“Amanda, that was . . . incredible!  You saved my life!”  Lee said, as she tinkered with his handcuffs.

“That’s what partners are for, Lee.”

He felt the cumbersome cuffs give and brought his sore hands up to inspect them.  He felt her cool, soothing touch on his wrists as she rubbed them. 

“Are you okay?”  After releasing his wrists, she began an inventory of his body, checking for any broken bones. 

“I’m fine.”  He slowed her hands.  Whenever she touched him, it sent shivers down his spine.  It was best to keep his distance.  “Amanda, how did you knock that guy out?  They took our guns.”

“Well, first I picked the lock on my cuffs, and then I slid up behind him and knocked him out with a loose floor board.”

He shook his head in amazement.  She was no longer the hapless housewife she’d been when he first recruited her.  She was a trained agent--and a damn fine one at that. 

“Let’s call this in and head back to the Agency.  I’m sure Billy’s going to want to see our report by the end of the day.”  She retrieved her gun off the floor in the corner of the room and re-holstered it. 

“You got it, partner.”  Lee smiled in admiration as he followed her out of the building.

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“There.  All ready for Billy.”  Amanda signed the report and brought it over to him for his signature. “I’ll just take this downstairs, and then we can head home, huh?”

“Yeah, sure.  Uh, Amanda?”

Her hand on the doorknob, she stopped and turned to look at him.  “Yeah?”

“Do you remember that case where you were kidnapped and almost sold into white-slavery?”

“How could I forget?  You told me I should quit the Agency.”

“No, you said you should quit the Agency.”

“Well, you didn’t disagree with me.”

He shrugged, knowing she was right, but not wanting to pursue that particular topic.  “Do you remember why you stayed?”

“Sure.”  He waited to hear her reason.  “You asked me to.”

“That’s all it took?  I just had to ask?”  He couldn’t believe it.  That’s all she’d needed to stay in his life.  

“Yep!”

He shook his head--it was so hard to believe.  He was so used to the high maintenance women he had dated that he was surprised at how little effort it took to please this woman before him.  She was worth more than all of those women in his black books combined, and he was finally beginning to realize it.

“I’ll be ready to go when you get back.”

She smiled and nodded before she sauntered out the door.

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Lee awoke in a great mood.  He was beginning to feel like he really belonged here.  This was his family, and he wanted to be with them. 

Amanda sauntered into the room looking like the proverbial cat that ate the canary.  Lee sat up and leaned against the headboard.  He noticed she was hiding something behind her back.  She moved to the bed and leaned down, placing a soft kiss on his lips, and sat beside him on the edge of the bed. 

“You’re up early.  What’s the occasion?”  He smiled at the flirtatious gleam in her eyes. 

“Very funny, Stetson.”  She put whatever she was carrying down on the floor next to the bed.  “You know exactly what today is, well, not really today, but what we’re celebrating today.  Since the actual day is on Monday and we’d be too tired to celebrate after working all day, we decided to celebrate it today.” 

He still found it unbelievable how much she could say in one breath.  After trying to decode her ramble, he thought about the significance of Monday’s date.  Was it the second of October?  No.  The third.  What was so special about that date?  He had looked at their marriage certificate when he was first thrown into the glimpse, and he remembered they were married in February.  So what was so special about--

“Lee, you didn’t forget, did you?”  The sadness in her eyes was unbearable.

‘The train station!’  The day they met.  “Of course not.  I know today is the anniversary of the day we met.”  He held his breath, hoping he’d gotten it right.

“Oh, you!”  She playfully slapped at his arm.  “For a second, I really thought you’d forgotten.”

“What?  Can’t a guy have a little fun with his wife?”  Wife.  That sounded . . . good.

“Sure, after we open our gifts.”

“Open our what . . .?”

She laughed.  “Oh, no, you don’t.  You’re not getting me again.  We always exchange our gifts before the kids wake up.  So come on.”  She grinned and winked at him.  “Hand it over, big fella.”

“It’s just that . . . well, I want to give you your present tonight.  It’s a surprise.”  ‘Yeah, so much of a surprise even you don’t know what it is,’ his inner voice mocked.  ‘Great, now what are you going to do, Stetson?’ 

“Okay, I guess I can wait till tonight.”  She stuck out her lower lip in a feigned pout.  “At least you can open yours now.  She reached down and pulled up a fairly large box wrapped in bright red paper. 

His stomach flipped in excitement.  He suddenly felt like a little boy at Christmas.   Ripping the paper off and yanking off the lid, he stared in shock at what lay inside.  Speechless, he slowly pulled out the suit from the department store. The one they had argued about.  The one he had acted like a spoiled brat over.  Guilt washed over him as he looked at her.  “How did . . .?”

“I know it isn’t the exact same one, but it is the same brand.  The color’s slightly off, but it’s close, isn’t it?  I bought it at their clearance center.  I hope you like it.” 

He pulled the suit coat out of the box and held it up to his chest.  He caught her hopeful expression and smiled.  “I love it.  It’s even better than the other one.  Thank you, Amanda.”

“Oh, good!  You’re welcome, sweetheart.  Happy anniversary.”  She leaned over and kissed him. 

Overwhelmed, he drew her close, his hand on the back of her head.  He was not about to let her go.  It was about time he allowed his lips to taste what they had been craving.  Finally, he allowed the wall he’d constructed to keep her and everyone else away, to crumble to dust.   He wanted to feel her pliant lips under his.  Hell, he needed it.  He gave himself to the feelings that she evoked in him.  This was right.  This was . . .

When he heard Jenny running down the hall toward their room, he reluctantly let her go. 

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“Do I look all right?”

He looked up to see her glide down the stairs.  She was a vision in her beautifully tailored black gown.  The sweetheart neckline allowed him a lovely view of her neck and shoulders that would no doubt drive him to distraction throughout dinner.  The sexy slit up the side gave him the added benefit of seeing her toned thigh.  What a dress!  What a woman! 

He met her at the bottom of the stairs and took her hand, bringing it to his lips and placing a delicate kiss in her palm.  “You’re breathtaking.” 

“You aren’t so bad yourself.”  She gave him a teasing look.

“Shall we go?” 

“Are you sure Phillip is okay about spending the evening with the kids?”

“A-man-da!  I already told you, and so did he.  He’s fine with it.”

She laughed.  “Okay.  Okay.  Let’s go.” 

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“Oh my gosh.  I couldn’t eat another bite.  That was absolutely wonderful, Lee.”  She pushed the plate of half-eaten chocolate mousse away and took a sip of her wine. 

He leaned in and kissed the curve of her lips.  “You had some mousse . . .” He indicated the corner of her mouth. 

“Oh, thank you.”  She smiled as she picked up her napkin and dabbed at her mouth. 

“Anytime,” he teased.  “You aren’t too full to dance with your husband, are you?”

“Never.” 

He helped her out of her seat and guided her to the small dance floor.  The band played soft jazz as the couple danced, and, as they swayed to the music, the outside world melted away, leaving only the two of them.  He loved they way they fit together, as if they were made for each other.  Perhaps they were.

“Amanda, I want to apologize--”     

“Apologize?  What on earth for?”

“For the way I’ve acted over the last month or so.  I haven’t been myself, and I’ve taken it out on you and the kids.  I want you to know that I’m very sorry for that.  I won’t take you for granted ever again.  And I . . . I love you, Amanda.  More than I ever thought possible.  You and the kids mean everything to me.  Thank you for staying with me.”  He lifted one of the curls framing her face and wrapped it around his finger. 

“Oh, sweetheart.”  She caressed his face.  “We’re your family.  We’ll always be here for you.  And I love you, too.” 

They danced to yet another song until Amanda broke the silence.  “I’ve had such a wonderful time, Lee.  Thank you.  I hate to see the evening end.”  She grasped his shoulder more tightly and pulled him even closer. 

“It doesn’t have to, you know?”  There, he’d said it.  Now the ball was in her court.

“Well, what about the kids?  Phillip’s expecting us home soon.”

“I kinda asked him to spend the night.  I got us a room at a Bed and Breakfast over in the next county.”  He pulled back to see her reaction.  “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Mind?  I love it!  Thank you!”  She laid her head back on his shoulder and whispered,

“Can we go now?”   

He released the breath he’d unknowingly been holding and grasped her hand.  Together, they strolled back to the table.  After gathering Amanda’s purse and paying the bill, they left the restaurant, hand in hand.

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“It’s beautiful, Lee.”  She fingered the lace on the bed and walked over to the window.

“You’re beautiful.  I’m sorry it took me so long to see it.”  He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her small waist. 

“That was a long time ago, Lee.”  She snuggled deeper into his embrace. 

“Yeah, a lifetime.”  He sighed.  The light fragrance of her perfume surrounded him.  This was exactly where he was supposed to be.  They were destined to be together.  No matter how much his foolish mistakes had conspired against them, they were here.  Together. 

Amanda slowly turned around, loosened his tie, and then began unbuttoning his shirt.  “Have I mentioned how good you look in this suit?”  She nibbled at his ear. 

“No . . . you didn’t.”  He shivered at her touch.

“How thoughtless of me.”  She laughed seductively.  “I’ll have to make it up to you.”

She put her hand in his and they entangled their fingers--swaying to unheard music.  It was the first time he’d allowed her to get this close, no barriers.    The need to push her away before she got any closer was nearly overwhelming, but he fought to gain control of the fear. 

His lips seemed to be on their own mission.  They moved slowly over her face, raining soft, tender kisses on first her eyelids, then her nose, then her earlobes, and finally, her lips.  When their lips met in a soft sensuous kiss, he felt like he had finally found his place in the world.  He was home. 

His tongue traced her lips until she granted him entrance into her warm mouth.  Running his hands through her hair, he was finding it difficult to control his emotions.  He needed to slow things down a bit.  Over and over, his mind screamed, ‘This is Amanda!’  Slowly opening his eyes and seeing the love in hers, the last of his resistance melted away.  ‘Yes, this is Amanda.  You love her, and she loves you.  It’s okay to let her in.’

Her gentle hands lightly caressed his chest, and he gave in to the powerful feelings she stirred within him.  This was meant to be.  They were both ready for this.

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