Total pages in book: 11
Estimated words: 10287 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 51(@200wpm)___ 41(@250wpm)___ 34(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 10287 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 51(@200wpm)___ 41(@250wpm)___ 34(@300wpm)
So despite the fact that Sarah had always kept herself covered head to toe even though there was nothing wrong with her bottom half, she had gritted her teeth, marched into the shop, and faced a lingering fear that had plagued her since she awoke in a shallow grave in North Carolina.
She got undressed.
In a fit of what could only be described as temporary insanity, Sarah had gotten into an argument once with Easy, the youngest of the ex-Rangers who’d relocated to Rapid City. Easy had lost his leg in Iraq and along with it his will to live. Sarah had lost a friend, her sense of safety, and the ability to sleep through the night. But she had never lost her will to live. The man who’d brutalized her had never managed to take that. And so she’d tried to jolt Easy out of his depression by showing him (and incidentally the entire group of men) the jagged scars that marred her torso.
No one had taken that well.
But Megan the shopkeeper must have seen a lot of people, with all kinds of bodies, because when Sarah took off her shirt to be measured the other woman had only paused and then stoically reached for the tape measure.
It had taken Sarah a long time to work up the nerve to show Chris her scars in a romantic setting. She feared rejection worse than anything. Because by the time she’d finally taken that last step, she was already in love with him.
She might have lost her own will to live if he’d rejected her. Love, she had discovered, was so much more powerful than hate or fear or despair. Love could heal wounds you thought would never close. Love could give you the strength to facedown evil in its purest form. Love could also kill.
The corset covered all but one small scar on her breast. Sarah loved the look and feel of it. But she wasn’t going backwards. She wouldn’t start covering herself again. She trusted Chris too much to have to worry that it was necessary.
And besides Chris had scars of his own. And Sarah had kissed each one in turn while telling him they mattered because they had brought him to the place where they eventually found each other. And they didn’t matter because love made you realize that you could overcome the ugly things in life, even if you couldn’t necessarily stop carrying the reminders around with you.
“Perfect,” Abby declared, standing behind Sarah in the three way mirror.
Sarah ran her hand over her flat tummy. “I can’t wear it long.”
“All the more reason you should buy it now. Maximize the amount of time you two can spend together.”
Sarah looked at Abby in the mirror. “Do you have an unhealthy relationship with your lingerie?”
Abby laughed and shook her head. “No. That’s you, Slick. For me, it’s shoes.”
They stopped at the mall to buy some jeans in a larger size and though Sarah had proclaimed no baby shopping, who could resist looking at nursery set-ups?
Sarah’s phone rang, startling her.
“Baby, where are you?” Chris asked.
Sarah felt a pang of guilt. Chris had gradually loosened his restrictions on her since their marriage. He understood on an intellectual level that the danger was over, but he had still been intensely protective of her after she’d been attacked. Rather than argue, she’d accepted his draconian rules about where and when she could go out and how often she had to check-in. She knew he only needed time to recover.
But she’d screwed up and it was late. She should’ve been home by now, making dinner for the boys and Abby. She didn’t have to ask whether or not it was dinner or her unknown whereabouts that had him most irritated.
If she wasn’t careful, she’d end up being chauffeured around town by various Ranger bodyguards again.
“I got caught up at work,” she replied without thinking. “I’m on my way home now.”
“Bullshit,” Chris told her and she froze. She locked eyes with Abby who gently set the stuffed giraffe back into the walnut crib she’d been eyeing.
“You didn’t go to work,” he accused. “I called the bar and Thomas said he hasn’t seen you all day.”
“Um.”
Busted, Abby mouthed.
Sarah nodded glumly.
“Where are you?” Chris demanded again.
“The mall.”
“The mall,” he repeated dryly.
“But it’s okay!” Sarah insisted. “Abby’s here.”
“Oh, God, don’t drag me into it!” Abby protested.
“Slick,” Chris said and Sarah could swear the phone got colder as she was holding it.
“I’m done!” Sarah insisted. “I’m totally done. We’re-“
“Ass. Home. Now.”
Sarah’s eyes widened.
‘Say, ‘Yes, Sir,’!” Abby prompted. “It always works on Tex!”
“Yes, Sir,” Sarah replied into the phone. She’d never actually called him that before. “We’re coming home right now.”
She disconnected and Abby burst out laughing.
“I can’t believe you said it!”
“Yeah, I don’t know how well it’ll work. He’s not happy.”