Die Hard (Sue Thomas FBEye)

Chapter Four

"Not exactly how I pictured our first night, angel."

A hint of amusement was perceptible in his voice, though in all honesty, it should have occurred to him that the sensual massage he was giving her might lead to their current situation.

He began at the nape of her neck, his fingers grazing her bare skin between tendrils of hair. Her soft purring filled the dark room, providing the only incentive he needed to continue. Finding no buttons to her nightgown, he resigned himself to the downy fabric as he worked his way down her back. She cuddled closer to him with each caress, her eyes slowly closing of their own accord. Only when his hand reached the hemline and finally felt the silkiness of her skin did he realise she was asleep in his arms.

None of them slept much the previous night, Jack acknowledged, and that was without mentioning the emotional roller coaster she rode all day. He was tired and she was exhausted. Waking her up would be cruel and inconsiderate, and he liked to think he was neither.

"I love you." He placed a tender kiss in her hair before resting his cheek against her forehead and drifting to dreamland.

Solemn, she approached the casket. Granny had a faint smile on her lips. The usually shy and awkward teenage girl reached inside and touched her hand. It was cold and it felt leathery. A man dressed in black appeared by her side and stared sternly at her, his lips voicing a warning she chose to ignore. She walked away and went to sit on a chair near a lavished flower bouquet she knew her grandmother would have hated. She waited, alone in the midst of the crowd. Her mother excused her sons' absence, yet she forced her only daughter to attend the viewing both evenings. That seemed highly unfair to the teenage girl.

A hand on her shoulder startled her. She lifted her head and gazed into eyes as black as ebony.

"I didn't mean to interrupt your contemplation, young lady," the elderly gentleman politely apologized. "I just wanted to offer my deepest condolences for your loss. Miss Emily was an amazing woman."

"Thank you," she said, surprised by his gentleness since most people tended to ignore her. "How... how did you know I was related?"

"You look so much like your late grandmother. Miss Emily never told you?"

"No..." The words she read didn't make much sense.

"Well, you do, young lady. You're just as beautiful." A sincere smile reached his eyes. "You take care."

Intrigued, she watched him walk towards her mother. The uniform he wore contrasted with the darkness of his skin. She eavesdropped on their conversation despite her mother's constant reminder to respect people's privacy. The teenage girl didn't understand her mother's outburst when the stranger mentioned her grandmother, or her mother's insistence that he departed immediately.

Sue jolted then opened her eyes to Jack's concerned expression.

"Bad dream, angel?" he asked, having felt her restlessness in his arms.

He was propped on his elbow, lying sideways to her and was rubbing her stomach. Daylight was filtering through the blinds, making it easy for her to read him.

"Good morning, Jack."

Her bright smile smoothed his worry lines. He brushed her lips with hers.

"Good morning, beautiful."

"You did better yesterday morning," she teased him, placing the palms of her hands over his chest and slowly migrating them behind his neck.

"Yah, but yesterday morning I wasn't afraid your parents would be showing up any moments. It's almost nine, you know."