Love Proof (Laws of Attraction) - By Elizabeth Ruston Page 0,87

swift move, Joe yanked Sarah toward him by the feet until her legs lay over his lap. Sarah laughed. “Look at me,” he told her. “Sarah, I’m serious.”

“What? You got what you wanted, didn’t you? You can quit, I’ll be your girl . . . ”

“This is not satisfying,” he said.

“Well, too bad. You wore me down. You’re like water on a rock—drip, drip, drip . . . ”

But then she sprang to life again, straddling him, pinning him to her couch. “Is this what you want, Burke? More of a fight? You want me feisty?”

“A little feist is good,” he said. “But I want to hear the words, too—can you give me that, Henley? Or are you going to leave me here hanging?”

“I will not leave you hanging,” she said, pressing her groin against his. “By no means. I’m feeling a second wind. And yes, Burke,” she said, resting her hands gently on the sides of his face and gazing into his eyes, “I’ll give you the words: I’m with you, Joe. Whatever this whole thing brings, I’m with you. Satisfied?”

“Getting there,” he said, standing up and lifting her with him. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her in the only possible direction.

“You still haven’t said the other thing I want to hear,” Joe said.

“You’ll have to earn that, too,” Sarah answered. “Keep working on it.”

Thirty-four

The flight to Portland left at 5:40 Sunday night. It was later than Sarah liked to fly, since it meant she would have to find dinner in the airport, but it was one of the few nonstops, and she was tired of changing planes. Joe’s office had made the same reservation. She knew she’d be seeing him at the airport.

It was strange, she thought, knowing this would be their last trip together. When he left her apartment that morning, he promised to start working right away on finding his replacement. Sarah wanted him out of that firm as soon as possible. She could feel the hot breath of Fitzgerald and the U.S. Attorney’s office on her neck, even if Joe didn’t seem as concerned as she did.

It was only because he hadn’t been through it yet, she thought. If he had been there April 6, he would have seen the panic, the misery, the chaos and confusion as the feds raided her firm. He would have wished as ardently as she had that someone had whispered in her ear, “Hey, you might want to quit by April 5. Just a suggestion.”

She finished going through airport security, then searched for something decent to eat. She settled for her old standby, a rice and vegetable bowl from the Chinese fast food place. It didn’t look nearly as appetizing as the one Angie had been eating the day before—probably because Angie made it herself.

Sarah looked forward to the time when she would be home long enough to cook for herself again: winter soups like gumbo and corn chowder; pastas with zucchini or asparagus tossed in olive oil and garlic; Mexican and Indian dishes; fresh baked bread.

But to be home that long meant Joe’s firm would have to implode first, and she was in no hurry for that.

She settled into the gate area with a view of the approaching passengers. Marcela wasn’t there yet, she noticed, so either the court reporter was running late or had taken another flight.

Then finally Sarah was rewarded with a long-range view of her lover. Wearing jeans and a sweater, carrying the raincoat he had needed outside in the cold drizzle, smiling as soon as he caught sight of her. Sarah returned the smile. Even after only a few hours apart, she missed him.

He took the seat next to hers and leaned over to whisper. “Are you wearing anything under that?”

She had on a pair of jersey pants similar to the ones he stripped off her the night before. On top she wore a comfortable knit shirt under a soft jersey hoodie.

“Sorry to disappoint you,” she said.

“It’s all right,” Joe said. “Shouldn’t slow me down too much. I can probably find us a place if you want to spare five minutes.”

Her skin warmed at the suggestion. She had a hard time keeping a straight face. “Sorry, Burke, we’re back on duty. Did you find your replacement?”

“His name’s Felix,” Joe said, shifting back to professional mode just like she had. “I think he’ll do all right. It was hard to find someone on such short notice. He’ll take over on