My Bratty Wife
Chapter 197 - Hundred And Ninety Seven

Chapter 197: Chapter Hundred And Ninety Seven

The gentle morning breeze carried the sweet smell of damp earth and blooming flowers through the open window. Birds outside were singing their cheerful morning songs. Suzy stirred in her sleep, breathing in the pleasant air. She turned in the large bed, reaching out for Ryan, but the space beside her was cool and empty.

Her eyes opened quickly. She sat up, pushing her tangled curls away from her face. A small knot of worry formed in her stomach for just a moment before she saw him. Ryan was sitting in the sturdy wooden chair near the window, already dressed in clean trousers and a soft t-shirt which was opened. He was carefully removing the cotton cloth wrapped around his waist.

It had only been two days since he had woken up properly after the assassination. Two days, and already he was acting like he could do anything, like that injury was just a small inconvenience on his way to taking over the world. A small smile touched Suzy’s lips. He was determined, she had to give him that.

Ryan must have heard the soft rustle of the bed sheets because he looked up from his task. A warm smile instantly lit up his face when he saw her, though his hands kept working carefully removing the cotton cloth and tape.

"Awake?" he asked, his voice a little rough from disuse but warm.

Suzy nodded, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. "Good morning," she murmured, her voice still soft with sleep.

His eyes travelled over her. He noticed the way her auburn curls fell around her face, extremely messy from sleep. His gaze moved down her neck to her shoulders, where one thin strap of her simple silk nightgown had slipped down, showing the smooth curve of her collarbone. His smile deepened slightly, a hint of appreciation in his eyes.

"How long have you been awake?" Suzy asked, standing up. The cool floor felt smooth beneath her bare feet.

"For a while now," Ryan replied, carefully peeling away the old dressing. He winced just a tiny bit, a movement so small she might have missed it if she wasn’t watching closely. "I had to clean myself up a bit. And this thing," he gestured to the wound with his chin, "needed a fresh bandage."

Suzy walked quietly across the room towards him. The morning light caught the soft fabric of her nightgown as she moved. When she reached his chair, she gently took the small tub of ointment and the clean cotton cloth from his hands.

"You should have woken me," she said softly, her brow furrowed slightly with concern. She knelt beside his chair so she could see the wound better. "I could have helped you with this."

Ryan shook his head, looking down at her as she prepared to apply the ointment. "And disturb your peaceful sleep?" he said, a playful light entering his eyes. "No way. You looked far too comfortable." He leaned back slightly in the chair, watching her. "Besides," he added, a chuckle in his voice, "waking you up sometimes feels like... well, like interrupting very important business. Like maybe you were dreaming you were watching... what did you call it again... Netflix... or whatever that is."

Suzy couldn’t help but smile at his silliness, even as she carefully dabbed the ointment onto a fresh piece of cloth. "Netflix? Where did you hear that from?" she asked, shaking her head slightly.

" You said it once in your dream." He replied.

"You’re ridiculous."

"Maybe," he conceded, his smile softening as he watched her gentle hands work near his injury. "But seriously, Cassandra. Have you ever seen yourself sleeping? I wish you could. Your face gets all smooth, no frown lines, no worries. Sometimes you make this tiny little sighing noise." He paused, his gaze holding hers for a moment before she looked back down at her task. "It feels like a sin waking you from your slumber when you look like that. So peaceful. Like nothing bad could ever touch you."

A warm blush crept up Suzy’s neck and spread across her cheeks. She focused hard on carefully placing the clean cotton over the wound and securing it with tape, her fingers working neatly. "You tease," she mumbled, trying to sound firm but failing slightly.

He didn’t look away. He watched her finish taping the cotton, his expression shifting from playful tenderness to something deeper, more intense. When she finally looked up, finished with her task, his eyes were locked on hers.

"Do I look like I’m teasing you right now?" he asked, his voice suddenly low and hoarse. The humor had vanished from his tone, replaced by a raw, quiet yearning that made her breathe catch in her throat.

Suzy looked up fully, meeting his steady gaze. The air between them suddenly felt heavy, charged with unspoken feelings. The morning sun streamed through the window, lighting the dust motes dancing in the air, but all she could see were his eyes, holding hers.

She held his intense gaze, looking deep into his deep brown eyes. They were the color of rich earth after rain, and right now, they seemed to hold a storm of feelings. She saw the clear yearning there, the wanting that made her own heart beat faster. But mixed with it was a seriousness, maybe even a hint of the pain he’d been through, and a strong resolve that seemed fixed on her.

Before she could find words, Ryan moved. With surprising strength, but also a carefulness she noted even in her shock, he slid his arms around her. One hand went firmly around her waist, the other supported her back as he lifted her smoothly off the floor.

"Ryan!" A small gasp escaped her lips as he settled her onto his lap, arranging her so she sat sideways, facing him. Her hands instinctively went to his shoulders to steady herself. She could feel the warmth of his body through the thin silk of her nightgown and his opened t-shirt. The fresh bandage she had just applied was right there beneath her hand.

"Shhh. Careful," he murmured, his voice still low. His eyes scanned her face, full of concern. "Don’t move around too much. We don’t want to disturb your excellent bandage work and open the wound again, do we?"

Even now, a shadow of his usual humor touched his lips, but his eyes remained serious. His hand nearest her shoulder gently moved upwards. His fingers brushed against her bare skin as he carefully hooked the fallen strap of her nightgown and slid it back into place over her shoulder. The simple touch sent a shiver down her spine.

"You look so ethereal," he whispered, his gaze soft as he looked at her. His other hand came up, his fingers hesitant at first, then gently moving to touch her messy morning curls. He tried to smooth down some of the tangled strands, his touch incredibly soft, almost reverent. It was a touch full of longing, as if he couldn’t quite believe she was real and sitting here with him.

But Suzy’s mind was catching up. The intensity of the moment, his closeness, his words about protecting her peace – it all clicked with something else, something that had been bothering her. She needed to know. Breaking the spell of his gentle touch, she kept her hands on his shoulders and held his gaze firmly.

Her question caught him off guard. "Why didn’t you tell me?" she asked, her voice quiet but clear. "Why didn’t you tell me you sent me away to the chateau just to keep me safe? Why did you lie about spending our honeymoon there together?"

Ryan’s hand stilled in her hair. Surprise flickered across his face, quickly followed by a guarded look. He searched her eyes. "How did you find out?" he asked, his voice losing some of its earlier warmth, becoming cautious.

Suzy gave a small, humorless smile. "For one thing, Davis isn’t very good at lying," she replied simply.

Ryan let out a quiet breath, a soft curse under his breath. "Damn," he muttered, looking away for a second before his eyes snapped back to hers.

"Why, Ryan?" Suzy asked again, her voice a little stronger this time, insistent. She needed the truth from him.

He looked down then, his gaze falling to where her hand rested on his shoulder. A wave of something that looked like shame washed over his features. He seemed unable to meet her eyes for a moment. When he finally spoke, his voice was low, heavy with remembered fear – not for himself, but for her.

"I’ve been receiving death threats concerning you," he started. "They wanted me to ... to back out of the investigation..." he continued, swallowing. "They wanted me out of the way and knowing you’re my weakness, they targeted you." He finally lifted his head, meeting her eyes again, his own filled with a fierce protectiveness.

"Sending you away, making it look like a normal vacation... it turned all their attention onto me. Which was the plan." He shifted slightly, his hand coming to rest on her knee. "As long as you were safe, somewhere they wouldn’t think to look, that’s all that mattered. I’m glad it worked." His voice grew thick with emotion. "Cassandra, I would rather die than let anything..."

His words were cut off as Suzy leaned forward, pressing her lips against his. It wasn’t a demanding kiss, but a soft, urgent one, meant to stop the self-sacrificing words she couldn’t bear to hear. For a heartbeat, he was still with surprise, then he responded, kissing her back. His hand moved from her knee to her back, pulling her just a fraction closer, carefully mindful of his injury. The kiss was brief, charged with all the unspoken fear and relief and affection between them.

They broke apart slowly, both slightly breathless. Suzy kept her face close to his, lifting one hand to gently touch his cheek. His skin was warm beneath her palm. "You should have informed me," she whispered, her eyes searching his. "We should have faced it together."

Ryan leaned into her touch, closing his eyes for just a second, savoring the contact. He opened them again, a wry, knowing look entering his gaze. "Well," he said, his voice returning to a more normal tone, though still quiet. "Knowing you, you wouldn’t have agreed. You would have insisted on staying right here." He managed a small smile. "You are one hell of a stubborn woman, that I know."

Suzy couldn’t help but smile back, though her eyes remained serious. She lightly flicked his forehead with her finger. "And you’re impossibly reckless," she retorted softly.

Just then, cutting through the intimate quiet of the room, a sharp knock-knock sounded clearly on the bedroom door.