The nothingness of sleep lifted gradually.  A moment of confusion hit Angie as she realized that she was not in her own bed.  Then all the memories of the night flooded into her.  One part of her could not believe that it had happened.  She and Rollie had made love, wildly, passionately.  Then the other part of her remembered the joy of it, how unbelievably perfect it had been, how she had never known a night more filled with love.

Slowly, Angie turned over, only to find that Rollie was not beside her.  Then she saw him.  He stood near the wall.  He was dressed only in pajama bottoms, his arms wrapped around his bare chest.  He was gazing through one of the glass panels out into the loft, the light of early morning revealing his expression.  He looked a million miles away.

Does he regret it?  Is he sorry it happened?  Angie examined her own feelings and found no regret.  Just the opposite.  It felt like she had finally found something that she had been searching all her adult life for.  But what if Rollie didn’t feel the same?

Angie slid out of the bed.  She slipped on the robe that she had seen Rollie wear so many times in the past.  Silently, she padded over to the Aussie.  For a moment he did not move, as if unaware of her presence.  Then he turned around, and their eyes met, searching, questioning.

“So . . . how do you feel?” Angie asked hesitantly.

Rollie continued to gaze at her for a long moment, then his hand came out and softly touched her cheek.  “I . . . I feel good, Ange.”  He smiled shyly.  “I feel like . . . like I’ve come home.”  The smile disappeared, and his search of her eyes deepened.  “How do you feel?”

Angie stepped closer to him.  “Wonderful.  I feel wonderful.”

The smile returned.  Rollie pulled her into his embrace, and their lips came together in a long, tender kiss.  Angie wrapped her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss.  At last, they drew apart, a dazed look in both of their eyes.

“What is this going to mean for us, Ange?”

“I don’t know.  I never thought that it would be this way with us.”

“Me neither.  But . . . Angie, there’s something I need to tell you.  When Loubar attacked me and said that he was going to get revenge on you, I was so scared.  I was more terrified at the thought of what he was going to do to you than what his plans were for me.  I think it was that fear that gave me the strength to do what I did.”  He bracketed her face with his hands.  “Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about you, about us.  It really started when Craymore put you in that cryogenic unit, and you almost died.  I have never been so scared in my life.  Just the thought of losing you. . . .  God, it hurt.  I was just about falling apart as I did the CPR on you.”  Gazing into her eyes, Rollie stroked Angie’s cheeks with his thumbs.  “It was then that I really began to realize how very, very much you mean to me, that . . . that I’m in love with you.”  The last words were spoken in a whisper.

Rollie’s last five words shot through her, stilling her breath.  Her throat seized up, trapping her voice.  ‘He loves me,’ her mind said.  ‘And I love him.’  The sudden revelation drove every last thought of speech from her.

Misunderstanding her silence, Rollie arms fell away from her.  She felt him draw away, emotionally as well as physically.  ‘Do something, Angie!’ her mind cried.  Listening to it, she grabbed hold of him and brought her lips hard against his.  He stiffened for an instant, then melted against her.  He drew her up off the floor, his arms crushing her against him.  The kiss deepened, grew passionate.  Angie buried her fingers in Rollie’s soft hair, pressing his mouth even more tightly against hers.

Finally, their lips separated.  Gazing deeply into Rollie’s eyes, Angie whispered, “I love you.”

A smile lit his face, making his eyes glow.  He buried his face into the crook of her neck, holding her to him for a long, silent moment.  Then he slowly let her feet drop back to the floor.

“When you were lying there on the floor, so still, I was so afraid that you were dying,” Angie whispered against his neck.  “I realized how horribly empty my life would be without you.  I couldn’t take it.  I’ve . . . I’ve been attracted to you for a really long time, but I thought that it was just a . . . a physical thing.”

“Me too,” Rollie admitted.  “It was bloody hard to ignore it sometimes.  But I thought it would be a really bad idea to do something about it, so I tried not to think about it.”

“And I was too scared to say anything.”

Rollie lifted his head and looked at her.  “We’re a couple of idiots, aren’t we, Ange.”

“Yep.”

His eyes traveled over her face, coming to a halt at her lips, the desire to kiss them returning.

“We should get to work,” he murmured.

“Yes, we should,” Angie agreed, equally softly.

“We have lots of work to do.”

“Lots of work.”

They looked at each other and felt the passion rise again.

“Work can wait,” Rollie said, his voice deep.

“Work can wait,” Angie agreed with a smile as she led Rollie back to the bed.
 

THE END