Page 101 of Protecting Bree
“I didn’t mean to wake you up,” he told her.
“You didn’t. Well, not really. I missed the feel of you next to me.” She padded over to the couch and pulled him back down to sit with her, snuggling into his side, herknees pulled up with her feet on the cushion next to her. “It sounded like he took that okay.”
Smiley wasn’t surprised she figured out who he was talking to. She’d been there. She heard what Castillo had claimed.
“Yeah.”
“For the record, I think he was lying,” Bree said.
Smiley wasn’t so sure, but he didn’t contradict her.
“That had to have been really hard. Telling him, I mean.”
“It wasn’t easy.”
“That’s one of the many things I love about you, Jude Stark,” Bree said, looking up at him. “You do what’s right no matter how hard it is on you.”
Her compliment soothed his soul in a way no one else had ever been able to. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome. Now…it’s the middle of the night. And even though it’s too soon for me to jump your bones, can we go back to bed anyway?”
In response, Smiley stood and leaned over to pick her up.
She giggled but didn’t protest. “I think I like you carrying me around.”
“Good, because I likecarryingyou around,” Smiley told her.
He got them both settled under the covers once more, and the contentment he felt when Bree put her head on his shoulder and threw a leg over his thighs was almost scary.
“I love you, Smiley. I always knew Jude Stark was a superhero name, and you prove it to me time and time again. And I’m not just talking about you sliding down agutter nine stories with me on your back, or acting as if having two guns pointed at your head is no big deal, or any of the larger-than-life things you do on your missions. I’m talking about you calling a friend because a rumor you heard that involves him was bothering you. Or carrying me around because it makes you happy. Or making me dinner. Or arranging for all my friends to come to a bar to welcome me home. Or any of the other hundreds of things you do every day to make my life easier and happier. You’re my superhero, Smiley. And I love you so much.”
“I’m just a man who wants to do everything in his power to make his woman’s life easier,” he protested.
“Well, you do. And I appreciate it. And you.”
“Love you,” Smiley said, turning and kissing the top of her head.
She kissed his chest. “Love you back. When I’m healed, you better watch out…I’m gonna show youexactlyhow much I love and appreciate you.”
“Looking forward to it,” Smiley said with a sappy grin.
“Can I ask you something?”
“You can ask me anything you want, whenever you want,” he told her.
He saw her gaze was fixed on something across the room. Following her line of sight, he realized she was staring at a bookshelf against the wall.
“I want to fix up your bear,” she blurted.
Smiley couldn’t help but chuckle.
“That wasn’t meant to be funny,” she protested.
“How long have you been thinking about that? Here we are, in bed, sleepy and talking about superpowers, and you’re worried about Beary.”
“I love that name,” Bree told him with a huge smile.
It was ridiculous. Something only a kid could come up with. Smiley had such complicated feelings about his childhood stuffed animal. There were some good memories associated with the toy, but also some not-so-good ones. It was the only thing he took when he left his house for good.
