Jesse and Renee went to pick Christian up and hung out with Greg and Nancy. When they had shown up, Nancy had gasped as she had seen Jesse’s neck, but then she got that knowing look on her face. Renee’s face had been so hot that she got dizzy. She’d heard Greg ribbing Jesse about the love bites. She was really embarrassed but Jesse loved it. He was proud that she had marked him.    “So, I guess things went well on your first date out after having Christian,” Nancy said, smiling at her.   “Yes. I had a little too much to drink.”   “Nothing wrong with that. Anytime you two want to go out, you know who to call. Christian was an angel.”    “Thank you, Nancy. I appreciate you keeping him.”  

Renee decided she was going to ask Jesse about going out on her own since she had done what he wanted her to. She was tired of being cooped up in the house all the time. She gathered her courage and walked into the living room. He was playing with Christian and she watched him for a few minutes. He really did love Christian. It was sweet to see him just playing trains with Christian like it was no big deal. She smiled and sat in the chair.  “Jesse, I want to talk to you about something,” Renee said. “Yeah, sure,” Jesse said, not looking up. “You said if I acted like your wife, that you would allow me to live a normal life. So far, I haven’t been able to do that. I’m restless being cooped up in the house all of the time.”

She pressed her lips on his and kissed him lightly. Her heart was still beating fast, but this time it was from being nervous. She knew Jesse wanted her so why was she still nervous about touching him? If anything, shouldn’t she be angry at herself for actually wanting to touch him? She had been trying to make the best of her situation, but it still took her by surprise that she felt pleasure from his touch now. She had only made him stop because she was still trying to suppress that she actually felt good when he caressed her, but she knew that he already knew. But, the fact that he had stopped touching her even though he wanted to have sex did mean a lot to her.   

Kevin sat at the bar and ordered another round of drinks. He had moved from place to place over the past three years. Now, he was just tired. Was Renee even still alive? He had kept up hope for so long, but could he keep going? Every night it was the same thing over and over. He found a job, worked it for a while to keep himself in a motel, and then he moved on to the next place. He had started in Georgia with his search since the police had found Jesse’s car there.    From there, he had gone to Alabama and then Tennessee. From there, he had hit Missouri. Going to the next state diagonal to the one he was in seemed like a good plan for now. He wasn’t sure which way to go, but he knew he couldn’t search the entire US. He would wind up spending the rest of his life doing that. And what happened if Jesse had moved from state to state as well? He could miss him if he went the wrong way with

Jesse pulled the chair out at the restaurant for Renee. He was going to give her a gift tonight since she had come around so much over the past five months. He knew she still didn't love him, but she acted like she cared at least. She would kiss him goodbye and hug him when he came home. She would even initiate sex now. She still got embarrassed when she first started, but once she got into it, she was aggressive. He smiled as he thought about it. He liked the aggressive side of her. She'd even gone out with Nancy and been talked into buying sexy lingerie to make her husband happy. He still owed Nancy for that one. He sat across from Renee and watched her as she looked at the menu. She was no longer afraid to order what she wanted. They had at least one date night a month now. Sometimes, she would even pick the places they went to. Renee smiled at him wh