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Chapter Sixteen
Elizabeth’s eyes fluttered open to find Joe’s dark, chocolate brown gaze fixed on her. Concern radiated in his gaze.
Tears flooded her eyes. On one hand, she wanted nothing more than to cling to him and bathe in the comfort of his strong, caring arms. On the other, she wasn’t sure exactly what he was thinking or how he was feeling about her. Disappearing altogether appealed to her as well, but unfortunately, she wasn’t an illusionist.
He rose from his chair and took a knee at the edge of the bed. He pushed her hair off her face, leaving his fingers to linger on her cheek. His hand felt warm. Leaning toward her, he kissed her on the forehead. His sad eyes swam with tears.
“I’m so sorry, Elizabeth. I’m so sorry this happened to you.”
He scooped her up and took a seat on the rocking chair with her on his lap. With his arms wrapped tightly around her, he simply rocked her as she cried. She nearly melted into him, resting her head on his shoulder, and nuzzling her cheek tight to his neck. She felt safe and secure in his arms. It was a feeling she thought she could get used to mighty quickly. She’d never been held in such a manner before.
Eventually, her tears dried, and she worked to regain a voice. “I’m sorry, Joe, but can you bring me home now. I’m so tired and embarrassed, and I just can’t face everyone again.”
“Certainly, if that’s what you want. But there’s no reason for you to be embarrassed. Nick and Angelina care about you. We all care about you. We just want everything to be okay with you.”
He brushed his lips lightly across her forehead and released his grip on her. She stood. Her legs wobbled, but she willed them stiff.
She padded off to the bathroom while Joe headed to the kitchen to tell Angelina they would be leaving.
Elizabeth stared at her dark sunken eyes in the mirror wondering how she was going to face the world, the world that knew what happened to her. She splashed her face with water, fingered through her curls, took a deep breath, and then followed the sound of Joe’s voice.
“Ready to go?” he asked as he helped her with her coat, and then slid into his.
“Where are Max and Molly?” she asked.
“They’re going to spend the night at Nick’s. They’re having so much fun playing with their cousins I didn’t want to cut their time short.”
“Oh, okay.”
As she moved in the direction of the door, Angelina stepped into her path and drew her into a tight hug. “Take care of yourself and call me if you need anything, anything at all.”
Elizabeth just nodded and stepped through the doorway. She was so overwhelmed she didn’t know what to say, and she wasn’t sure she could even speak at that point if she had known what to say.
Joe pulled into traffic before he reached over and took her hand into his. His hold warmed her entire body, and gave her a sense of security.
She mulled over the events of the day, trying to make sense of it all. Glancing over at him, she couldn’t help but wonder what he really thought. He didn’t seem to have a problem expressing himself like she did, but she wondered if there was more. He looked in her direction and flashed a soft, reassuring smile.
“Joe, I’m sorry about ruining your family’s Christmas.”
His smile slowly widened. “You didn’t ruin Christmas.”
She looked away. “Well, I bet it didn’t happen the way everyone expected.”
He gripped her hand a little tighter.
“Your sister was really nice to me.”
“She cares about you. We all care about you.”
