into words the feelings I was getting from Teegan. "Phones aren't a good idea." There was no immediate threat to warrant a purer thought process. It was a subtle thing, yet I knew I was right.