“So while we were separated, you were working hard to make sure I was safe?” She blinked back tears. “Thank you.”
He hugged her tightly. “You’re welcome. You should know that when I recovered the photos and videos of you I destroyed them without looking at them.”
Julia’s shoulders sagged in relief. “But Uncle Jack saw them.”
“I think he took pains not to look. And they’re gone now.”
“Simon and Natalie probably kept copies.”
“Jack said he got everything that included you. And he has a few other things in case he needs to motivate Natalie or Simon in the future.”
“How did he get everything?”
“That’s not important. The important thing is that you don’t need to worry about them. They won’t bother you again.”
Julia hugged him, crying relieved tears on his shoulder.
Chapter Fifty-two
October 2011
Durham, North Carolina
What are you doing?” April padded into her kitchen on bare feet, clad only in her boyfriend’s dress shirt.
He was standing at the stove cooking bacon and eggs in a single pan.
“Making us breakfast.” He smiled at her and reached over to peck her lips. “How did you sleep?”
“Good.” She stretched her arms over her head, then giggled. “I sleep better with you than without you.”
“Me, too,” he admitted, more to himself than to her.
She grabbed a container of orange juice from the refrigerator and poured them each a glass.
“I sleep better with you, but I feel guilty.”
“Guilty?” Simon turned, holding the spatula in his hand. “Why?”
April ducked her head, focusing on her orange juice. “Because we’re sleeping together and we aren’t married.”
Simon froze.
Chastity was as foreign to him as Eastern Europe. He’d encountered it before, in Julia, but it had always been something annoying and stupid, something he’d wanted to destroy through either seduction or manipulation.
With April, he found himself feeling something entirely different. Something that might have been the twinges of remorse.
It was a new experience for him.
“Sex isn’t bad.”
“That’s a funny thing to say.” She tapped her finger against her juice glass. “You’ve taught me sex is very, very good. I love it and I love being with you.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“I was taught to wait. And I didn’t.”
Simon turned back to the stove, at a loss as to what to say. For a moment, he continued cooking breakfast, then turned off the burner and put the pan aside.
He wiped his hands on the seat of his boxer shorts and walked over to her.
“You were taught to wait because your parents didn’t want some ass**le taking advantage of you.”
“Simon.” Her tone was scolding. “Don’t cuss.”
“Sorry. Your parents were trying to protect you.”
“It isn’t just my parents. It’s my church.”
“Well, they were trying to protect you, too. And that’s a good thing. But our situation is different.”
She lifted her head. “Is it?”
“Yes.” He put his arms around her.
“How is it different?” She sounded cautious. “Tell me.”
“I’m not just having fun here. I like having sex with you, but I also enjoy your company. I can let my guard down when I’m with you. I don’t have to be Senator Talbot’s son. I can just be myself.” He smiled somewhat hesitantly.
“That’s how I feel, too.” She snuggled into his chest. “But every time you leave, I feel bad.”
“That’s because we care about each other.”
“I wish we could stay like this forever,” she whispered, her arms tightening around his waist.
“Me, too,” he admitted. He was stunned to discover that his words were true. That even in the short time he’d known her, he’d come to care for her, deeply. Their relationship was easy and good and he couldn’t imagine ending it.
“I love you, Simon.”
Simon felt his heart jump into his throat.
He was not a stupid man. He knew what he had in his arms—a beautiful, gentle, amazing young woman. She didn’t have the baggage that he carried. She wasn’t jaded and intent on social climbing, like Natalie. And she wasn’t fearful and self-righteous, like Julia. Julia had always made him feel as if he were an animal, something unworthy to touch her.
April probably woke up that morning, decided she loved him, and simply told him. No deliberation, no head games, no social climbing through sexual means.
Without warning, Simon found his lips moving.
“I love you, too.”
April hugged him as tightly as she could, almost bouncing on the balls of her feet.
“This is great!” she shrieked. “I’m so happy.”
“So am I.” He smiled down at her youthful, uninhibited exuberance and kissed her.
Chapter Fifty-three
Cambridge, Massachusetts
As October came to an end, the date Gabriel was waiting for drew near. He’d been fantasizing about what he was going to do to Julianne once their required celibacy ended, planning their activities meticulously.