Free Souvenirs by Mia Kay

somehow graceful despite the rock of the car. “Hey, Ben. Go talk to Adam about the history of the Alps or something, please. I need to talk shop with Grace.”
    He squeezed her fingers before he crossed to the other side of the train.
    Grace took advantage of the privacy. “Can I use your tattoos in a book? Would you mind?”
    Nora waved away the question. “I’d be happy to contribute, and Adam will get a kick out of it. You’re going to switch rooms, aren’t you?” She grinned rather too wickedly, yet Grace couldn’t help but echo it.
    “So, I’m thinking you didn’t bring any lingerie,” Nora said.
    An image flitted through Grace’s mind—her plaid shorts and red sleep shirt with a large teddy bear on the front. “Oh God.”
    “Is it that bad?”
    “Worse.” Grace groaned as she put her hand over her face. “What am I going to do?”
    “We’ll go shopping. I’m a newlywed, so I have a license to shop for sexy things to, er, sleep in. Now let’s spend a few minutes looking all happy just to make them nervous.”
    Sitting next to Adam, Ben got a glimpse of what a vacation without Grace would be like. He couldn’t stop staring as the sunlight highlighted the freckles across her nose and the chestnut strands in her dark hair. Her laughter tickled his ears, and his fingers were cold without her. After a respectable amount of time, he returned and shooed Nora back to her side of the aisle.
    Back in his proper spot, Ben watched Nora and Adam together. He envied Nora because of Adam’s acceptance. Whatever she had been through, he had apparently given her a place to dispose of her past. Ben wanted that peace. He wanted to believe it could withstand the truth. The first step was to be honest with the woman next to him.
    “Before we get to Salzburg, I should tell you something. Grace, I—”
    Her soft fingers muffled his explanation, and her expression stopped it entirely. Her eyes were wide in her pale face. “Are you married?”
    He shook his head, never removing her hand.
    “Are you a criminal of some sort?”
    From schmuck to thug. Great. Still, he smiled as he shook his head.
    “Do you have some sort of horrible disease?”
    Geez, she’s given this some thought . At his emphatic denial, Grace rubbed her thumb along his bottom lip.
    “Does anything you think you need to tell me change what you’ve told me so far?”
    Ben placed a warm kiss in her palm, flicking his tongue against her skin. Her breath caught while her fingers cradled his jaw, making him feel fragile despite his size. It was always there, the sweetness of her, the intense heat between them.
    He brushed his knuckles along the tendon in her neck. “I will never lie to you about anything that matters.”
    She nodded. “All my answers are the same. Can that be enough?”
    He was gobsmacked. “Do you realize what you’re offering?”
    “Everyone has secrets, sweetheart. If it still matters in Paris, we’ll address it then. Deal?”
    Ben took the gift she offered and sealed their bargain with a kiss.
    What’s her secret? The devil whispered in his ear.
    He pulled away to see her face. “So, you don’t have a husband waiting on you at home?”
    The Alps loomed on the horizon, but Grace held his gaze. “No.”
    “Thank God.” He rearranged their bodies so they could watch the mountains out the window. “And you teach?”
    “From time to time.”
    “If my lit teacher had looked like you, I might never have graduated. What do you do the rest of the time?”
    He couldn’t help the question. He wanted to learn about her life, even though he knew what would follow.
    “I’m a consultant. What about you?”
    This was his chance to be honest, to share himself as she deserved. For a moment, he watched their reflections, visible in the window. They looked peaceful. A secret that made you peaceful couldn’t be bad. Could it?
    “Media and communications,” he finally replied. The quiet surrounded them, and his heart hammered in