Page 36 of After All

He wanted to grin at the idea of Peyton coming to pickhimup for a change, but he fought it. “Okay.”

“And don’t forget your meds at eight. That’s the next time you can take them.”

Yeah, okay, this was a normal couple kind of thing, and he liked it. Her taking care of him. It was nice.

He went with his instinct and leaned in, giving her a soft kiss. “Thanks. I’ll see you later.”

She looked a little stunned as he turned and headed for the bedroom.

He liked that look on her.

Thirty minutes later, he was on Kyle’s couch, wondering why he was friends with the two guys sitting in the recliners in the living room with him.

“So you’re pushing the normal-couple-relationship thing and she’s pushing the sexy, let’s-play-nurse-and-patient stuff, and you’re pretty sure you’re losing?” Derek summarized.

“Yep.”

“That sounds about right,” Derek said with a nod, tipping back the can of beer he was holding.

“That she’s winning and I’m losing?”

“Yep. I mean, you’re offering something she doesn’t want. She’s offering something you both want. Of course you’re losing.”

Damn.

“So I have no hope.”

“Of tying Peyton Wells down in a relationship if she doesn’t want it?” Derek asked with a laugh.

“Remember, we talked about how to be supportive?” Kyle asked, throwing a French fry at Derek. He hadn’t agreed to grill, but he’d agreed to go pick up burgers from the Come Again.

“I just don’t get why everything has to be soofficialwith him,” Derek said with a shrug. “I mean, she’s crazy about him. Everyone knows it. Why can’t he just be happy with that?”

“I’m a bad guy for wanting more than sex?” Scott asked. He was beginning to think that given one single, simple excuse to just take Peyton to bed and never let her out, he’d go for it. There was more to life than sex. But really, really, really good sex could make up for a lot.

“You’ve already got more than sex,” Derek said, rolling his eyes.

Scott scowled at him. “Really? Like what?”

“Let’s see,” Derek said dryly. “She hasn’t been with anyone else in a year. You’re always her first call, for everything. She can’t let you leave a room without talking to you. She rushed back here from Baltimore to be by your side. She’s living in your house. And she almost kicked Reed Walker’s ass earlier today because of you.”

Scott felt his eyebrows pulling tighter and tighter as he thought about Derek’s words.

She hadn’t been with anyone else in a year? He tried not to keeptoomany tabs on her and other guys. He knew she flirted, danced, when out with other guys. Sometimes. Though, yeah, it did seem like it had been a while. And not letting him leave a room without talking to him? Sure, that might seem true—okay, thatwastrue—but it was usually to give him shit or tease him about something. It wasn’t like theytalked.But he did like the way she always found him and made a point of coming up to him, even in a crowded, fun party at the Come Again or down at the river.

“She’sstayingat my house to help me out while I heal,” he said.

Derek laughed. “Okay, sure. Because clearly you’re on death’s doorstep.”

Kyle laughed too. “And you have no oneelse who could have helped you out. No best friend with a medical degree or anything.”

Scott rolled his neck. He heard what they were saying. He wanted to believe that Peyton cared about him and wanted to be there. Okay, he knew she cared about him. They were…friends. At least.

“And when she called me on her way to the hospital, she wasall overmy ass,” Kyle said.

Scott frowned at him. “She called you?”

“Yeah. TJ picked her up from the airport so Heather would have her truck when she gets back from Baltimore. On the drive back, she called me for a report and to tell me that if I didn’t keep you alive, she’d marry me and make me miserable for the rest of my life.”

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