And she had. She knew it. She had always chosen him. Would always choose him. “Don’t you feel it, Rio? We’ve always been together. I know we have. Somewhere else, somewhere good.”

He shook his head, urging her up to the house. “It wasn’t somewhere different, Rachael. There’s always been blood and bullets and things to fear. But we managed them together. That’s what we do. We live our life the best that we can, together, facing whatever comes our way.”

She pulled herself up to the verandah. Her clothes were lying in a heap where she’d stripped. She picked up the shirt, held it to her. “I love him, Rio. I know he’s done things, horrible, hideous things. People think he’s a monster and they think I should help destroy him. But I can’t. I won’t. I understand how he came to be what he is.” Very slowly she pulled on the shirt. Rio’s shirt. It seemed everything came back to Rio. “Do you really think we were together in another time?”

His brilliant green gaze drifted over her. “Don’t you?”

She leaned against the chair and smiled at him. “I think you’re beautiful, Rio. I thought it then too, wherever we were. I remember that much.”

He stepped very close to her, his body crowding hers. Tall, muscular, broad shoulders and incredible strength. He caught her chin firmly and tilted her face up to his. There was no laughter in his eyes. “Don’t ever do that again. Don’t leave me. I think you tore the heart out of my chest with your bare hands.” He felt like an idiot saying it. He didn’t write poetry and he didn’t know the first thing about romance, but he had to find a way to make her understand the enormity of what she’d done.

She lifted her hand to map his face, her fingertips very gentle. “I won’t, Rio. If you’re willing to take the chance, I’ll make my stand, here, with you.” She stepped back when he reached for her. “I want you to know about me before you make up your mind.”

“Rachael.” He said her name softly, lovingly. “I have made up my mind. I would want you in my life no matter what the circumstances. I lay beside you the other night and thought about whether I would want you if we could no longer have sex. I have to tell you, sex with you is amazing. I look forward to it and I think about it a lot.”

“That’s a surprise.” She managed a small grin.