Page 10 of Silver Lining Love

Even at four, she knew what was up.

After a few minutes, Wyatt shut off the water and grabbed some aloe and a bandage from the medicine cabinet. He tenderly dressed my wound and then brushed the hair that had fallen and stuck to my damp cheeks back behind my ear.

I stared into his eyes as his gaze darkened. The energy between us crackled as I felt the pad of his thumb graze lightly down my neck slowly. Tenderly. My breath hitched, and for a glorious moment, I was sure that he was going to lower his mouth to meet mine.

I’d waited for this moment for five years. Did I think it was going to happen when I was a snotty, blubbering mess? No. But beggars couldn’t be choosers, and I would take it. My lids automatically began to close when he spoke.

“When’s the last time you took a shower?”

A wave of reality crashed over me. He wasn’t about to kiss me. He’d just noticed how disgusting I was.

“I don’t remember,” I lied.

It had been five days.

“I’m going to run you a bath.” He stepped away from me and began to do just that.

“The kitchen is a mess and I have to make—" I began to argue.

“I’ve got it,” he cut me off. After making sure the temperature was correct, he stood back up and gruffly instructed, “Don’t move.”

Yes, sir. My lady parts saluted him as I felt my cheeks heat with a flush.

He waited for me to nod my head in agreement before he left. Seconds later, he returned with Saran Wrap and bandage tape. He gently wrapped my arm with the clingy plastic, then secured it in place with the tape.

“Try not to get it wet.”

“Okay.” I sniffed as I looked up at him. “Thank you.”

He looked down at me and the look in his whiskey stare stole my breath. “It’s going to be okay.”

It was the same promise he’d been making to me since the night he pulled me into his arms in the waiting room of Mercy General.

I nodded even though I had no idea how it could be.

He took the baby monitor, walked out of the bathroom and closed the door behind him.

Moments later, I heard him coming back down the hall. Benji was cooing and Alice was talking a mile a minute. “And then Mikey said shit, and Auntie Whitney said that he can’t curse, but then she said fuck.”

“Is that right?” Wyatt asked, sounding amused.

As the voices passed by, I stared at myself in the mirror and didn’t even recognize the girl I saw. I hadn’t gotten my lashes or nails done in six months. I had a mystery stain on my wrinkled shirt, and I wasn’t wearing a stitch of makeup.

Who was I?

Before I became the legal guardian of my niece and nephews, I had a standing appointment with my nail lady and eyelash technician every two weeks. I used self-tanner religiously, giving me a year-round sun-kissed glow. I got Brazilian blowouts regularly and treated my long locks to hot oil treatments between blowout appointments.

As an influencer, my appearance was my brand. I knew that most people didn’t take me seriously, but I’d taken my brand—which was my appearance—veryseriously.

Now, there were dark circles beneath my eyes, my sun-kissed complexion had faded to a pasty pale, and my hair resembled a bird’s nest sitting atop my head. I hadn’t even washed it in at least two weeks.

I sniffed back the emotion that was building inside of me like a pressure cooker. There was no way I was going to waste precious moments to myself by having a breakdown. I could do that later when Wyatt wasn’t here being my knight in shining khakis.

Right now, I needed to take this time to make me feel human again. Before stepping into the bath, I removed the rubber band from my hair, which required scissors to cut the thing out of my tangled mess. Once it was gone, I brushed out the knotted strands, hissing as pain shot to my scalp.

After I’d tamed my hair beast, I lowered into the warm bath, washed my hair, and even shaved my legs. The makeshift waterproofing job Wyatt had done on my arm worked well. I tried not to think about how good it had felt when he’d gently held my arm in his hand. Or how sexy he’d looked as he’d concentrated on wrapping my wound.

How could one man be so strong, smart, sexy, and capable? Nothing fazed him. He knew how to handle everything. He’d explained that being the second oldest of nine meant he’d seen it all, which made sense.

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