An Eye for an Eye by Irene Hannon

Author:Irene Hannon [Hannon, Irene]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: FIC042000
ISBN: 9781441204875
Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
Published: 2009-08-31T22:00:00+00:00

13

As he extended his hand, Mark had no idea if Emily would respond to his invitation. It had been a risk, but a calculated one, taken after careful evaluation of the situation and the signals Emily was sending. As careful as he was capable of, anyway, given that his heart was pounding as hard as it did before a dangerous mission.

Only when she rose and placed her hand in his did he realize he’d been holding his breath. As he lifted his free hand to brush a few soft strands of hair back from her face, he wasn’t surprised to find that his fingers were trembling. Her nearness had always had that effect on him.

One more thing that hadn’t changed through the years.

He considered speaking, but he had a feeling the words would get stuck in his throat. Instead, he tugged her gently toward him, taking care to avoid her injured arm as he enfolded her in a tender embrace.

She was trembling too, he discovered. More than he was. Her simple step into his arms had been a quantum leap forward in their relationship. And it was scary. While the terrain was familiar, in many ways it was like visiting a favorite place from childhood after decades had passed. Often, the present reality didn’t live up to the fond memories treasured—and often embellished—through the passage of years. That could happen tonight, and they both knew it.

But there was no turning back.

As the soft jazz washed over them, Mark did nothing more than hold her, giving them both a chance to adjust to the closeness, to get comfortable with the step they were taking. There was no need to rush. He’d learned to pace things through the years, to tune in to nuances and subtle messages. A skill he’d been woefully lacking during their first romantic encounter, he recalled.

After two decades, memories of how he’d botched their first kiss at Wren Lake still had the power to embarrass him. He’d been a bundle of gawky adolescent nerves driven by unruly hormones, his technique zero on a ten-point scale. Their embrace had been clumsy, at best. He hadn’t known what to do with his hands, which had suddenly felt twice as big as usual. His aim for the kiss had been off, resulting in an off-center collision of lips.

And somehow his watch had gotten snagged on the front of her sweater in the most embarrassing possible place. It had been a pathetic, inept romantic debut, and he’d been mortified by his fumbling of what he’d hoped would be a memorable moment.

He’d learned a few things since then. Yet all at once he felt just like that awkward adolescent of twenty years ago.

However, now, as then, Emily put them both at ease by focusing on her deficits rather than his.

“I haven’t done this in a long time, Mark. I’m a bit rusty.” Her unsteady voice whispered against the front of his shirt, and he recalled how she had been the one who’d apologized

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