Chapter twenty-one
Mark spent the evening showing Piper more tapes and pointing out different stages of his career. They sat in the living room, Piper curled up next to him on the couch while he casually draped one big arm around her shoulders.
His mouth curved into a warm smile as he looked down at her. She was really starting to relax with him now, and she seemed to enjoy finding out about his previous life. He had caught her staring at him a couple of times, and she had blushed and turned away as soon as he had seen the strange expression on her face. It felt odd to see her looking at him with admiration for a change, instead of anger or fear or more than a hundred other negative emotions he had managed to draw out of her.
When she fell asleep leaning against him, he gave a soft smile and switched the TV off before lifting her in his arms and carrying her up the stairs to their room. She snuggled closer to his warmth as he walked along, and he found himself grinning inanely as he laid her down on the bed and began to remove her clothing so she could sleep more comfortably. When he had tucked her under the sheets, he left the room and went to his study to make a phone call. If things were changing, then he knew just what to do to make her even happier. After a few minutes he returned to the bedroom and started getting undressed himself, sliding in beside her and pulling her body next to him. He was pleased when she instantly curled against him and gave a sigh of contentment, and he tightened his hold on her, dropping a kiss on her forehead. He felt that the day, although not having started out too well, had been a really good one and that they were about to move forward.
*****
The next day Piper opened her eyes and stretched, frowning when she saw how much sunshine was flooding into the room. She instantly looked at the clock and her eyes widened when she found it was gone ten. Mark must have already gone to work, but it was strange that he hadn't woken her up first; he usually did. Yawning hugely, she slid out of bed and padded across to the bathroom, intent on grabbing a shower and getting the day underway. She wondered briefly why she couldn't remember removing her clothes, but the hot spray of the shower soon made her forget about it. After she had dried and dressed herself, she left the bedroom and started down the stairs, stopping halfway when she heard voices. Mark was still here, she thought, and there was another man...she wasn't sure who, but.....then her eyes became huge as she heard Paige's voice and she ran the rest of the way, following the voices to the kitchen.
Mark, Glenn and Paige all looked up as she burst into the room, and Paige grinned. "Piper! I was wondering when you'd get up!"
Piper let her sister draw her into a hug. "What are you doing here? Are you okay? Where have you been? Did he do anything to you?" she asked quickly, keeping her voice down so the others didn't catch everything she was saying.
"I'm just fine, as you can see," Paige said, smiling at her. "Things have been....a little strange, but.....Piper I've really enjoyed being with Glenn."
"But he kidnapped you!" she hissed, glancing warily at where Mark and Glenn were busy talking.
"I know, but he hasn't been unkind to me...well, not really. It's hard to explain, but I thought I hated him and now..."
"You keep thinking things that have nothing to do with hate," Piper finished for her, glancing at Mark again and sighing.
Paige laughed softly. "I guess things between you two aren't as bad as they were when I was last here then?"
Piper shook her head. "No, things aren't as bad. Sometimes it's like we're just a normal married couple. Sort of."
"Sort of?"
"He's anything but normal," Piper said, scowling as she looked over at Mark. "Sometimes he drives me insane and I'd like to just kill him, but then he'll go and do something like....well, like bringing you here. Why are you here?"
"I'm not sure. All I know is that Glenn told me this morning we were coming here," Paige said, shrugging. "I didn't want to ruin it all by asking why, so I really don't know. I'm just glad I'm here now."
"So am I," Piper said, smiling. "Have you had any coffee? Would you like some? I can do some food too, if you're hungry," she continued, walking past the table and starting up a fresh pot of coffee. She felt Mark staring at her and she turned to look at him, a small smile playing around her mouth when she saw the way he was smiling at her. "Do you want something to eat?" she asked him, getting the strange sensation of the world narrowing down to include just the two of them.
"If you're cooking something darlin', then I'm definitely eating," he murmured, his eyes glittering warmly at her. "Your food is always delicious."
It made her breath catch in her throat - the way he was looking at her, the things he was saying. She liked it a lot and it showed in the way she smiled. "Bacon and eggs?"
"Oh yeah. And sausages," he added, looking pleased.
"Okay," she said, grabbing some things out of the fridge and starting to prepare everything. Paige helped her and soon they had several things cooking including mushrooms and biscuits, which Piper knew Mark loved.
"Glenn will love all of this," Paige murmured, shooting a glance at the big man and blushing when he gave her a slow smile. "He likes my cooking as much as Mark seems to like yours."
"You cook for him?" Piper asked, raising her eyebrows.
"Oh, I didn't, at first," Paige said, shrugging. "I just wanted to escape, but if I'd left it up to him to feed me I'd have died of starvation."
"He can't cook, I take it?"
"Oh, he can boil an egg," the other girl said, shaking her head and laughing. "And he can burn toast...but everything else is a mystery to him."
Piper glanced at her sister. "Paige, tell me the truth. Was it bad?"
The older girl frowned and stared at the bacon she was cooking. "I thought it was, when he first carried me off. But he was never mean or violent......well, after the first day. He's always been very...respectful. There were a couple of times..." she broke off and shook her head.
"A couple of times....what? Did he hurt you?" Piper asked her quietly, a worried frown on her face.
"Does Mark hurt you when you do something wrong?" Paige countered the question.
"Yes....no.....no, he just.....oh! I see," Piper said, comprehension dawning at long last. "He's a lot like Mark, I guess."
"Yeah. But he's been so sweet as well, especially when he found out about...you know," she whispered.
"You told him about that?"
Paige shrugged. "I had to....I had one of my nightmares and he woke me up. He knows I was attacked, and that my attacker kidnapped me. He also knows how badly hurt I was and that, in the end, I wasn't raped." She looked at her younger sister and gave a small smile. "I showed him my scars."
"What?" Piper asked, her eyes round with surprise.
"I know....but he was so understanding, and....Piper, I let him touch me and do things...well, I never thought I'd be able to," Paige whispered, blushing.
Piper smiled at her once she got over the initial surprise. "Did you enjoy it?"
"Oh yes!"
"That's all that matters, really. Do you care about him?"
"I do, I think....I think I love him. And I think he loves me too, although he's never said. But sometimes, the way he looks at me," she smiled and then giggled. "He's sweet."
Piper raised her eyebrows at the thought that someone who looked as untamed as Glenn did could be called 'sweet'. "I'm glad you're happy, but is he ever going to let you go home?"
"I don't want to go home," Paige said. "I don't want to leave him."
"I know how you feel," Piper said, turning to look at Mark over her shoulder. He felt her staring at him and caught her gaze, winking at her and then chuckling when she blushed.
"Piper, do you love him?" Paige asked, seeing the look her sister was shooting at the older man.
"Oh God, I....I do," she said on a hushed breath, turning quickly back to what she was doing and blinking rapidly. "But I don't think he feels the same." She frowned as she broke an egg into the frying pan, feeling her stomach start churning with her sudden strong emotions. "I wish I knew how he really felt."
"Why don't you tell him how you feel, and then see what happens?" Paige asked her.
"I'm not brave enough. What if he decides he's had enough and that he wants me to leave?" she asked, frowning even more and swallowing. "Paige, I don't think I can eat this, I don't feel too good."
Paige frowned with concern and patted her on the shoulder. "Don't get upset. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel bad," she murmured.
"It's okay, it's just....I've only just realised how important he is to me....I didn't realise," she stopped and shook her head, taking a deep breath. "How could I not know?" With another small frown, she looked at her sister's concerned face. "It's okay, I'm fine." She concentrated on her task and soon had the food on the table where the two big men waited impatiently until the girls were seated before they started loading their plates up.
Piper caught her breath and felt her heart flip over in her chest when Mark leaned over and kissed her cheek, squeezing her hand for good measure as he began to eat. "This is real good darlin'," he said, winking at her.
She smiled softly and put some food on her plate, wondering if her heart would ever slow down. The sound of endearments coming from him made her pulse rate skyrocket. Looking at her plate she began eating, only managing a couple of mouthfuls before her stomach protested and she decided to concentrate on her coffee instead. She still felt a little queasy, but she put it down to the shock of realising her true feelings toward her husband. Mark finished his own food and frowned when he saw she had barely touched hers.
"Is anything wrong, baby?" he asked, linking his fingers through hers and making her look at him.
"No, I just......I didn't feel hungry," she said, shrugging.
"Are you feeling okay? You look a little pale," he continued, brushing her hair out of her face in a tender move that made her face colour with pleasure.
"No, I-I'm fine, honestly," she said, knowing the other two were looking at her then.
Mark saw that she was a little uncomfortable and he relented, still looking worried about her and rubbing her fingers gently. "Maybe we should go and sit down, get a little more comfortable?" he asked, standing up and drawing her up in front of him. "Come on, baby."
Piper felt her heart lurch at the thought of being able to curl up next to him on the sofa. She smiled softly. "Okay. Oh! But I have to do the dishes," she said, looking at the mess on the table.
"You don't worry about that now. I can deal with it later, you just relax," he said, looking concerned again. He drew her next to him and put a big arm around her shoulders and she briefly wondered if he was doing all this just for show in front of the other two. But she didn't argue, it felt too good being close to him.
When they reached the living room, Mark suggested that they watch some of he and Glenn's older matches, and both girls agreed. Paige had found out about Glenn already, it seemed, because she didn't appear to be surprised at all. As soon as they had a tape in the VCR, Mark sat down and drew Piper close to his side while he used the remote control to play the video. Piper snuggled against him, not seeing the need to hide the fact that she wanted a cuddle. She enjoyed his company now, and she thought maybe he enjoyed her company too. Her eyes flicked across the room to where Glenn was lounging on another sofa, and she was surprised to see Paige sitting close to him and him putting his arm around her. A smile tilted her lips when she saw how happy her sister looked, and she realised she had nothing to worry about.
Mark glanced down at her and caught the smile, and he lifted her chin up so he could see her eyes. "You feeling any better, darlin'?" he asked softly, and she had the eerie sensation of sinking into the warmth of his eyes.
Taking a shallow breath, she nodded and found herself smiling at him with genuine affection. "I'm okay, really," she assured him, shifting ever so slightly closer and shivering when his arm wrapped more firmly around her. When he just stared at her, she felt a flush of colour light up her face. "Shouldn't we be watching this?" she asked, gesturing towards the television.
"I'd rather watch you," he murmured, his eyes lighting up at how shy she became when he said anything vaguely complimentary. His thumb brushed softly over her lips, before he bent his head and kissed her gently. It was only brief, but the contact was so warm and caring that Piper couldn't help responding to it, and she was disappointed when he stopped. With a pleased smile, he tucked her head against his shoulder and held her while they watched the video.
The conversation that Glenn and Mark carried on went over her head, she was too wrapped up in being close to Mark and having him treat her as if he cared. She knew it would quickly grow to be addictive.
*******And there ya go.........hope it was okay.......more next week, I should think!!!*******