Ivy snorted. “Oh, please. I have an injured shoulder. You should see what I can do when I’m at full strength.”
Jack cocked a dubious eyebrow. “Really?”
“I guess you’ll have to wait to find out,” Ivy said, snuggling a little closer and running her finger over his defined abs. “Jack?”
“Hmm.”
“Are you going to leave now?”
Jack sighed. He deserved that. “I’m not leaving, Ivy. I told you I wouldn’t. I meant it.”
“What about your investigation? Don’t you have to … I don’t know … go back and file a report?”
“Oh,” Jack said, chuckling as he glanced down at her. “You were asking if I had to go back to work, weren’t you?”
Ivy nodded.
“I thought you were asking if I was going to run out on you,” Jack admitted. “For the record, the answer to both of those questions is no. Even if I didn’t know how great … this … was going to be, now that I know I’m already addicted.”
Ivy snickered. “I’m going to take that as a compliment.”
“You definitely should,” Jack said, pressing a soft kiss to Ivy’s forehead. “Don’t worry. Brian knew why I was coming back to the house. He’s not expecting me at the office again until tomorrow.”
“It’s almost dark,” Ivy murmured. “Have you eaten dinner?”
“No. I had a crappy sandwich for lunch. All I could think about was your sandwich and then I spent the rest of the meal feeling sorry for myself … well, that and listening to Brian make fun of me because I was pining for you. Why? Are you hungry?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t know if you’re hungry? I guess I’m going to take that as a compliment since my sexual prowess – and pathetic neediness and apology – slapped the desire for food right out of you.”
Ivy rolled her eyes. “I don’t want to leave this bed. I want to be able to stay here for the rest of the night and … feel … you.” She risked a glance at Jack to see if he was laughing, but his eyes were somber as they locked onto hers.
“We can stay here,” he said. “I don’t want to go anywhere else either. I need you to try and … trust me, though. I know it’s hard after what I did. I promise I won’t leave you again.”
“Jack, I do trust you,” Ivy said. “I know you didn’t mean to hurt me. It was still painful, though. You’re probably lucky you didn’t answer your phone … or show up after the fact … that night. Max was ready to kill you. He can’t handle it when I cry.”
“Max isn’t the only one,” Jack said, carefully tugging Ivy’s slight frame so she was positioned on top of him and he could snuggle her closer. He was so comfortable, so thankful she was willing to give him another chance, he would gladly crawl into her skin with her if he could. “I don’t ever want to make you cry.”
“Well, you should know that the movie E.T. always makes me cry,” Ivy admitted. “I can’t help it.”
“That’s good to know. I’ll burn every copy I find.”
“Can you wait until morning for breakfast? I promise to fix you a big one,” Ivy said, stifling a yawn.
“All I want to do is sleep,” Jack admitted. “Do you need painkillers before I pass out? Tell me now. I’m exhausted.”
“My heart doesn’t hurt.”
“What about your shoulder … or back? You hit that ditch pretty hard.”
“Nothing hurts,” Ivy replied, her eyes shining. “I feel … happy.”
“I feel happy, too, honey,” Jack said, kissing her softly. “I’m a little worried I’m going to drag you into a nightmare, but I’ve never been this happy. I need you to know that.”
“And you’ll be here when I wake up, right?” Ivy hated asking the question, but she needed reassurance.
“I will be here when you wake up,” Jack said. “I won’t move. I’ll hold you all night. That’s all I want.”
“Okay.” Ivy brushed her lips against his jaw. “The good news for you is that my shoulder will be fine in our dreams. When we do it again there you’ll be able to see how good I really am.”
Jack laughed, weariness lifting for a brief moment. “Now I really want to go to sleep.”
“Goodnight, Jack.”
“Goodnight, honey. I’ll see you soon.”
JACK knew he was dreaming before he saw the beach, his heart soaring when he caught sight of Ivy’s pink hair gleaming under the moonlight.
“This is new,” Jack said, glancing around. “It’s a different beach and we’re here after dark. Where are we now?”
“I have no idea,” Ivy answered. “I think it’s a beach from a brochure I once saw.”
“Not that I’m complaining, but I thought for sure I was going to force you into a bad place before you could drag us to a better place,” Jack said. “This is a much happier outcome.”
“It is,” Ivy agreed. “I think I can control our destinations when I really put some effort into it. If you don’t like this place, I can pick a new one.”
“This place is perfect,” Jack said, reaching for her. She was wearing a filmy beach cover up even though there was no sun to burn her delicate skin. “Are you wearing a bikini under that? Is that my reward for begging?”
Ivy snorted. “No.”
“Oh.” Jack was disappointed. “Now that I’ve seen all of your body I was hoping you would show off a little more skin.”
Ivy broke into a wide smile and pointed at the placid ocean in front of them. “That’s what the water is for.”
Realization dawned on Jack and he felt a shiver of anticipation course through his body. “Is that where you’re going to show me what you’ve got?”
“Of course,” Ivy said, reaching for the beach cover-up. “I figured I’d
