He rose from the bed like there was a fire. Her green eyes widened as he approached her.
“We’ll shower together,” he said, brushing her soft hair behind her shoulder.
He saw her nostrils flare slightly as she glanced down over him. He paused, his fingers in her hair, when he saw a flicker of uncertainty cross her features. He sighed and lowered his hand.
“I haven’t seen that particular expression in over twenty-four hours now,” he said quietly.
“What expression?” she asked.
“The doubtful one.”
He saw her throat convulse as she swallowed.
“It’s...it’s not that, Ryan. I just need a little privacy, that’s all. I’m...I’m not used to showering with anyone,” she said awkwardly.
He sighed, hating to see her discomfort.
“I understand,” he said. He kissed her quickly and urged her toward the door with a hand on her shoulder. “Hurry up getting ready, though. I want to show off my new wife.”
She gave him a furtive glance over her shoulder and witnessed him admiring her backside. She threw him a repressive glance, hiding a smile.
He chuckled as she scurried out of the room, trying to ignore the disappointment he experienced at her going. Patience was what was required.
Winning Faith’s trust would be a process, not a decisive battle.
* * *
They’d been blessed with a day that was every bit as glorious as their wedding day. They sat outside on the patio at Boatwerks on the edge of Lake Macatawa. Ryan attacked his Boatwerks biscuits with gusto. Faith watched him for a moment, grinning.
“You really are making me feel guilty now for keeping you in bed,” she said.
He wiggled his eyebrows salaciously and forked up more fresh biscuit, sausage and poached egg. “A hard-working man has a big appetite.”
Hard-loving man, she thought to herself. He grinned as if he’d read her thought and she laughed. She’d never seen him so playful, so carefree. It was a little addictive. Ryan was typically so hard, so...strong. She couldn’t think of how else to describe him. He was rarely impassive with her, of course, but generally he exuded a steely, deliberate sort of male strength. He was the kind of man other men trusted immediately. If it weren’t for the fact that he also possessed a potent sex appeal without even trying, Faith would have found him just as easy to trust.
She blinked when she recognized her thought. Was she really going to hold it against him because he was so good-looking and appealing to the opposite sex? That seemed blatantly unfair—
“Are you going to eat?” Ryan asked, looking puzzled. Faith realized she’d paused with her fork hovering over her vegetable and cheese omelet.
“Oh, yes,” she said, banishing her worries to the periphery of her consciousness.
After they’d eaten and paid the bill, they walked out onto the dock, breathing the fresh air off the lake and holding hands.
“I like that place,” Ryan said, referring to Boatwerks. “Reminds me of the places I used to eat with my family when I was a kid.”
They came to a stop at the end of the dock. “It must have been wonderful for you and Mari to spend the whole summer in Harbor Town.”
“Yeah. Those summers went on for an eternity,” Ryan murmured, looking lost in memory as he stared out at the lake. He gave her a sideways glance. “Or it seemed like they would at the time.”
“That’s one of the many wonderful things about children,” Faith said. “A moment can stretch into eternity. I remember thinking that, growing up here in Holland,” she said, nodding toward the lake, which was really a swollen, drowned river that stretched like a finger inland from the massive great lake.
Ryan nodded thoughtfully. “You were right. This part of Michigan really is ideal for raising a child.” He squeezed her hand and she looked up at him. His short bangs flickered on his forehead in the soft breeze. He hadn’t shaved this morning; his jaw was sexily shadowed by a scruff. His gaze on her was warm as he turned toward her, their middles brushing together.
“Thanks for bringing it back for me, how special it is here. After the accident all my great memories must have...receded into the background. They’re still there. They didn’t really disappear,” he said, his gaze on the horizon as if he was seeing something Faith couldn’t. He suddenly lowered his head to hers. A devilish smile tilted his lips. “When summer gets here, I’m going to take you to all my favorite beaches.”
“No you won’t,” she scolded, grinning. “I’ll be starting to show soon. There’s no way in hell I’m putting on a swimsuit.”
“You have a beautiful body,” he said, pulling her closer in his arms. “Pregnant or not, you’re gorgeous.”