She twisted her head and opened one eye to squint at Maddox. Her stomach dropped to see that he was already dressed—though the reason she slept so soundly was because he’d kept her up half the night making love to her. Beyond him, she saw his duffel on the wide rail of the stairs. Even though she knew he’d planned to leave, the sight of the duffel, and his cream-colored hat sitting on top of it, took her breath. He said he was coming back. He said he loved her. And she wanted to believe it, especially after everything they’d experienced last night. But she couldn’t let herself hope. “Hey.” He tilted her chin so she looked at him. “It’s just for a few weeks. I’ll be home soon, probably sooner than you want.” She swallowed her fears and rolled onto her back. His eyes darkened when his gaze flicked to her bare breasts. “No doubt.” He groaned and cupped a breast in his hand. “You can come with me.” “I can’t,” she said, though her reasons for saying no had eroded—Linda was done with summer school, Adam was in town.
