Page 12 of Fear of Falling

“Better?” he asked, his voice sounding deeper and raspier.

“Yeah,” I nodded, swallowing thickly. It was taking all of my effort to try and remain cool, calm and collected. I shivered again, but it had nothing to do with feeling cold and everything to do with him.

“Come here. If we stay close, our body heat will help keep us warm.” Wyatt raised his arm and nodded for me to lay down beside him.

My hesitation lasted for just a split second before I scooted down beside him.

What the hell. Tonight’s weird enough already, might as well go along with it.

“So, body heat, huh?” I teased, hyper aware of his arm gently wrapped around my shoulders. “Hey, my mom raised me to be a gentleman.”

My body had a mind of its own as I pressed closer into his side, curling into it. His hand moved slowly down my arm, sending shivers through me again before it came around my waist, resting on the curve of my hip.

I told myself the position we were in wasn’t sexual by any means, yet, the feel of his firm, muscular body against mine made me want to curl around him like a cat. I blamed the dirtythoughts suddenly coming to mind on my lack of male attention over the past year.

Stop it, Josie! Now is not the time or the place!

The last thing Wyatt needed was another random girl lusting after him. He’d already mentioned the fangirl’s he encountered and I didn’t want to be just one more. Yet, as the seconds of silence ticked by, I could feel the exhaustion ebbing from both of us as we laid there in the quiet, and I found it increasingly difficult to keep my imagination in check.

“Tell me about your family,” I found myself whispering.

“My family?”

“Yeah. What are they like?” I wasn’t usually so inquisitive, especially with someone I’d just met. Maybe it was a combination of exhaustion and being stuck together that made it easier to lower my walls. Though for a moment I panicked, fearing he’d think I was nosy.

Wyatt didn’t hesitate as he answered. “Well, my mom is amazing. She’s literally the backbone of my family.” I could hear the smile in his voice as he spoke. “Mom drove my brothers and I back and forth from school to the rink every single day, and still cooked dinner for us all when we got home. Which was no mean feat with hungry boys. If any of us needed anything she was there. Always.” Wyatt’s love for his mom was evident in his voice, and I could tell she meant everything to him.

“She sounds amazing.”

“She is.”

I wasn’t sure how that happened, but my head now rested on his chest, my arm draped across his around his taut abdomen.

I can’t believe the two of us are lying on the floor of an elevator, wrapped in each other’s arms.

“How many brothers do you have?” I asked, trying to distract myself. “Two. Landon is the oldest. He’s 28 and loves to parent me and my younger brother. Sometimes he comes off as anasshole, but he means well. He actually runs an ice-skating rink and trains kids and teenagers. Not to mention he also coaches the local little league team.”

“So, he plays ice-hockey too?” I asked.

“Yeah, we all do.

“He didn’t want to go professional like you?” My mouth ran away from me as the questions poured out, but Wyatt didn’t seem to mind.

“Nah, he never had the passion for it that I do, but he still loves it enough to want to coach and teach.”

“And your younger brother?”

“Mateo. He turns 18 in a few weeks. That kid,” He chuckled, and I could feel the vibration in my ear. “He never sits still. He plays hockey as well as football and he’d play more if he could, but my mom put her foot down at two sports. He’s a good kid though.”

I loved hearing him talk about his family. It was obvious they were close, really close. In a matter of minutes, I’d learned that Wyatt would move mountains for his family. It just made me respect him even more.

As he continued telling me about his brothers, I felt my eyes grow heavy as the day caught up with me. Wearing his jersey, and wrapped in his arms, I felt so warm and comfortable. Safe. I tried to fight the fatigue, but slowly his voice started fading and I drifted off to sleep.

6

JOSIE

Iwoke to someone softly shaking me. Groaning, I kept my eyes closed as I shook my head. “No, not yet” I swatted the offending hand away. “I’m still tired.” Yawning loudly, I only briefly registered the chuckle before whoever it was shook my shoulder again.

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