17: I know a way

....

Matthew couldn't take off his eyes from Ruth's flustered face while she kept struggling to escape as he trapped her within his strong arms.

Yes! For her, he might appear to be harassing her especially as they lie on the floor, her face against his chest, her soft body resting over his sturdy body but for him, it was something else.

The mere fact that they were all alone in the deserted kitchen floor while their bodies were so close to each other awakened a whole lot of senses from the deepest core of his being.

It was the first time, after months of longing and painful waiting that he was able to hug his wife, once more.

Apparently, he was having a hard time sleeping so he decided to take a walk outside. He wasn't expecting to see Ruth climbing down the stairs while her phone stuck out like a flashlight guiding her every step down the tall staircase. She was hopping in one foot. He initially thought of helping her as he saw her struggle on her way down the stairs but he reckoned to hide and watch her from a distance instead.

He followed her hopped to the kitchen and as expected, she was hungry. For heaven's sake, she only had three spoons of fish pie and a spoonful of salad. All she had after drinking two glasses of wine which thankfully he was fast to intercept or else she'll end up drunk, was a whole pitcher of water. He knew because he watched her every move. He was studying her. He was looking for any sign of his 'Ruth'. But she seemed to be a totally different person. The Ruth he was with appeared to be another Ruth only having the same face, body, and identity.

She must be sulking since she ignored him after their dinner and talked enthusiastically with his twin. He felt a tinge of jealousy but he can't blame her though. She must really be upset. After all, he never stopped teasing her after their bathroom incident last night.

But God! She was still a vision without any clothes on. For a split second, his sanity went somewhere else as her naked images constantly flashed on his mind but it went all gone out of the window when he saw her bleeding and hurt. Worry dawned his being in an instant.

This woman was his wife and he ached to touch her again but he cannot do that. He can't simply do that for she cannot remember anything about him, for crying out loud!

He resigned from that thought and followed her quietly to the kitchen. He was born and raised there so walking in the dark corridors, corners and rooms inside the manor was never a problem for him.

He watched her took out some food containers and cans of cold drinks from the fridge.

For a while, she hungrily gobbled up and filled her empty stomach with her too-late-for-dinner-too-early-for-breakfast meal. He didn't notice himself smile as he watched her eat. She looked not-so alike as his wife. The old Ruth would never do such thing. She would always eat with elegance and finesse. She'll have the servants do things for her and have the table properly set. She was a woman with a very keen attention to details and breathes sophistication and poise. She was born and raised as a noble lady, nonetheless.

After she ate, he saw her struggle as she carried those containers while standing on one foot so he decided to approach her.

He wasn't expecting she'll act as surprised as she was.

Good thing, she wasn't holding glass food containers. If it was the case, he cannot imagine how much injuries she could have incurred by then. She was driving him crazy.

The illumination coming from the kitchen lamp brought enough lighting so he can marvel at the sight he always misses every single day since she left. His eyes travelled from her bandage forehead, her confused eyebrows, her perplexed hazel brown eyes fanned by those thick long lashes, her cute little flaring nose, her blushing cheeks and her sweetest cursing lips.

He hated to admit it but he absolutely misses his wife.

When he saw her yesterday, he was definite that his feelings of anger, hatred, and bitterness were consuming him for the past months but all of it were gone, as if they simply melted away like a huge glacier underneath the intense summer sunshine when he laid his eyes on her again.

His hand gently and carefully brushed the side of her lips and wiped off something from it.

He gave her a timid smile. The Ruth he knew would never let herself get caught in such an embarrassing situation.

She gave him a more puzzled gaze as her lips parted trying to decipher what he was doing.

He held the side of her face as his intense gaze bury through her.

She didn't protest.

She kept staring back at him too.

Then he didn't hold himself anymore.

He dipped his head and gave her a short kiss on her forehead.

"What are you doing?"

"Kissing my wife, I guess."

She kept looking at him intently as if studying and memorizing his face.

"You puzzle me so much." She said with such candor in her tone.

Her eyes were fixed on his lips trying to lessen the sudden intoxication brought upon to her by his intensifying gaze.

He drew a deep breath.

"Sometimes I feel that you're mad at me like I did something horrible to you. I don't know if you want to wring my neck or break my bones or crush me into pieces. Yet, there were times when you give me this weird confusing look like you just want to throw yourself at me, hug me like you don't want to let me go, kiss me like you'll miss me forever. You make my head hurts like crazy I cannot just figure you out."

"You want to figure me out?" He asked amusingly while watching every move and twitch of her lips.

"Obviously."

"But you just said you hate me."

"I do!" She snorted. "I hate you because you always managed to make me feel guilty out of something I cannot remember; out of something I am not aware of. I hate you because you think I'm an idiot. I hate you because you confused me all the time."

He sighed.

"What am I gonna do with you, woman?"

She sighed. Her index finger reached for his lips and gently traced its curves.

"I don't know." She playfully traced the bridge of his nose, his cheekbone, down to his chin and jawline hiding beneath his thick facial hair. "Maybe make me hate you less?"

He caught her finger and brought it to his lips and kissed it.

Then he rose up and lifted her body, carried her up like a newlywed bride and brought her back to her room.

"I know a way."