Midnight Rambler_ A Novel of Suspense - James Swain [52]
“You've lost weight,” she said.
“Almost twenty pounds,” I said.
“You look like you did when we met. Lean and tan and . . .”
“And what?”
She wouldn't let the word come out of her mouth.
“You look the same, too,” I said.
“No, I don't,” she said.
“You look beautiful.”
“Why did you really come, Jack?”
“Because I love you and don't want to lose you.”
Her cup hit the saucer hard. “Then why haven't you come for me? Why stay in south Florida and let people destroy your reputation? I love you, too.”
“I know you do.”
“Then why haven't you come for me?”
I moved closer on the couch and put my hand over hers. “Because I can't leave until I figure out how Simon Skell killed those women. If I do that, he stays in prison. If I don't, he goes free. I must resolve this. Then I'll come back to you.”
Her face melted, and I watched her fight back tears.
“Is that a promise?” she asked.
“Yes, it's a promise.”
She took my left hand and stared at the gold band encircling my third finger. Looked at it a long time, her eyes blinking with thought.
“Take it off,” she said.
“You mean my wedding ring?”
She nodded, and I tugged my wedding ring off my finger. I didn't know what Rose was up to, and I watched her lift my left hand and stare. The place where the ring rested was milky white, the rest of my finger dark brown.
“You never took it off,” she said.
Then I got it.
“Not once,” I said.
“Never went out on a Friday night and played the field?”
“No, honey.”
“No strippers on the side, or trysts with female cops? There were a couple who had their eye on you.”
“Nope.”
“You knew I was waiting, didn't you?”
“I hoped you were,” I said, smiling.
She rose from the couch and motioned to me. I stood up, and she unbuttoned my shirt and ran her fingertips across my hairless stomach. Her nose twitched, sniffing my skin, and before I knew it, her head was resting on my chest and I was holding her.
“I love you so much,” she whispered.
After a minute she called in late to work. Then, clasping my hand, she led me to her bedroom. She undressed me, then I undressed her. It was our little ritual and never failed to get us both aroused. We tossed the sheet on the floor and got into bed.
“I want to be on top,” she said.
“You sure?”
“Yes. Lie down.”
I was too tall for her bed, and my feet stuck out at the end. I wiggled my toes and pointed at them. She laughed and slapped me on the thigh.
“Move over, big boy.”
I slid across the bed until I was lying crosswise. Then Rose mounted me. At first our lovemaking was awkward, and I felt like a teenager doing it in the backseat of my car. Rather than be annoyed, my wife smiled at me. If she'd needed any more convincing that I wasn't fooling around, she just got it.
It only took us a minute to get our rhythm back, and then we were flying through the clouds. Rose knew what made me happy, and as I climaxed I was reminded of all the times in our relationship that she'd pulled through for me.
When we were done, she snuggled up beside me and put her head on my chest. Then she drifted off to sleep. Her energy was flowing through my overheated skin, and for a little while I felt whole again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
At eleven we walked down to our cars and kissed each other good-bye. Rose was back in uniform and had her hair tied in a bun. Seeing Buster, she let out a happy squeal.
“You got a dog.”
She stuck her hand through the open window and scratched the back of Buster's head. To my utter surprise, Buster wagged his tail and acted like a normal dog.
“I like this dog. You should breed him,” she said.
“You're the second person who's told me that,” I said.
“Then why don't you?”
“He's got a mean streak a mile long.”
“Maybe it's the people you hang out with.”
Rose got in her Nova and lowered her window. When I was a cop, we'd never said good-bye. It was always “See you later.” I said that now and saw a tinge