Free The Escape Clause by Bernadette Marie

she sat up next to him.
    His face was shadowed by a day’s worth of whiskers and his eyes were darkened with circles from lack of sleep.
    “Your dad?”
    Pete let out a deep sigh. “He’ll recover. He has a long road ahead of him, but he’s alive.”
    Avery reached toward him and pulled him to her. He clung to her, holding her tightly, and then sobbing.
    She wasn’t sure how long she held him in her arms. But when she felt her arms go numb and his body grew heavy she shifted.
    “You need to lie down and get some sleep.”
    Pete nodded.
    Avery moved so that Pete could lie in the bed where she had slept. She noticed the clock on the nightstand. It was six o’clock. For a moment, she considered curling up next to him, but it wasn’t but a moment later and he was fast asleep. She’d let him be. She had emails to answer and phone calls to make. There was so much to do before tomorrow morning.
     
    Pete found her hunched over her laptop with a half eaten sandwich on a plate next to her. She had a notepad next to her and was jotting down something she’d looked up on the Internet.
    He moved to her and rested his hands on her shoulders.
    Avery jumped. He’d startled her.
    “Sorry,” he said softly as he kissed the top of her head.
    “I was absorbed.”
    Pete sat down in the chair next to her. “What are you studying?” he asked as he picked up the paper next to her. “These are kinds of wine grapes.”
    “Right. I figured if I went in with a little knowledge, Grandfather would be impressed.”
    Pete dropped the notebook on the table. “It’ll all have to wait, Avery. We can’t go now.”
    Her eyes open wide and her lips parted. “Excuse me?”
    “My father is going to be in the hospital for a while. They are talking surgery. That means recovery. He needs me right now and we’re just going to have to wait on this trip to France.”
    “Trip to France? This isn’t just a trip.”
    Pete gritted his teeth. “Regardless of what you’re calling it, I can’t go to France right now. My family needs me here and damn it, Avery, you’re part of that family.”
    “All of my belongings are there. Pete, I’ve set up everything to leave on Wednesday.”
    He shoved his chair back and stood to pace the kitchen. Everything inside of him wanted to explode. What was she thinking? Was she seriously considering going to France when he was in the middle of all this? This whole plan to move to France was ridiculous anyway. Avery had lost her damned mind.
    “I have savings. We can get your stuff shipped back here. We’ll have to move into your place. This one is…”
    Avery pushed back her chair and stood erect. She pushed her shoulders back and tossed that long dark hair behind her. She was gearing for a fight and Pete was ready. She’d made all the decisions their entire life. It was time for her to understand that his decisions meant something too.
    “My grandfather already has a plane coming for us.”
    “Then I guess we’ll have to pay him back for his lost expenses.”
    The color in her cheeks reddened. “I’m leaving on that plane in the morning, Pete.”
    “And when did you become so selfish?”
    “Selfish? I planned on this long before you decided we should get married.”
    “Me?” Oh, now he was furious. He moved swiftly toward her, stopping before he grabbed her arms. “Are you not part of this relationship? Are you telling me you didn’t want to marry me?”
    Her shoulders dropped and so did her gaze. “No. I didn’t mean that.”
    “Avery, I gave up everything to move with you and marry you. Don’t you think you could give me a little consideration when it comes what I need?”
    She moved in and wrapped her arms around him. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
    Pete gathered her in his arms. “Without you he wouldn’t still be here,” he said. “You saved my father’s life.”
    “I did what I’m trained to do.”
    There was more to it than that. He knew it.
    A great deal of tension still