by Noelle Adams
And then her eyes began to well with tears.
With a muttered curse, he immediately pulled her into his arms and held her as she cried.
***
It was after midnight when they finally arrived home. Both were exhausted and quiet as they walked in. Lucy was near frantic and Heather immediately scooped her up and apologized profusely for being home so late.
“I’m so sorry, sweet girl,” she cooed. “Let’s get your leash.”
“I’ll take her,” Chris said and walked over to the hook near the door and got the dog’s leash.
“What? Why?”
“You’re tired. It’s been a long day. Why don’t you go and get ready for bed, and I’ll take care of Lucy. She’ll need to eat too, and I’m not sure I’m ready to go to sleep yet so I’ll stay up with her.”
“Chris.”
At the sound of his name on her lips like that, without thinking, he walked over to kiss her, catching himself at the last minute and pressing a light kiss on her head before getting the dog hooked up and walking out the door. Thankfully, Lucy was quick to do her business and they were back inside in less than five minutes. He unhooked her and then went over to the kitchen to put food and fresh water in her bowls before opening the refrigerator and pulling out a beer. He held it in his hands and decided it wasn’t what he wanted and put it back before grabbing a bottle of water.
Behind him, he heard Heather moving around in the bathroom—no doubt washing her face and brushing her teeth. All the things that went into her nightly routine.
She’d been quiet on the ride home. They both were. It took a little over two hours after they’d first talked to Dr. Mallins before they were able to go up and see Tom. He was sedated and barely knew they were there, but Heather had sat at his side and talked to him for hours, while Chris had gone out and talked with the doctor.
“As far as we can see, this isn’t a cardiac event. We’ve done all the tests, and his heart is fine. His blood work is good.”
“Then what’s the problem?” Chris asked, raking a hand through his hair in frustration. “A healthy man doesn’t collapse like that!”
“We saw gallstones in the ultrasound. They’re fairly common but when they go on the move, they’re quite painful. We’ll be removing his gallbladder in the morning. He’s scheduled for tomorrow at eleven in the morning.”
Chris had sagged with relief and, when he’d told Heather, she had been equally relieved. When he finally convinced her to leave, she had only agreed because Tom was sound asleep. She’d vowed to be back here first thing in the morning. There was no way Chris was going to argue with that or remind her that her car was still at the office and she’d have to rely on him to get there.
Lucy’s bark brought him back to the present.
“You ready to go out again?” he asked with a chuckle, and the dog pranced back over to the door. Putting her leash back on, they repeated their path down the stairs and outside where Lucy was a little slower to do her business. Chris wanted to be annoyed, but he figured the poor dog had suffered enough with them coming home so late and being locked inside all day. And as much as he hated to admit it, she was a good dog.
Not that he was going to admit that to anyone anytime soon.
Or ever.
Looking down, he saw that she was finally taking care of business. Kicking her back paws behind her as she finished, she gave a little hop and turned back toward the building. “Good girl,” he said and then wanted to roll his eyes.
Damn dog.
They were back in the apartment, and Chris hung her leash back up and locked the door. He was finally starting to relax. Maybe a little late night TV would help, but he knew if he got comfortable on Flo that he wouldn’t make it to bed. He had a television in his room, but it wasn’t quite the same as sitting on Flo.
Mentally, he began a running list of all the things that would need to be addressed in the morning with all the crews. There were going to be calls to make and decisions to be made on how long he could afford to be away from the sites. Tomorrow was a given. There was no way he was going to send Heather to the hospital alone. Even though it was routine surgery, and Dr. Mallins assured them Tom would come home the following day, it still wasn’t right to make her go alone.
He’d call Jenny and see about getting a housekeeper or home health person to stay with Tom for a couple of days and…
“Hey.”
Chris shook his head to clear it when he heard Heather’s soft voice. She was standing in the doorway to her bedroom wearing a pair of flannel boxers and a tank top. Her hair was loose, and she didn’t have on a stitch of makeup. She looked young and sweet and…scared. He walked closer.
“How are you doing? You going to be able to sleep?”
She shrugged. “Physically, I think I will, but my brain won’t quite shut down yet.”
He nodded. “I know the feeling. I was just standing there thinking of the calls I’ll need to make in the morning and all the things we’ll need to handle to keep things going at work.”
“Me too. There’s so much going on at the office with the new software and converting the files. I can spare a day or two—especially for Dad—but I know it will stress him out more that I’m not at work. We’ll have to ask at the hospital about referrals for a home health aide or something.”
He chuckled.
“What?” she asked.
“I was just thinking the same exact thing,” he said with a lopsided grin. Then he yawned. Loudly.
“Great minds,” she said softly. Then she surprised him by reaching out and touching his arm. “Thank you.”
He looked at her curiously. “For what?”
“For being there. For me and Dad. I…I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
Reaching up, he caressed her cheek. “You would have been fine. You’re stronger than you think.”
She smiled. “Still, I’m really glad you were there with me.”
They stood there like that for a long minute—her hand on his arm, his caressing her cheek. He marveled at how soft her skin was and how small she looked. Delicate.
“Heather,” he murmured, his head leaning toward hers as if an invisible chord was pulling him that way.
Her lips parted as she moved a little closer.
She smelled good. A light, florally scent hit him as he carefully wrapped his other arm around her waist, effectively closing the distance between them. And then he did what he’d been aching to do since the first day she walked through the apartment door.
He kissed her.
Seven
The kiss started gently, his lips lightly brushing against hers, as if he were testing to see how it felt.
When a surge of excitement and pleasure rose inside her, she made a little noise in her throat and raised her hand to the back of his neck. Chris immediately deepened the kiss, slipping his tongue into her mouth.
She’d experienced plenty of good kisses in her life, but this was on a whole different level. Her head spun and her body pulsed and a deep need inside her sprang to life—one she’d never known she possessed.
Chris seemed to sense her response because his body was tightening and his hands were becoming more possessive. He slid them down her back, and one of them lowered to cup her bottom, pressing her more snugly against him. She clenched one of her hands in his shirt and held on, kissing him as eagerly as he was her.
When she felt a sharp tug of arousal, it was followed by a cold sliver of fear.
What the hell was she doing? Yes, he’d been great today, but she usually didn’t even really like Chris. She absolutely shouldn’t be kissing him this way, no matter how much her body and her heart clearly wanted it.
She broke her mouth away and gasped, “Wait. Chris, wait.”
He froze for a moment, and then he released her with a low groan.
Heather took a quick step back. “What are we doing?” She wiped a hand against her mouth, as if that might somehow clear the a
ftermath of that amazing kiss from her mind. “What are we doing?”
“Kissing.” His voice was slightly rough—as if he were affected by their embrace too—but he sounded more controlled than she felt. He took a step closer, his eyes hot with obvious interest. “And I wouldn’t mind doing it again.”
She could barely resist that look in his eyes, but the anxiety coursing through her was enough to prompt her to raise her hand to stop his approach. “I don’t think we should.”
He let out a breath. “Why not? It was good.”
“Yes. It was good. But that doesn’t mean it’s a good idea.”
“Why not?”
“Because we’re both—not ourselves this evening.”
She was trying desperately to be reasonable and smart, but the sight of him standing in front of her, big and handsome and bristly from a day’s worth of beard, looking at her like he wanted to swallow her whole, was almost more than she could handle. In about five seconds, she was going to be back in his arms, giving herself to him completely.
“I think we’re ourselves,” Chris said slowly.
“Well, I’m not. I’ve got to…” What she had to do—right now, as quickly as she could—was get away from him. “I’ve got to….go to bed. We can talk in the morning.”
She whirled around and hurried into her room, closing the door behind her.
She leaned against it, breathing deeply. Yes, that had been a cowardly retreat, but her only other choice would be to surrender to her highly inappropriate feelings.
She probably would have had sex with him, if he’d continued deepening the embrace. She wasn’t sure she would have had the will or brains to stop them, since it was becoming clear that she wanted it so much.
That would have been a huge mistake.
At least she’d saved herself from that.
She jumped at a knock on her door, right behind her.
“Heather?” Chris’s voice was low, still hoarse.
“Sorry,” she said through the door, praying that he would listen to her, not keep pushing on this. “I’m really sorry, but we need to talk in the morning. I’m…I’m not myself, and I don’t want to do something I’ll regret.”
“Heather?” he repeated.
“I…I really think it’s for the best.”
Silence.
Maybe he was finally going away.
“Look…can you just open the door? Just for a second?”
She groaned, knowing if she opened the door and looked at him again that there was a good chance she’d fling herself back into his arms. “Can’t we just—”
“Heather.” This time her name was a near growl.
With a sigh of defeat, she opened the door just a couple of inches. But before she could even look at him, his hand shot through the opening—with Lucy on it. Her tongue was lolling and her tail was wagging, and she looked excited to be part of this ridiculous situation.
Oh. So he hadn’t wanted to talk to or kiss her again. She reached up and took Lucy—careful to not touch Chris’s hand.
She cleared her throat but couldn’t seem to make herself say anything.
There was a longish pause. Then, “Okay. Talk to you tomorrow.”
“Thank you,” she called, relieved and now wanting him even more. A lot of guys would have been pushy, just ignoring her wishes and demanding to be let in. “Good night.”
When she heard him retreating and then the muffled sound of his bedroom door closing, she let out a long sigh and walked over to slump onto her bed. What a mess. She’d been needy and vulnerable, and she’d let down her guard far too much.
Chris wasn’t a bad guy. Now that she’d gotten to know him again, he was a lot better than she’d been thinking. He was fine for this roommating thing and even for being a business partner with, for as long as he wanted to stick around.
But he wasn’t a committer. She’d learned that the hard way a few years ago.
She needed stability. She was at the point in her life when she was looking toward the future, toward building a good life for herself. And the most stupid thing she could do was fall for a guy who wasn’t going to be around for the long-haul.
She’d just been upset about her father tonight. That was all that had happened. People sometimes kissed someone they didn’t intend to, and it wasn’t the end of the world.
That was all that had happened tonight.
She really hoped her dad was okay.
Her phone rang just then, as if her thoughts had conjured the sound. She gasped when she saw the caller was her father.
“Dad!” she said, after scrambling to connect the call. “You’re supposed to be sleeping.”
“I was,” he replied, sounding weak but still with his characteristic dry intelligence. “But they keep coming in checking on me every other minute, and I kept worrying about you.”
“Why are you worried about me?” she asked, her voice breaking slightly. “You’re the one in the hospital. You’re the one having surgery tomorrow.”
“I’m okay.”
“No, you’re not. Are you in a lot of pain?”
“Nah. They’ve doped me up pretty good. How are you holding up, Heather?”
“I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“Well, I did have some vague thoughts about you there by yourself, falling apart.”
She sniffed and smiled. “I’m not falling apart.”
“Is Chris with you?”
“He’s in the apartment,” she said slowly. “He lives here.”
“I know that. I mean, is he helping you out? You need to have someone with you.”
“I’m fine, Dad. I really am. Chris is helping out. We’re going to cover everything at work while you’re in the hospital, and I’ll be there first thing tomorrow so I can see you before you go into surgery.”
“Okay. Good. Sorry about all of this.”
She almost choked. “Don’t be ridiculous! You can’t apologize for health problems, Dad.”
“I’m your dad. I can do what I want.”
She started to laugh, but it turned into a little sob before she knew what was happening. It was a moment before she could say coherently, “Yes, you can. You’re going to be just fine. Now get some sleep so you’re ready for tomorrow.”
“So Chris is there?”
She felt weird that her father was taking comfort in that, but she also didn’t want to take that comfort away. “Yes, he’s here. I’m doing fine.”
“Good. Good. You need someone.” His voice was fainter, like he was getting tired.
“Goodnight, Dad,” she said softly. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
When she’d hung up, she stared at the phone for a minute before she finally put it down.
Her dad was right about one thing. She did need someone. The idea of his dying—sometime in the future, hopefully in the very far off future—was like a huge dark void, threatening to consume her.
She would have no real family then—no family that acted like family, anyway.
She’d always kind of assumed she’d be married with her own family by the time her father died. He’d been a healthy man all his life, so she was hoping he’d have a good long life. But today had really scared her.
What if she ended up completely alone when he died?
The thought was terrifying—so scary she couldn’t let herself dwell on it. Her father was okay. He wasn’t going to die any time soon. She had time. Plenty of time.
But she definitely couldn’t let herself wander down a dead-end road with a guy who would never commit to her and give her what she needed.
Chris was hot. No question about that. And he was funny and smart and could be surprisingly kind. But he ran away when life get hard, and that just didn’t work for her.
She’d been needy tonight, so she’d kissed him, but she absolutely couldn’t let it go any further than that.
No more kissing. No more soft thoughts about him.
They were roommates and business part
ners. And they could be friendly.
But absolutely nothing else.
***
Heather didn’t sleep very well.
After a couple of hours of tossing in bed, worrying about everything, she finally took a couple of antihistamines that always knocked her out. She went to sleep after that, but she woke up when her alarm went off, groggy and fuzzy-headed.
She rolled out of bed and had to stand for a minute to fight off a wave of dizziness.
Too much had happened yesterday. She couldn’t process it all. And today her dad was going to have surgery.
It was just six in the morning, but she wanted to get over to the hospital early, so she could sit with her dad for a little while before they took him into pre-op.
She went to the bathroom and then was about to head to the kitchen for coffee when she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. She was still wearing the tank and boxers she’d slept in, and they left a lot of her body uncovered.
If Chris wasn’t up now, he would be soon. She grabbed for a robe to pull on over her pajamas so she’d be more covered up if she saw him.
After last night, she needed to be a lot more careful.
She was pouring herself a cup of coffee when Chris’s bedroom door opened. Like her, he headed first for the bathroom, so she just caught a glimpse of a broad, bare chest and a pair of black sweat pants before the door closed.
She was leaning against the counter, sipping her coffee when he came out of the bathroom and headed toward her in the kitchen. While she was tempted to try to avoid him this morning, she wasn’t going to do that.
The mature, reasonable thing to do was have a conversation this morning about the kiss, so that was what she was going to do.
“Morning,” he said, his voice slightly rough from sleep. Very sexy. So was the sight of his strong, masculine chest and broad shoulders.
“Good morning,” she said with a little smile.
“Hear anything from your dad?” He leaned over briefly to greet Lucy, who had run up to him excitedly.
“He called last night. He sounded okay. They had him on pain medicine, so he was comfortable enough. Hopefully, the procedure today will go smoothly, and he’ll be on his way to recovery.”