“I cannot believe this!” He sat up in bed. He was naked, and the sight of his body distracted her. “Could this be true? You refusing to communicate? With me? I never thought I would see this day.” She slapped at him, but he dodged her hand.
“Michael,” she warned. He turned the full force of his eyes on her, and her heart turned over in her chest. “Oh, for God’s sake. My fear is not much different than yours. I’m most afraid that you’ll leave me. For someone tall, beautiful, and slender, like your model girlfriend you were photographed with.” The last statement came out a little more tartly than she intended, but telling him this made her feel vulnerable.
He started to laugh, which annoyed Sophie. He confesses his greatest fear to me, and I’m overwhelmed with empathy. I tell him mine and he laughs. Terrific. She looked back down at her phone, a flush creeping over her face. He fell silent, then tipped her face up to him.
“You are not making a joke, are you? You are serious. That really is what you fear.”
“Yes, it is.” She tugged her chin away. “You shouldn’t have made me tell. It’s embarrassing.” But as quickly as she pulled away, he came right back into her face.
“Mana mila, you are the most beautiful woman in the world to me.” He cupped her face in his hands and stared at her with alarming intensity. “I love you beyond words. I have told you this so many times. How is it that you do not know this?”
“I do know,” she protested. “But I do not understand. Look at you. You’re gorgeous. You could have anyone.”
“And I desire only you. I love only you. All other women pale in comparison to you. Beautiful. Brave. Smarter than anyone else I know.” He pulled her closer, pushing the newspapers off the bed. “One look at you, and I am lost. Feel.” He took her hand and slid it down under the covers where his body stirred. “This is what you do to me. All the time. You and you alone. Please, never think you are anything other than beautiful.”
Her head spun from his words, from the look on his face, from the feel of his body reacting to her touch. She pushed her iPhone away and heard it tumble down onto the floor. All she could think about was kissing him.
Their mouths connected, and the entire world vanished. Only the two of them. Together.
Slowly, the kiss ended, and they broke apart. He framed her face with his hands, and his expression grew very soft.
“Mine.”
“Always.” And she kissed him again.
Epilogue
July 10, 2014
The doors opened up, and Sophie could see Will. She thought he saw her too, but then he was caught in the glare of television lights and flashbulbs. It wasn’t often they returned from a mission to press coverage, but this one had been an exception from beginning to end. The Rev split off from the main group to join the waiting PR team. Poor Dave. No rest for him.
She waved at Will and Anjali, a huge smile on her face and a trace of tears in her eyes. It was always like this when two of them came home to the third. It had become too chaotic (and dangerous) for the three of them to be away at once. They’d had so many homecomings like this over the years.
But this, too, was different. Now they were four, not three. A tall, rangy man with curly black hair stood behind her, his hand resting gently on her hip.
Sophie could tell that most of the team didn’t recognize Michael at first glance.
The skeletal thinness of his face and body was gone. He had enough hair now to fall over his forehead. His missing teeth had been replaced. He looked strong and healthy. But the biggest change showed in his face and his eyes. He no longer looked like a terrified, angry prisoner of war. Michael was happy.
Sophie fell into a long teary hug with Anjali, leaving Michael and Will to themselves.
“Welcome home, Will.” Michael reached out a hand. They shook, and he pulled Will into a brief embrace. “How is the situation over there?”
“Better than when you left. We left the camp in excellent hands with the UNHCR. I know a lot of the people who came in behind us, and they’re top-notch folks. Having Commandant Jaros gone doesn’t hurt either. He skedaddled back home before the UNHRC got anywhere close.”
“Well, we are glad you have returned safely. Sophie has been going crazy without you.”
“I’m sure you’ve been keeping her busy,” Will said.
Michael grinned and flushed a little. Sophie extracted herself from Anjali’s embrace, and turned to Will. “Hey, boss.”
“Don’t call me boss.” He pulled her into his arms for a long hug.
The greeting between Michael and Anjali was restrained. Anjali clearly hadn’t forgiven Michael yet. Sophie looked up at Will and wondered if he could convince Anjali to let it go. But she could never ask that of him. They’d need to wait to see how it played out.