Page 47 of Someone to Watch Over Me

“All well and good, but you’re not doing a single thing to exert yourself until you’re medically cleared.”

“You could do all the work.”

“Tom!”

His laughter is cut short by pain that makes him groan. “You’re not supposed to be making me laugh.”

“Then quit saying outrageous things.”

“How is that outrageous?”

“Behave. You’re still recovering, and all you’re going to do is sit in the chair and watch movies. If you’re very good, I may even allow some football later.”

“What would constitute being very good?”

This new flirtatious side of him is all new to me, and I can’t deny I’m enjoying sparring with him, even if I’m still a little frightened about where it’s heading. The thought of having sex with someone who isn’t Jim has been overwhelming since it first became clear that his life would be cut short, and I’d be forced to go on without him.

“Earth to Lexi, come in, Lexi. I need to know how I’m going to earn some football around here.”

“By relaxing and resting and not talking about things that aren’t going to happen today.”

He gives me a sweet, tender look. “But they may happen at some point? If I’m very good?”

“Tom…”

The footrest on the recliner drops so suddenly that it startles me. He gets up and comes over to sit next to me on the sofa. “Lexi.”

“Yes?”

“You’re beautiful and sweet, and all I think about is kissing you.”

“That is not all you think about!”

“It really is.” He reaches out to caress my face, and the soft swipe of his fingers over my skin sets off a body-wide reaction. Tom Hammett wants to kiss me. From deep inside the recesses of my soul, teenage Lexi is doing handsprings.

“How is that possible when you’re recovering from a health emergency while continuing to run your company?”

“It’s a problem, as you can imagine. There are other things I should be thinking about, but every thought in my head is about you.”

“That sounds like a serious problem.”

“It’s very serious, and it might be good if we just, you know, kissed or something so I could start thinking about something other than how much I want to kiss you.”

I’m very much aware that everything will change if I lean in to give him what he wants. And let’s be honest, I want it, too. But do I want everything to change? Do I want to cross that invisible line between friendship and romance, knowing that once it’s done, it can never be undone? In the “before,” a kiss was a simple thing between two people who were getting to know each other. In the “after,” it’s so much more complicated than that.

I lean in ever so slightly, no more than an inch closer to him.

He does the same, leaving less than an inch between us now, his piercing blue eyes conveying a wealth of emotion and affection, all of it directed at me. “It’s gotta come from you, Lex.” His voice is gruff and sexy. “I’ll never push you for anything you’re not ready for.”

“I have coffee breath.”

His huff of laughter breaks the tension that’s built to concerning levels inside me. “Ask me if I care.”

“Do you care?”

He shakes his head. “Not about coffee breath. About you? I care very much.”

“I haven’t kissed anyone since Jim.”

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