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“Yeah, I think I’ll just go through everything one last time so we can hit the ground running tomorrow. I’ll call you if anything comes up.”
She just nodded her head on her way to the door, not quite understanding the sudden feeling of dread that came over her. She spent the drive out to the farm, trying to come up with an explanation for the sudden change in Riley’s behavior, but nothing her mind came up with made any sense. She’d never seen anyone flip on a dime like that, and she’d seen it all in the city hunting down assholes of every caliber.
For some reason, she half expected to see her clothes packed and waiting on the front steps, but the place didn’t look any different than it had this morning when she left. Riley had made it back home since his car was on the driveway when she pulled up. She sat for a few seconds trying to get her thoughts together, not sure what the heck she was about to walk into.
One thing was for sure; he’d taken her mind completely off of the unease she’d felt since leaving Don Wilson’s office. She couldn’t even drum up the interest she’d had upon realizing that she was on the right track, now all she could think about was Riley and what was going on with him.
She was even more confused when she walked into the house, and he greeted her with a smile. “Hey, you’re here already. I wasn’t expecting you so soon. Did you want to eat first or have your shower?”
“Eat, I think I skipped lunch.” She didn’t take her eyes off of him, so she saw the tic in his jaw when she said that, still he didn’t say anything.
“Coming right up, why don’t you sit, and I’ll bring our plates over.” She dropped into her seat, her eyes still following him around the room. “Where’s Eileen?” The older woman didn’t usually leave this early; in fact, she usually hung around until after they’d had dinner so she could clean up the kitchen.
“Oh, I let her leave early, I told her we could put the dishes in the dishwasher.” She didn’t think anything more of it when he brought two steaming plates of roast and potatoes with spring vegetables over and placed one in front of her. Her mouth was already watering, and her tummy rumbled at the scent of the food.
She waited for him to sit before digging in her unease at his behavior, wavering with every bite. Maybe he’d realized how wrong he was, and this was his way of making it up to her. Maybe he was regretting acting that way in her workplace especially in front of Pete.
By the time she’d finished eating, she’d convinced herself that all was back to normal and was even feeling a little bad for the way she’d spoken to him in anger. She knew all about cops’ significant others and the hell they go through from day to day, wondering if their loved one was going to come home at the end of the day.
“Why don’t I go run you a bath? That might be better than a shower, don’t you think?” Celia could only nod her head as Riley took both their plates to the sink and rinsed them before putting them in the dishwasher. He closed it with a smile in her direction. “Give me five minutes, and I’ll have that bath ready for you. Would you like some wine while I take care of that?” He didn’t wait for an answer but poured her a nice glass of red wine.
Oh, I can get used to this, Celia thought as she got up to stretch. If this is how he apologizes well then, he can mess up anytime. She sipped the rich pinot noir as she made her way up the stairs to the master suite where she could hear water running in the en suite bathroom.
She started getting undressed with a happy smile, already imagining the soothing feeling of the warm water on her skin. The scent the reached her as she stepped into the doorway was heavenly, and her appreciation went up even more. “Thanks for this, Riley.” She lifted her lips for a kiss, which he returned without rancor. He really wasn’t upset any longer.
Though she felt a bit uneasy about the quickness with which he’d switched off, she had to admit that his way of apologizing beats all others. “I’ll leave you to it then; I have some paperwork to take care of.” He took her chin between his fingers and kissed her lips softly, gently, before Celia stepped into the water.
She sighed with relief and contentment as the water started to soothe her fractured nerves and work the kinks out of her sore joints. She didn’t let work intrude as she enjoyed the bath her man had run for her and the care he’d taken to add her favorite scent.
