[The pure bliss coming from Alex was, if he were honest, a bit confusing.
The idea of him being in any relationship would always have demanded deep thought and, as some called it, 'soul searching.' To himself at least, Richard was still married. Coralee had never been dead; he'd never believed that she was for an instant, so he'd never been a widower. Not once in the twenty years had he thought of anyone else as a romantic partner or allowed himself even to entertain the idea of having anyone other than her.
Then came Alex with her, Alexness and her charm. Richard could imagine anyone would become easily smitten with her. She was enigmatic and vibrant, and of course, he expected nothing to come of their meeting. She was also more charming than he'd expected, not that a man who loved his missing wife should or would notice that. And as they became deeper entwined in this mystery that he'd finally allowed himself to share with someone, Alex had become more and more important to him. More of a lifeline that he couldn't be without, no matter how many times he tried to run or take back all of what he'd given. It had become no longer his own. He was no longer alone in all of it. There, beside him without fail, was Alex.
But there was still Coralee, and the mystery of Coralee turned into the fact of her being alive and the reality of her abandoning him again. And yet, Alex was beside him, picking him up and forcing him to continue. Richard had thought about her, about every part of Alex as time moved forward. Of course he had, it wasn't as if Richard were blind to beauty or charm, he'd just been loyal, he hadn't wanted anyone but Coralee. Now Coralee was gone. There was no more hoping or wishing or trying to rely on psychic powers that weren't there. There were just abandonment and the enigmatic, beautiful woman who seemed to go against reason and remain by his side no matter how deep the rabbit hole of strange, disturbing and dangerous his life became. The longer and more time they spent together the harder it became to continue to deny his attraction to her. Her mind and wit were a perfect kind of sharp; her laugh had become something he looked forward to; even their arguments were a bright part of his formerly dimmed world.
But there was still Coralee and his convictions. Still the knowledge that she was out there, that he was still married, no matter how far apart they were or how unlikely it was that she would come back and be with him again. So of course, he continued to deny his feelings, push them aside and instead focuses on the insane and every creeping into the supernatural world that seemed to keep pushing toward him. His feelings, leaking out when he told Alex that they were in this together, in his glances and his softened words. Those leaks were what forced him to remind them both that he was married, that Coralee still existed, that she was still his wife.
It wasn't until Alex had asked him to run away with her that the dam broke; when he was no longer able to deny his feelings anymore. Where Coralee had taken everything, Alex had given it freely. She'd given her life and everything in it for them to run away together, and it took his breath away. So, of course, he'd thought about it, about leaving everything behind and just being with Alex. The answer, undeniably had been yes. Yes, he would be with her, give her as much of his heart as he could (even if Coralee would still hold a significant place in it), even break the vows that he'd stayed so faithful to for twenty years. Simply for the sake of staying by her side.
In that moment he'd known there was no other answer. There was only the promise of being with Alex for however long they had before Warren inevitably tried to kill them.
When Alex kissed him, he leaned in, just enough to let her know that he wanted the same thing. He wanted to kiss her just as much and as fervently as she wanted to kiss him. But someone had to be responsible while she was in this state, and he was much older and knowledgeable. He had more control than she did.
Her words, 'I love you, Richard Strand,' caused his heart to catch in his throat, a quick breath catch before he let it out once again. It was still surprising when she said that, and he felt that it probably always would be. Then she added 'to hell and back' as if a challenge, and his placid happiness turned into a small smirk. She knew well what he would say to that, and it wasn't 'I love you.']
no subject
The idea of him being in any relationship would always have demanded deep thought and, as some called it, 'soul searching.' To himself at least, Richard was still married. Coralee had never been dead; he'd never believed that she was for an instant, so he'd never been a widower. Not once in the twenty years had he thought of anyone else as a romantic partner or allowed himself even to entertain the idea of having anyone other than her.
Then came Alex with her, Alexness and her charm. Richard could imagine anyone would become easily smitten with her. She was enigmatic and vibrant, and of course, he expected nothing to come of their meeting. She was also more charming than he'd expected, not that a man who loved his missing wife should or would notice that. And as they became deeper entwined in this mystery that he'd finally allowed himself to share with someone, Alex had become more and more important to him. More of a lifeline that he couldn't be without, no matter how many times he tried to run or take back all of what he'd given. It had become no longer his own. He was no longer alone in all of it. There, beside him without fail, was Alex.
But there was still Coralee, and the mystery of Coralee turned into the fact of her being alive and the reality of her abandoning him again. And yet, Alex was beside him, picking him up and forcing him to continue. Richard had thought about her, about every part of Alex as time moved forward. Of course he had, it wasn't as if Richard were blind to beauty or charm, he'd just been loyal, he hadn't wanted anyone but Coralee. Now Coralee was gone. There was no more hoping or wishing or trying to rely on psychic powers that weren't there. There were just abandonment and the enigmatic, beautiful woman who seemed to go against reason and remain by his side no matter how deep the rabbit hole of strange, disturbing and dangerous his life became. The longer and more time they spent together the harder it became to continue to deny his attraction to her. Her mind and wit were a perfect kind of sharp; her laugh had become something he looked forward to; even their arguments were a bright part of his formerly dimmed world.
But there was still Coralee and his convictions. Still the knowledge that she was out there, that he was still married, no matter how far apart they were or how unlikely it was that she would come back and be with him again. So of course, he continued to deny his feelings, push them aside and instead focuses on the insane and every creeping into the supernatural world that seemed to keep pushing toward him. His feelings, leaking out when he told Alex that they were in this together, in his glances and his softened words. Those leaks were what forced him to remind them both that he was married, that Coralee still existed, that she was still his wife.
It wasn't until Alex had asked him to run away with her that the dam broke; when he was no longer able to deny his feelings anymore. Where Coralee had taken everything, Alex had given it freely. She'd given her life and everything in it for them to run away together, and it took his breath away. So, of course, he'd thought about it, about leaving everything behind and just being with Alex. The answer, undeniably had been yes. Yes, he would be with her, give her as much of his heart as he could (even if Coralee would still hold a significant place in it), even break the vows that he'd stayed so faithful to for twenty years. Simply for the sake of staying by her side.
In that moment he'd known there was no other answer. There was only the promise of being with Alex for however long they had before Warren inevitably tried to kill them.
When Alex kissed him, he leaned in, just enough to let her know that he wanted the same thing. He wanted to kiss her just as much and as fervently as she wanted to kiss him. But someone had to be responsible while she was in this state, and he was much older and knowledgeable. He had more control than she did.
Her words, 'I love you, Richard Strand,' caused his heart to catch in his throat, a quick breath catch before he let it out once again. It was still surprising when she said that, and he felt that it probably always would be. Then she added 'to hell and back' as if a challenge, and his placid happiness turned into a small smirk. She knew well what he would say to that, and it wasn't 'I love you.']
Hell, doesn't exist, Ms. Reagan.