Page 49 of All Your Firsts Without Me

“Let me get dressed, I’ll be right back.”

She shrugs her shoulders. “Don’t get dressed on my account.”

I think she’s flirting with me and it may be the most adorable thing I’ve ever witnessed. A blush runs up her neck, staining her skin a delightful shade of crimson. I chuckle, which only deepens the color.

“I’ll just put a shirt on and be right back.”

Her head bobs once as she gives my torso another perusal. At least she likes what she sees from my waist up, but that’s not where the problem lies. It’s my lower half that was mangled in the accident.

When I get back, she’s nibbling on a donut. She’s nervous.

I can’t believe she’s here.

Shit, she came to me.

This is big.

This is everything.

“Hey.” I sit down beside her. She pushes a coffee in front of me. “I’m sorry about last night,” I tell her, dipping my head to capture her gaze.

She waves a hand. “Don’t worry about it. Like I said, we’re even.”

“Yeah, but that was very rude of me.” I pick a chocolate donut out of the box and set it on a napkin.

“I understand. You weren’t ready to share that part of yourself. I have scars too…” she turns her face away to stare out the window.

An ache settles in my chest at the pain on her face. “I’m sorry,” I say. I don’t know what more to add. I’m not sure what scars she’s talking about but by the look on her face, they conjure bad memories.

Her golden eyes snag on mine. “You have nothing to be sorry for.” She leans forward on the table, clasping her hands in front of her. “One thing I learned from David is that it’s okay to ask people for what you need from them.”

“What do you need from me?”

“If we’re going to see what this could be, then we need to not run away from each other when things get scary.” She scoots back in her chair, taking a deep breath. “I promise not to run from you when things get tough. Can you promise me the same?”

My heart thunders as she stares at me. “You mean, you still want to give this a try?”

“Why wouldn’t I? Because you’re missing a leg? That is not a deal breaker and if it was for someone else then it was their loss.”

“How did you get to be so perfect?” I ask.

“I’m not and you know that.” She cocks an eyebrow at me.

“In my eyes you are,” I say quietly, taking her hands in mine. “I promise I won’t run from you.” And I won’t. I’m not letting her get away.

“Is that why you were drawn to Lucky?” she asks, pulling her hand from mine to grab another donut.

I watch in utter rapture as she plucks sprinkles off of it and daintily places them on her tongue.

I swallow hard, willing myself to focus. “Partly. My accident happened on the same highway as hers.”

She grabs my hand, slowly bringing it to her face, gently she holds it against her cheek. April turns and presses her lips to the center of my palm. A shiver runs down my entire body from head to toe. “Thank you for sharing a piece of yourself with me.” The smile she gives me brightens the whole damn room.

“What are we going to do with all of these donuts?” I ask, wanting to change the topic to a more upbeat one.

She taps her finger over her lips. “We could take them to the nursing home.”

“That’s a great idea. I’ll grab my keys.” I pop the last bite in my mouth.

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