7. The danger is lurking

Reese POV

Elliot and I spent the entire morning together in bed, clearly not sleeping. It had been so long since my husband had touched me that I had almost forgotten the feeling, and today he seemed to want to make up for lost time in the best way possible. His binding kisses, his large hands sliding over my body, took me to heaven, so we stayed there just enjoying each other, something that seemed to belong to a lost time, something that should have been the right thing to do from the beginning.

Moments later, he was lying in bed with me on top of him, resting my head on his chest with his arm over my shoulders. It was simply amazing to be like this with him; I could feel him so close to me, which was completely satisfying.

“I need to go now,” he said after a while.

I lifted my head to look at him. “But already? You said you were taking the day off today?” I questioned, already missing him.

“I know I said that,” he said, smiling at me. “But I just need to sort out some things at the bank. I'll be back before you miss me, okay?” He kissed the top of my head tenderly, making me close my eyes and enjoy the good feeling of his touch.

“Okay then, but don't be too long,” I asked, and he nodded before getting up from the bed and heading to the bathroom. At that moment, his body was still warm like mine under the covers; what we had experienced moments before was like two soulmates finding each other after being apart for a long time, reconnecting, and it was simply magical.

I was so happy and daydreaming that I didn't even notice when sleep took me again. When I woke up, Elliot was no longer there, of course, because he had work matters to handle. So I decided to get out of bed, take a nice shower, and wait for him because now that the time was right, he would come back, and we could continue what we were having, something like a lost honeymoon.

After my shower, I went to see Sammy. I found my son in the game room, where Jennifer Durham was sitting in her wheelchair, laughing and playing with him. The sight instantly irritated me. Sammy seemed happy, but I couldn't allow that woman, who had tried to destroy my life, to spend time with my son.

"Sammy, come here, sweetheart," I called, trying to keep my voice light, but there was a firmness to it that I couldn't hide.

He ran to me, his eyes shining with the joy of a child who just wants to play. "But mom, Jen is teaching me a new game!" he said, looking back at Jennifer.

"Sorry, Sammy, but we need to go," I said, picking him up and moving him away from Jennifer.

“But why won't you let me spend time with him?” She asked as I was already walking away, making me stop to look at her.

“What did you say? Why would I let you spend time with my son?” I asked, impatient. Who did she think she was?

She gave a little laugh, shrugging. “Elliot told me you two are getting back together, right? So it's not like I'm a threat to you,” she said. Elliot probably told her this while she was asleep.

I raised my chin, not wanting to show any sign of weakness. “So that's what you heard,” I said. “My husband and I are trying to give our relationship another chance, so I hope you don't interfere in that matter and stay away from my son too.” What I wanted was for her to take her wheelchair and leave here forever.

However, she, with that sly smile she always tries to hide under a mask of innocence, spoke: "I'm sorry, Reese. For what happened yesterday… I was confused after the slap; I thought you wanted to kill me. It wasn't fair of me to accuse you."

The sincerity in her words seemed forced, but I knew she was a master at manipulation. "I understand, Jennifer. But you need to understand that I feel uncomfortable with you spending so much time with my son."

"I just want the best for him, Reese. And for Elliot too," she said, her eyes gleaming with that calculating intelligence. "After everything I heard about Elliot's father's accident… You should understand why I thought you were capable of pushing me down those stairs. But I really didn't mean any harm; I was confused."

I sighed, feeling a weight on my chest. I decided to set the dispute aside for now. “It's fine with me if you stay here until you recover. Just don't interfere with me and mine,” I said.

She nodded. “Of course, Reese. I understand you. We're rivals, but that doesn't mean we have to be enemies,” she said, with that cunning.

I narrowed my eyes like a cat. “We're not rivals, Jennifer. We'll never be; Elliot is my husband and no one else's. I hope you always remember that,” I said, wanting to squash any idea she had. Rivals? She must be thinking too highly of herself.

But the cynical smile on her face made me think she was still planning to do horrible things. “Oh, yes, sorry. That's right, we're not rivals,” she said, but it was like she was mocking me.

That bad feeling returned to my chest. Why was Jennifer acting so confident? Was something happening right under my nose? I hugged my son protectively. "Come on, Sammy," I said, taking my son away from that woman who seemed to have a plan behind every smile.

I wouldn't let her make me lose focus on what was really important. Elliot wanted to give our story another chance; everything was going very well, and to see that we had had an incredible moment that morning, a moment I intended to continue later when he got home. Jennifer was just playing cheap games that would lead nowhere, and all I could do now was ignore her.

I was still going to save my family and my marriage.