Courage Under Duress (SYTYCW)

Chapter 26

"I need a new phone," I told Thomas.  It wasn't until I hung up on Dominic that I had noticed the ten missed calls.  There were two messages; both from my soon-to-be ex-husband.

I'm coming for you when you least expect it.

"Leave the phone to me," Thomas said.  I didn't hesitate to hand it over.  "Now, let's get back to dinner."

"I'm not so hungry anymore," I confessed.

"Then how about we just take it easy on the couch?"  I nodded.  He turned my phone off and left it on his desk.  Grabbing my hand, he pulled me along.

I remembered cuddling up against him from between his legs, his heart beat soothing my stirred nerves.

Large and gentle hands roamed over my body.  Our lips were fused together for a short moment before he began to trail kisses down my neck, heating my skin as he inched toward my chest.  I arched into his body, seeking total possession from him.  I never knew that desire could be so potent.

My hands worked to release his shirt.  I wanted to see him.  I needed to see him.

With the garment discarded, his hands climbed to the top of the zipper to my dress and my body quivered in anticipation of what would happen next.  His lips met my bare shoulders as he slid the material down, revealing my lacy strapless.

The heat of his mouth over the thin lace made me moan his name as he sucked at the covered nipple.

"Erica," I heard softly while his lips trailed back up to meet my mouth.

"Tom."  I let my lips do the rest.  I nipped his earlobe.

"Erica," he moaned, his hands rubbing the bare skin of my back.  "Erica."

I woke up with fingers brushing the side of my face while his other hand rubbed my back.  "Wake up, beautiful."  His chest rumbled.  Why was he laughing?

"What's so funny?"  I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, confused at the position I was in.

"Do you make it a habit to attack a man with kisses while you sleep?"  I groaned my embarrassment and buried my head in his neck.  "It must have been quite the dream."  I nodded.  His laugh grew louder.

"Stop laughing."  I felt the heat in my face growing.

"It's okay.  I enjoyed that very much.  It's nice to know that I'm not the only one with those kinds of dreams."  I slowly lifted my head to peer into his face.  All I got was a warm smile as I felt his hand in my hair at the back of my neck.  He pulled me in for a quick kiss and released me.  "I think it's bedtime for you."

***

Unable to get myself to leave the house due to panic attacks, Thomas had one of the officers purchase a new cellphone for me.  I never knew if Dominic had tried contacting me again.

Keeping me busy, searching through printed flight manifests, I felt like I was looking for a needle in a haystack.

By lunchtime, my mind and my eyes were no longer cooperating.  Letting out an exasperated sigh, I held my head in my hands and massaged my temples.  "I'm beginning to think that this is useless," I mumbled.  "We don't even know what we're looking for.  For all we know, he's left the country altogether for a non-extradition country.  He wouldn't be as stupid to stay local all this time."

"You're right but it's a process that we still need to complete.  We might not know what name to look for until we stumble upon it."

"I understand that but shouldn't I be working on being able to protect myself?" I asked.