of the bedroom. He had sent a quick text to Royce letting him know Joanna was awake. They would be heading that way soon.
She stiffened abruptly, almost as if he had frightened her. He saw genuine fear pass through her eyes for an instant, and then it was gone. As she smoothed her hair, Joanna smiled brightly at him.
“I’m ready when you are,” she announced regally as she brushed past him on her way out of the bedroom
Landon narrowed his eyes and followed Joanna closely. She seemed a bit unsteady. Didn’t she get into this mess by pushing herself too hard? Now she was starting to piss him off!
“I just need to update the log before I leave. Why don’t you rest on the couch, and I’ll come to get you when I’m finished,” Landon suggested.
“I have some notes to review. I’ll jus--”
“You’ll just rest on the couch until I come to get you,” Landon growled.
Joanna narrowed her eyes and opened her mouth to argue with him. But, she decided she didn’t have the energy. She stomped over to the couch and sat down, folding her hands in her lap.
Landon nodded and spun on his heel to make his way topside. Stubborn Witch. He had to smile at the picture she presented sitting primly on the couch, acting as if her blood wasn’t boiling at being told what to do.
Landon pulled out the log book and groaned. Evidently, it had not been updated over the past few weeks. Closed within the pages of the log, were scraps of paper that needed to be permanently documented. Sighing, he pulled the cap from his ink pen and began writing.
#
Landon closed the log book and put it away. He wadded up the stack of papers that he had just spent the last fifteen minutes documenting. Joanna was probably contemplating his demise at this point.
“Noooo!” Joanna screamed.
Landon felt her anguish pulse through his body. He leapt from his chair and vaulted down the stairs. Joanna had fallen asleep waiting for him and was fighting someone, or something, in her sleep. He touched her arm as he spoke her name.
“Joanna,” Landon called softly. He didn’t want to frighten her awake, but he didn’t want to leave her in whatever hell she was enduring.
“Joanna,” he called again as she moaned and twisted away from him. “Joanna,” he spoke her name for the third time before she suddenly opened her eyes.
“Damn!” Joanna lunged forward and would have risen if Landon had not placed his hands on her shoulders to prevent her from getting up too quickly.
Pulling her hair back from her face, she took a couple of calming breaths. She felt the couch shift as Landon sat down beside her.
“Nightmare?” he asked.
“Yea, no big deal,” she said, bending to slip her shoes on. He noticed the slight trembling in her hands which told him it was a big deal.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“What-- now you’re a shrink, too? You want to analyze my dreams?” Joanna snapped.
“This must be the part Royce was referring to,” Landon observed with a frown.
Joanna pinned him with a glare. “What part would that be?”
“The part where you are a tad bit grouchy.”
Joanna glared at him for a moment longer and then covered her face with her hands.
Landon watched in horror as her shoulders began to shake.
“I’m sorry, Joanna,” he said wrapping his arms around her. “I didn’t mean to upset you. Don’t cry.”
At that moment she lifted her face and tears streamed from her eyes. But they weren’t tears of frustration or sorrow, they were tears of mirth. She was laughing!
“Are you kidding me?” Landon protested with a scowl.
“I’m sorry,” Joanna said as she wiped her eyes. “It just stuck me as funny.”
“I’m glad I could entertain you this evening,” Landon said with a grin.
They both rose from the couch finally ready to make their way home.
“I need to grab my purse,” Joanna said as she spun around to open a nearby storage compartment. She evidently moved too quickly, because suddenly the room began spinning. The next thing she knew, strong arms were encircling her once again.
Landon caught Joanna as she crumpled, and then strode to the couch with her in his arms.
“You are going to hurt yourself pretending that you are ok when you’re not,” Landon reprimanded her.
“I just moved too quickly; that’s all,” she explained.
Joanna needed to get away from Landon. He had witnessed her emotions run from one extreme to the other today. He had played nursemaid