The alarm jarred Janet out of her dream state and demanded she get up to relieve Adam. She was hugging the pillow trying to recapture bits and pieces of earlier times when she and Adam were close. She yearned for his gentle touch and his manly strength as solid as concrete and as pliable as molten steel. He was still there with her — steady, reliable, unfaltering — supporting her in her plan, but it felt different, absent of a quality she could sense but not articulate.
She dragged her aching body out of bed and tried to remember when she didn’t hurt. It seemed so long ago. She went to the bathroom to wash her face and comb her hair. Looking in the mirror she noticed dark rings under her eyes. She thought she looked awful and knew she hadn’t taken the time lately to fix her hair and artfu
