Sunday morning the alarm woke Hannah. She reached out, turned off the buzzer and pulled the blankets over her shoulders, wrapping them around her.
Three days had passed since her episode at the hospital, and she still hadn't forgiven herself for creating such a terrible fuss and alarming Riley the way she had.
He'd taken it all in good humor, teasing her about it, but always in fun, being careful not to embarrass her.
They were much more at ease with each other now. The terrible tension that had existed between them the first awkward weeks of their marriage had disappeared.
As she lay in bed, savoring the warmth, she mulled over the strange events of the past few days. Riley had been so gentle with her, solicitous, making few demands on her.
Too few.
She'd hoped once he'd returned from sea duty that he'd say something or make some token gesture toward inviting her into his bed.
Thus far it hadn't happened. If Hannah were more worldly or a bit more sophisticated, she would have approached him herself. But she'd hoped her husband would make it apparent that he wanted the two of them sharing a bed. Perhaps she'd ruined everything early on when he'd asked her to make love and she'd callously rejected him. A hundred times since, Hannah had regretted it. She'd been so foolish. Her pride was hurting them both.
Perhaps Riley, disgusted by her attitude, didn't intend to ask her again. Perhaps he was waiting for her to voluntarily come to him. She mulled over the thought several moments, wondering how she'd go about it. Should she broach the subject herself? Hannah didn't know how she'd do it without becoming flustered and red-faced.
While he'd been at sea, she'd often gone shopping with Cheryl. One Saturday, a week before the men were due home, the two had gone into a lingerie shop at the Kitsap Mall. Cheryl had bought a skimpy black nightie with a fur hem. She'd joked that the hem was there to keep her neck warm.
While they'd been in the shop, a lovely peach-colored silk gown had caught Hannah's eye. Cheryl had convinced Hannah it was perfect with her coloring, and with a little encouragement from the saleslady, Hannah had purchased the gown.