by Taryn Plendl
“I’m fine, it’s just hurting a bit,” I lied through my gritted teeth.
“Shut up! I’m not stupid. I can see how much pain you’re in just by looking at you.” She went to the bathroom and came back with a wet washcloth. She gently ran it over my forehead and then across the back of my neck.
“Lay back,” she commanded. I didn’t argue. I was in too much discomfort to do so. “Close your eyes.” She began to rub my legs like she had before, talking to me as she trailed her hands over them, massaging and squeezing as she moved lower. I did my best to visualize my healthy leg like before, but the pain didn’t disappear entirely this time.
“Shit. It still hurts—not as bad—but still.” I gritted my teeth.
I felt her move away from the side of my legs briefly before feeling her straddle my hips. I opened my eyes to see her peering down at me. “Shit, what are you doing?” I groaned. “Is this a new technique?” I instantly felt myself get hard beneath her hips. I knew she could tell, too. There was no hiding it in this position.
“You leave me no choice,” she whispered as she lowered her face to mine, pausing briefly, just inches above my face. Looking me in the eyes, she lowered her mouth to mine, kissing me with bittersweet fervor. It took me only a second to get lost in her, feeding from the sweetness of her mouth. I ran my tongue across her lips, sweeping inside as her soft, wet lips parted. Our tongues danced and curled around each other’s, lost in the long drugging kiss.
She pressed her hips down, grinding herself against my arousal, causing an involuntary moan to escape from my mouth. I could feel her smile against my lips before she sucked my bottom lip into her mouth, nipping it with her teeth, before releasing it and pulling back.
“How’s your leg?” she whispered, gazing at me, her beautiful, swollen lips fixed into a slight smile.
“What leg?” I mumbled. She threw her head back and laughed before leaning down and placing another kiss on my lips.
“God, I’ve wanted to do that all week.” She pressed her forehead against mine.
“Thank you. That was more than amazing, but now you’ve managed to transfer the ache from one area of my body to another,” I joked, pressing myself up so she could tell exactly what I was referring to. She giggled as she rolled off of my lap and curled herself next to me.
“Would you like me to rub that, too?” She raised her eyebrows at me, causing my thick hardness to strain against my shorts. Holy shit! Was she serious? I decided to call her bluff.
“Would you mind?” I asked in my sweetest voice.
She answered my challenge by reaching under the sheet, never breaking eye contact, and taking hold of my full throbbing erection. I sucked in a quick breath, savoring the warm touch of her soft hand. “Damn, Talia!” I rasped, closing my eyes. “You ... holy shit … you don’t have to do this.”
“I know I don’t have to do this, but do you want me to do this?” she whispered in my ear. Her warm breath sent chills through my body. At this rate, it wouldn’t take long. She was making me come completely unglued.
“Oh god, yes. Please,” I groaned as she squeezed me firmly before stroking me with fine, subtle, circling movements. I couldn’t lay still. My breathing was sharp and uneven. I started thrusting—rocking into her grip. “Shit! Shit!” I groaned as I arched and cried her name, spilling myself into her hand. I lay there, shuddering in breaths of gasping completion as she rolled off the bed and went into the bathroom.
I heard the water running, and moments later she returned with a warm washcloth. She carefully and meticulously cleaned me off before taking the washcloth back to the bathroom. She turned off the light and climbed back into the bed next to me.
“Are you okay, Tom?” she asked softly.
“You have no idea.” I pulled her into me and kissed her softly on the head.
“How’s your pain?” she asked as she snuggled into the crook of my right arm.
“I’m perfect. Thank you. Next time it’s your turn, okay?” How in the hell did we get here? Could this woman be any more perfect? The thoughts I’d had of her didn’t even compare to the reality.
I looked down to see her face, lit only by the small amount of moonlight coming through the window. Her blonde hair cascaded over my chest. She still smelled like raspberries and vanilla. Her breathing was slow and measured. Her lips were slightly parted. She was amazing—everything I could’ve hoped for. She was just like an angel. My angel.
Chapter 9
Talia
I woke to the feel of Tom’s warm arm wrapped around me, and for a moment, I didn’t want to ever move, but my bladder was screaming at me, so I didn’t have a choice.
I slipped myself out from under his arm, being extra careful not to wake him. I glanced at my reflection in the mirror. Rocking booty shorts, tank top, no makeup, hair a mess ... yup, that's how I roll.
I closed my eyes for a minute, remembering the feel of Tom pressing against me last night. Oh. My. God, it was hot! He was hot! I had to seriously keep myself from running back in there and jumping on him.
I heard my phone ringing in the other room. I quietly ran from Tom’s room to the spare bedroom, noticing the missed call from Ava. Hitting the call button, I sat down on the edge of the bed.
“Hey, what’s up?” I greeted Ava as she answered the phone.
“Why didn’t you answer before? Am I interrupting something?” Ava asked.
“Of course not. I just had to run from the other side of the house.”
“Is Tom okay?” she sounded concerned.
“He’s fine. Sleeping still.” I smiled to myself, thinking about his hot self, sprawled out over his bed.
“Did you hear me?” Ava asked loudly, bringing me back from my erotic thoughts.
“What? No, I’m sorry. I was thinking about something,” I laughed.
“Something or someone?” Ava giggled on the other end of the phone.
“Come on, Ava. I am here in a completely professional capacity.” I bit my lip, hoping she was buying it.
“What? I'm sorry, I couldn't hear you over the little voice in my head screaming bullshit!” Ava’s voice was thick with sarcasm.
I laughed. “Quiet, you! My playground, my rules.”
We chatted a bit longer, planning when she and Trevor would be stopping by again and trying to figure out how we could convince the guys to help us get Tom out soon. I thought he needed to get out of the apartment for something other than physical therapy.
I hung up with Ava and jumped in the shower. By the time I had gotten dressed and out to the kitchen, Tom was already there.
“Good morning, sunshine.” I greeted him as I poured myself a cup of coffee. He was quiet. I studied his face for a minute, trying to figure out what his problem was.
“Are you hurting?” I asked, leaning forward.
“No.” His answer was short. Something was bothering him. My heart dropped a bit, knowing that it could be what happened last night that had him wound up. Maybe I’d taken advantage of the situation.
“Hey, about last night …” I began, but he raised his hand and stopped me.
“It’s fine Talia, no big deal. We can forget it happened,” he shrugged.
Well, shit. I didn’t want to forget it. I had loved every second of it. Not only did I do it, but I meant to do it. I'd do it again, and with a smile. I liked knowing that I could help him feel better, and last night I could’ve sworn that he was just as thrilled. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe I misread the signals.
I was obviously losing my touch. I used to be able to read guys without a problem. Now, with the one man I wanted to take things a step further with, I couldn’t tell if he was on the same page. I could ask him, but I had already made him uncomfortable. I didn’t want to make it worse.
I shrugged. “Okay. We can pretend it never happened.” I turned around so he couldn’t see the hurt on my face.
“So, Ava and the guys are stopping by later tonight for drinks and to hang out,” I changed the sub
ject.
“Don’t you think it would be nice if you asked me before inviting people over?” Tom snapped at me, totally taking me by surprise.
“I’m sorry. I guess I should have asked first. It’s not like I invited a bunch of people over, Tom; these are your friends.” What the hell? I stared at him, trying to figure out where this moodiness was coming from.
“Are you sure you’re not hurting?” I asked again.
“No! For fuck’s sake, Talia, stop treating me like a baby!” He pounded on the counter with his right hand before standing and moving away with his walker.
I watched him walk back to his room and shut the door. What the hell just happened? He was pissed off about something, but to be honest, I had no clue what I did. I needed to figure this out.
The rest of the day was quiet. Tom came out of his room only a couple of times, but didn’t engage in conversation, and I didn’t push.
Trevor called in the early afternoon to let us know that he and Ava would be by after they had dinner out. Nick was planning on bringing pizza by for the three of us.
Tom came out of his room around six o’clock and looked freshly showered. He seemed to be getting along without any help today, and as exciting as it was, I couldn’t help but feel a bit sad. This was our last week together before I was to go back to my house and back to work.
I sat back and took in the gorgeous man before me. Tom had intrigued me from the moment I’d met him. He was so warm and polite, but still knew how to have fun. There was no doubt that he was all man, but he didn’t need to prove anything. He was strong and masculine without effort.
I tended to be approached by good-looking men who were as cocky as hell. It was fun for a while, but not something I wanted to be around all the time. Men like that needed their egos constantly stroked, and I didn’t have the time or energy for that.
Tom was different. He was someone I could see myself involved with—someone I wanted to be with. The past few weeks hadn’t done anything but increase those feelings for me. Last night, in his arms, was amazing! I wanted him like I hadn’t wanted anyone before.
“Tom?” I needed to clear the air, find out what was going on. He looked up at me and I could see the tortured look on his face. “I’m sorry if I did something to upset you. I want to …”
“Hey, you two!” The door opened and Nick came striding in. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I guess this conversation was going to have to wait.
I turned around and smiled. “Hey Nick.” He looked at me, clearly confused
“What, no insult? Talia, are you feeling okay?” he said his mouth quirked up in a half smile as he sat the pizza box down on the counter.
“Give me time, the night is still young.” I winked as I grabbed some plates down from the cabinet and carried them to the table.
Tom was quietly watching me. I couldn’t be angry at him. It had been a shitty day without being able to talk to him or be the recipient of one of his dazzling smiles. He looked so sad today, and I wanted nothing more than to hold him, to feel the warmth of his arms around me like I had last night. It was okay if he had regrets about what had happened between us, I just wanted my friend back. Just being around him, he made me feel things I’d never felt before.
“Can Tom have a beer?” Nick asked me, and I felt my shoulders tense. I didn’t want to be in charge of that answer. Tom had already made it clear that he didn’t want me treating him like a baby.
“That isn’t my decision, Nick. Tom is a big boy and can make his own decisions,” I answered as I watched Tom. He dropped his head slightly and closed his eyes. I felt guilty almost immediately after saying it. I didn’t mean to sound so snarky, but it had come out like that, and I know Tom was replaying his own words from earlier in his head.
Nick looked between us both, unsure of what was taking place. “Tom? Beer?”
Tom shook his head. “No, I’ll just have water tonight.” Nick nodded and grabbed two waters and a beer and carried them to the table, sitting down and digging right into the pizza.
“Did you talk to Trevor today?” Nick asked around a bite of food.
“No, why?” Tom shook his head before taking his own bite of pizza.
“He was acting all crazy this morning. I have no clue what his deal was. I was just wondering if you’d heard from him.” Nick shrugged.
I sat back and just listened, not feeling much like contributing to the conversation. Ava had seemed just fine this morning when we spoke, so whatever was bothering Trevor probably didn’t have anything to do with them, or she would have mentioned it. Trust me, she had never had an issue talking to me about her issues with Tom before.
Ava and Trevor’s relationship had started out with misunderstandings, then developed into a great friendship, more misunderstandings, then developed into love, and now they were a sickening couple that couldn’t keep their hands off each other. It was lovely to see her so happy. She deserved it.
“Not hungry?” Tom’s voice brought me out of my thoughts. He looked concerned, and for the first time today, he didn’t look away when our eyes met.
“I guess not.” I smiled at him and shrugged. “Don’t worry, I’ll probably be out here at midnight, raiding the kitchen.” I winked, and he grinned at me. There he is. My heart felt so light suddenly. It’s astonishing what an honest smile can do to you, especially Tom’s. I felt like I had walked through the desert all day, and he had just given me a drink of water. It scared me that he was becoming such a necessary fixture in my life—like he was as valuable as my next breath.
We finished eating and cleaned up before settling on the couch. “So Nick, still hanging out outside the plastic surgeon’s office looking for dates?” I smiled innocently at him. It was no secret that Nick liked the women with oversized breasts, and had been fooled a few times by whether or not they were real.
“Funny,” he chuckled. “You wouldn’t be making fun if you knew I nearly had a threesome last night.” He raised his eyebrows at me.
I sat up. “Shut up! Really? What stopped you?”
“The lack of two other people.” He smiled and winked as Tom and I burst into laughter.
This is how Trevor and Ava found us, rolling in laughter at Nick’s expense.
“What’s so funny? Ava asked as she walked over to us and sat down.
“Hey Miss Hottie, where have you been?” She looked gorgeous with her long, dark hair cascading down her back and a red cocktail dress that accented her incredible legs. Trevor came and sat down next to her, grabbing her hand, and then I noticed it.
“Shut the front door!” I grabbed her left hand at gawked at the beautiful princess cut solitaire diamond.
Ava giggled. “Trevor asked me to marry him!” she squealed, and I jumped up, pulling her into my arms. I was so happy for her, and she looked so happy. I pulled back to see the unshed tears in her eyes, knowing that mine looked the same.
I pulled her back into my arms and whispered into her ear, “You deserve your happily ever after.”
I let her go and hugged Trevor next. “You are one lucky bastard!” I squeezed him.
The next half an hour was spent with congratulations, laughter, and tears. We had dessert and coffee, and soon Trevor and Ava were itching to go. Nick said his goodbyes first, and after we hugged Trevor and Ava again, Tom and I were finally alone.
Chapter 10
Tom
I watched Talia close the door behind Ava and Trevor, but she didn’t turn around. She placed her hand against the door and let her head drop for only a moment, but it didn’t go unseen by me. I knew I had some explaining to do, but to be honest, I didn’t know why I’d acted the way I did.
Talia had been nothing but perfect since my accident. More than perfect. It wasn’t anything she was doing; I was just stressed out and angry. Every time I looked down and saw that pathetic stump, I felt like punching something. I was just so fucking angry! If I hadn’t taken the back roads that day or taken my eyes off the road, I wo
uldn’t be in this mess. I would still have my leg, still be able to walk and run, still be a whole man.
“Talia?” She turned around and looked at me hesitantly, and it broke my heart. “I’m sorry I was such an ass earlier.” I smiled at her, hoping like hell she would forgive me.
She cocked her head to the side. “Oh, Tom.” She closed the gap between us and wrapped her arms around me, burying her face in my neck. “I don’t mean to make you feel like a baby. I just want to take care of you, to help you, you know?” She ran her hand down my face, as I momentarily got lost in her stunning blue eyes.
I kissed her head and held her against me, wishing like hell that I had this stupid cast off my left arm so I could hold her properly. “You are taking care of me, better than anyone else could or would. I don’t know why you’re doing it, but I’m glad.”
She sighed. “I may be a nurse, but fixing stupid is not my specialty.” I pulled back so I could see her face. She had a smile plastered across it.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I raised my eyebrows at her.
“If you don’t realize why I’m here, Tom, then I’m not sure I can help you after all. I guess you must have jarred something loose when you hit your head.” She giggled and then her face became serious. “Tom.” She cupped my face in her hands and looked into my eyes. “I care about you, but more than that, I like you … a lot. Being with you makes me happy.” She closed her eyes and dropped her hands. “When I thought I’d lost you, I was so scared,” she whispered, and I felt part of me melt. She likes me!
Before I could talk myself out of it, I slipped my hand behind her neck and pulled her to me, capturing her lips with such force that I was sure I would fall over. She gasped, and I took advantage, slipping my tongue in between her lips, tasting and exploring her mouth briefly before sucking her bottom lip into my mouth and then placing a couple soft kisses on her swollen lips. “Shit, Talia,” I groaned, pulling back and pressing my forehead to hers. “Normally, this is where I would sweep you up into my arms and carry you to my bed to make sweet love to you, but since I can’t do that, and asking you to take a ride on my walker isn’t very romantic, would you mind walking your sexy ass in there on your own?”
