by C R Riley
Motioning for Jaxon to scoot over to the other side of the bed, Johannah sits down and opens the top drawer. Depositing the glass, she filled it with water next to her. She pulls out a bottle of ibuprofen and swallows the two pills she dumped into her hand. Then she stands and walks over to the bag she took with her this weekend. She opens the outside pocket and grabs two things, then glares at the packet in her hand.
"Something wrong?" Jaxon shifts in the bed.
"Depends on how you look at it, I guess."
Johanna can't believe this is happening to her. Fortunately, she only missed her last two pills, so the likelihood of this turning into a major issue is slim. She has never missed one before. Like clockwork, she had taken them at the same time every day, first thing in the morning, right before she got out of bed. And even if she was late taking them, it didn't matter until now. Her reason for taking them wasn't to prevent anything from happening, it was to regulate her. The stress of her job had affected that, so her doctor had prescribed them to get her back on track.
"It's no big deal. Just me stressing over issues I have no control over." Johannah isn't sure what to do about the two extra pills. Does she take them or just wait and see what happens? She'll call her doctor tomorrow morning and see what she has to say about it.
Jaxon pats the bed, and when she turns, he notices two things in her hand. A disk looking thing and her gun. He watches as she tosses the disk on the dresser in disgust. After she wobbles her head, she checks her gun. Like he is certain she has done a thousand times before, then slides it in the drawer next to her and closes it. A few seconds later, she removes it and places the gun on top of the side table next to her lamp.
"You realize we have two men standing guard outside who are armed. They will switch out every couple of hours, and check-in with the main office every fifteen." Jaxon tugs on the back of her nightshirt. "Come on, it's late. And like you said, you have to get up early in the morning like always."
Johannah flips off the light and climbs into bed, throwing her head onto her pillow. Resting one arm over her eyes and the other across her abdomen, she does her best to turn off her brain.
A large hand covers her arm, resting on her stomach. "Okay?"
His question does something inside of her. Positive it's her coming down after a very busy weekend. Make that an extremely busy week, full of stress and unexpected events.
She finds herself twisting into him and burying her face in his chest. The tears just begin to flow all on their own, as strong arms wrap around her, drawing her right into his embrace.
Jaxon gets the impression she doesn't need him to do anything but hold her right now. So that is exactly what he is going to give her. He is going to hold her like no one has ever had the privilege of doing until him. The stress of it all has to be getting to her; it sure is getting to him. Holding her in his arms, where he can sense her warmth, knowing she is safe. It makes him feel better about it all, at least for the moment. Right now, this is all he can do, so he going to take advantage of it, allow it to do wonders for both of them.
They hold on to each other and don't move the rest of the night. Eventually, they fall into a deep sleep. That will hopefully do wonders for their bodies and minds. Rejuvenate them, and get them ready to take on whatever force is out there, determined to destroy them.
Chapter Forty
Jaxon hears her alarm going off on the other side of the bed. He glances at the clock and it reads five-thirty. Surely, she can sleep a little longer. So, he reaches his long arm across her still sleeping body. Hannah hasn't moved since she turned into him for a good cry and turns it off. He closes his eyes and kisses the top of her head as he dozes off again, certain he will wake in another thirty, anyway.
What seems like only minutes later to Jaxon, he hears a phone now ringing. Irritated by the disturbance, he checks his first and then notices it's hers making all that racket. Johannah hasn't heard it yet, so he answers it for her. "Hello."
"Jo? This is Agent Kohl's phone, so why are you answering it?" A male voice asks, confused.
"I'm answering it because I am her husband, and my wife is still sleeping. Why are you calling her so early? Don't you people have any respect for time?" Jaxon knows he sounds irritated; most likely due to lack of sleep.
"It's almost eight o'clock in the morning, so it's not early. Agent Kohl usually arrives at seven sharp. We were concerned since no one has heard from her this morning.
"What do you mean, her husband? I wasn't aware she had gotten married?" The voice not only sounds confused, but annoyed now. "When did this happen?"
Hannah is going to kill him when she realizes he turned off her alarm. He only meant to give her thirty extra minutes, not a few hours.
"She didn't get home until after two. Not to mention the hours she put in this weekend after the incident at our place in the Keys. Please let everyone know she will be in within the hour." Jaxon doesn't feel like playing twenty questions. "I need to let you go now."
"Hang on. I have the President here. He'd like to speak with you." There is a small conversation taking place in the background.
An older man's voice comes across the line, still chuckling as he speaks. "Mr. Cristiano, I must say you are one brave soul answering your wife's phone like that. It's not every day I get the privilege of watching her brother do a double-take at his phone. I'm going to guess you all didn't share the good news with the rest of her family yet."
"That was her brother?" Jaxon groans. "I don't know that it crossed our minds to do so with everything going on."
"Perfect." Now the man is laughing outright. "Guess it's a good thing I had him call her first then and didn't allow him to rush right over there like he wanted to do. With everything that has been surrounding her, Nate was ready to send in the cavalry. Imagine the surprise he would have endured when he found you in her bed."
There is a lengthy rant occurring in the background. "You knew about this Nelson and you didn't tell me? What else aren't you telling me? Did he get my sister pregnant, and that is why they ran off and got married? I'm going to kill him, and you are going to help me hide the body."
"I will do no such thing, Agent Kohl. And you better think twice before making such a threat, considering the circumstances surrounding those two. Someone might overhear your threat and use it against you. God forbid something happen to either of them.
"I am sure Jo just hadn't gotten around to informing her overprotective brothers yet. Your parents were there, so it isn't as if she was hiding anything, or trying to be sneaky." Listening to the President reprimand the other man is quite entertaining.
"Back to you, Jaxon. First off, congratulations on convincing that stubborn woman to take a chance with you. Not allowing doubt to get in the way. I believe the way you did was your best bet of getting her down the aisle. Before she had time to analyze it and then come up with some lame excuse on why it wouldn't work."
Jaxon chuckles now. "Thank you, sir. I love her and I just didn't want to put things off any longer than we had to."
"Well done. Now, since you were so brave by answering her phone, it is your job to relay a message to her. She is not to report to the White House until this afternoon. Johannah has never once been late to work since she came to work for us. She's never taken a sick day, even when I am sure she probably should have. The only days she's missed were after her recent accident. And in my opinion, she returned sooner than she should have. So now I am putting my foot down, ordering her to take the morning to catch up on her sleep. Or not." He snickers into the phone.
"And so, she knows that you aren't feeding her a line of bull, I sent her a detailed email explaining this all to her. If you don't have other obligations later, I'd like you to join us during our briefing. I believe this involves you as much as it does her. Perhaps you can help us make sense of a few details that seem to have us scratching our heads."
Jaxon is surprised to get such an invitation. "I will rearrange my schedule so I can acc
ompany her, sir. Thank you for inviting me. I can assure you I will keep everything I hear between Hannah and myself. I understand the confidentiality surrounding your job."
"I knew you would. Which is exactly what I told everyone else when they seemed to be unsure about the invitation. Your commitment to keeping Jo safe has proven that to me." Nelson sounds proud. "I look forward to seeing you this afternoon then. Good luck. My prayers are with you." The phone goes silent, and Jaxon isn't sure he likes the implication the man was making.
He has two choices right now.
Either he can wake Hannah up. Tell her about the conversation he just had, let her get out her frustrations. Calm down, then maybe they can enjoy their extra time together. Or he can let her continue to sleep. She hasn't even stirred during their lengthy conversation. Deal with her later while she explodes about him making decisions for her.
"Stop trying to figure out when you are going to tell me about what just happened." Johannah mumbles. "I am a trained professional. Heard every word of your conversation with the man who thinks he can order me around. All just because he runs this country. Whatever. I'm too exhausted to work up an argument right now."
"You are good at playing possum." Jaxon gets comfortable again. Slides down farther in the bed, so he can study her face. "You're not upset with me?"
Johannah raises her hand, so she can pinch her finger and thumb together. "Maybe just a little. I believe you had every intention of not letting me oversleep like we did. Only planned on giving me a few extra minutes."
The smirk on Jaxon's face shows her she is right. "Thirty actually."
"Was Nathan upset?" Johannah sounds concerned.
He makes the same hand gesture to her. "Just a little bit."
"Don't worry. I've been saving a secret I know about him he thinks he has been able to keep confidential. Sometimes you have to know when to play the cards you hold to keep the game interesting.
"He is living with a woman and her children. More like giving them statuary from her very cruel senator husband." She shares, teaching him a little more about herself in the process. "I haven't brought it to his attention, because I truly believe he is just being a kind man. Offering this woman and her children a safe place to lay their heads at night. The senator knows better than to go after his soon to be ex-wife, in the home of a member of the agency assigned to protect him. Plus, Nate's place is locked down like Fort Knox, making it even tougher for the man to get to her."
"So, what will we do with our extra hours this morning?" Jaxon tries to act subtle, but there is no hiding what he is suggesting.
Johannah stretches and detects the moisture that has gathered between her legs. Tossing the covers back, she stands abruptly. And sure enough, there is a large red stain on the bed where she slept all night. She hasn't had a heavy period like this in a few years. Wonders if her missing the last two pills might have brought this on.
"Hannah, you're bleeding." Jaxon goes to grab her, so he can determine if he can figure out why.
"No shit, Sherlock. Well, I guess I don't have to worry about if missing those last two pills put us at risk for an unexpected pregnancy. I thought I had a few days before I started, but I guess not." Johannah rushes off for the bathroom.
It never dawned on Jaxon that it is normal for a woman to bleed once a month. Probably because it isn't something he has ever had to deal with before. He studies the stain on the bed and it seems like a lot of blood to him, a remarkable amount actually.
Without thinking twice about it, he stands and strips the bed. This time he removes the mattress protector as well. And is pleased to discover it didn't stain the mattress below.
The shower turns on in the bathroom as Jaxon starts loading the washing machine. When he has it going, he heads for the bathroom and knocks on the closed door.
"Jaxon, please just go." Johannah's voice sounds irritated, but he also swears he hears her sniffling.
"Is there anything you need? Anything I can do to make it better?" He asks through the door.
Johannah is rinsing out her nightshirt and panties. Completely humiliated about the mess she left in the clean bed he made sure they had last night. Forcing her to scrub with all her might. Tears are streaming down her face, and she hates that she is crying like some hormonal female. Sometimes it seriously sucks being a woman.
"Are you crying?" Her husband is way too observant for his own good sometimes. "Hannah, there is nothing to be embarrassed about."
"Shut up, Jaxon." She warns him through the tears.
The handle jiggles before the door cautiously opens. Johannah knew she should have gotten that lock fixed months ago. Standing completely naked, with blood still staining her thighs, she feels way too exposed to this man right now.
Jaxon hates seeing Hannah broken up over something so natural. Removing his pants and t-shirt, so they now are equally unprotected. He reaches in the shower to check the temperature. Feeling that the water is perfect, he takes her hand and steps inside, pulling her in behind him. Directing her to stand under the warm water. Jaxon tilts her head back to emerge it under the spray completely. While she runs her hands over it, he squirts an ample amount of her mint and rosemary smelling shampoo in his hand and begins washing it.
"What are you doing?" Hannah is taken back by the loving action her husband is displaying. A man, that up until her, avoided touching another person. Keeping to himself, never really connecting with anyone. This tenderness is not something one might expect from a man who has never even experienced it for himself. Not even when he was a little boy.
"I'm taking care of you the only way I know how," Jaxon reveals as he encourages her to tilt her head back again. "I always want to take care of you, Hannah. Never want you to go through anything alone. I want to be there for you in any way I can be. Love you with my actions and my words."
Hannah's eyes connect with his. How is it possible that she has found a man who seems to understand how to break through her defenses? "Then love me."
That is exactly what he does.
Once he finishes washing her hair, he locates her body wash and squeezes it into her orange puff. Then he rubs it all over her body, making sure to lather it thoroughly. He even squirts some in his hand to clean between her legs. Washing away all the blood left behind from earlier.
Johannah never realized how intimate a moment such as this could be. She should be ashamed for allowing him to touch her like this while she is menstruating. But there isn't anything sexual about this encounter.
When she steps around him, so he can stand under the water now, she decides to do the same for him. "My turn." Her words hit him hard. "Let me love you now."
Jaxon tilts his head forward, so she can wash his hair. The sensation of her fingers moving through his hair touches something deep inside of him. Next, her hands begin to lather his body with soap, traveling slowly over every inch. It is as if she is washing away all the pain he once endured when anyone would touch him at all. He will never again have to suffer alone, all because this woman has given him something no one else ever could. Showed him what it means to love and be loved, and he will forever cherish her for that reason.
Johannah is a little surprised to discover that her husband isn't aroused after all the touching that has occurred between them. As she begins to wash him there, it stirs, but never gets as hard as she knows it can. When she glances up at him, he smirks as if to say, what did she expect with her hands caressing him there.
They get out of the shower and dress in comfortable clothes for now. After fixing a quick breakfast, they move into the living room. Drop into the large comfortable chair.
"Thank you," Hannah utters between bites of her bagel.
Jaxon winks. He decides to ask the question that has been on his mind since he heard her declaration in the bedroom. "So, were you really concerned about being pregnant? Last night, when you went all silent on me, it was because you forgot about taking your pills. And then this morning, you were crying b
ecause you were relieved about it."
Johannah sets her half-eaten bagel on the plate in her lap. "Something like that, yeah."
"Hannah, I understand you have this plan about how your life was supposed to go, the five-year plan." Jaxon decides they need to have this discussion now instead of later.
"Had a five-year plan, you mean. I think that plan got thrown out the window the day we ended up together. Lately, it seems to be more like a day-to-day fly by the seat of my pants kind of plan." Her head falls back against the pillow attached to the chair.
"And that bothers you, doesn't it?" Jaxon hates thinking that when he entered her life, he messed up all her well-thought-out plans. Okay, maybe he doesn't completely hate it, but he doesn't like that she seems so messed up about it.
Johannah reaches up and trails her fingers along his jaw. "Not really. Last night was more about me finally having a long-overdue breakdown. With everything that has happened, me realizing I forgot to take my pills. It was sort of that last little push I needed. Then this morning, it was like adding one more brick to the load weighing me down. I wasn't sure if I should feel relieved or... disappointed."
Jaxon tries to interpret what she is revealing. "About being pregnant? You were disappointed about not being pregnant?"
She glances down at her foot that is resting on top of his leg. "Maybe."
Jaxon removes the plate from her lap and places it next to him on the side table. In a move he has perfected, he has her under him, so they can talk about this face-to-face. "Were you disappointed or not?"
Knowing Jaxon will not let this go until she is outright honest with both of them, she gives in. "Shockingly, yes."
"So, what do we do about it then?" Jaxon envisions Hannah's belly swollen with his child, and a shiver travels down his spine. "I'm not opposed to helping you achieve that."
