Chapter 264 - 264

Ellie yawned and rose from her bed. Henry was snoring softly still so she tucked the blanket around his still slumbering form. A ray of sunshine from outside split the room in half with Ellie on one end and Henry on the other. She slowly extricated herself from the limbs that were wrapped around her.  He immediately took her pillow and wrapped his arms around it. He looked so lovably little than the strong man who had made her feel a whole woman.

She didn't want to wake Henry so she brushed against his cheek gently.  He turned into her touch and her heart leapt. He wanted her even now. It was strange to think he had been pining after her the same time that she had been waiting for him.

The sun highlighted brown gold highlights in his hair which made him look a bit like a punk singer.  It was delightfully funny to see such a strong man look so silly. Ellie felt sad too that this side of him was something he always kept hidden away.

Although it would be delightful to have a repeat of some of the events of last night.  However, as she moved to brush hair on his face she knew that he had his own mind to sort out.  He might not be really ready to see her yet. Henry was a control freak who was used to having control of every aspect of his conglomerate, it wouldn't be easy for him to look at himself and realize there was one aspect where he had to trust someone. His heart was no longer held in his own hands. It was held in hers. Maybe it was a good thing that she was going to head to Lutterworth for a day with her girls. This day apart should give the CEO a while to alter his plans to make room for a woman to be there by his side. Maybe he would think of opening a branch here in Lutterworth so he could be close to her. She knew he would think of a better idea and surprise her with his brilliance. 

She quietly dressed from her closet. Being careful that the squeaking of the drawers wasn't loud enough to disturb him. She did feel odd changing with a man in her room who had seen her without him. Ellie didn't understand why she still felt self conscious. It should feel ok, but it didn't. She tried to reassure herself by tucking him in soundly before she turned to start her journey for today. 

But before she left, she left a post-it note on the headboard above him that he could read when he woke up. She hoped that it would smooth things over so that they would meet each other with a fresh take on the changes. She felt a sense of longing again to tackle the issued now, but she knew he needed time and space. To be his other half, she needed to think of the whole. 

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Henry's sleep faded slowly. He felt a new post-coital sharpness to his mind that made him feel invigorated. His body felt raw and stronger than he's felt in a long time. Sex, yes was always like this. He pulled his fingers to his nose and smelled her there as if she had just been around him. The pillow that he had his arms wrapped around smelled of her too as if she had dipped it in her perfume. As he pulled away from it a replay of the previous nights activities flashed through his mind.  Ellie's mouth opened against his as she whispered how much she was enjoying his attention. It was everything—pure, sinful, seductive, and sure—like a strange jumble of emotion that afterwards made him feel very very good. 

He pulled himself up and moved the pillow aside, he realized that for once that his woman had woken before he and made an early start to her day. Today, he was completely alone in another woman's bed. It felt strange as he had been in college the last time that something like this had happened to him. It wasn't unwelcome, just not the phase of his life he was apt on redoing. The space where she had occupied had a soft indentation of her body. He lied down in it for a second and breathed in deeply. It was a sleepy smell of her. He missed her dearly. But as he rolled over, he saw a yellow note taped to the headboard. She had drawn a little cartoon car on it as well as the steeple of the church they had both visited in Lutterworth. It was not a work of great skill, but the car was the one that they had driven together. The little cartoon girl driving it had her hand stretched out behind her like it was reaching for her partner. He could see her writing above it and hesitated as he remembered how often notes of rejection had come to him in notes like these. He knew that once he read it, he would have a strong reaction. 

But stomach drop or no, he couldn't ignore this. Hos life had already gone down this road. He stretched his arms staring directly into the sun that has seeped in through the window into his face. He moved more into the shadow so he wouldn't burn his eyes and he blinked rapidly as the words settled on the page. 

Henry, my love

I wish I could have awoken you the same way that you did for me last night—with beautiful passion. But I would have to shower and it would be impossible not to tell as my friends know me best. Let's save that for tonight. I'll be in Lutterworth for the whole day to show around my friends. I'm so grateful that I can share this with them. Thus, I will probably be home late. I have never loved you more than I ever could. My love for you is eternal. 

Your wife, Ellie