Page 46 of Paging Dr. Summers

“Fine, my knight in shining armor,” she muttered, her sarcasm barely masking her shivers.

I couldn’t help but chuckle, though the situation was far from amusing. The moment she threw herself into the blanket, my arms instinctively wrapped around her, cocooning her violently shaking body. I pulled her close, ensuring the blanket covered every inch of her exposed skin. The last thing I wanted was to make her feel uncomfortable, even though being this close to her sent a wave of agony through me that she was blissfully unaware of.

“I’ve got you.”

She snuggled closer, her trembling body pressing against mine. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Before I could respond, I felt her knees buckle. Instinct took overas I caught her, sweeping her up into my arms. My fingers brushed against her bare legs, sending a jolt through me I tried to ignore. Her head fell on my shoulder, telling me she trusted me. For a moment, that privilege eased the torment of the intimate situation we found ourselves in.

“I’m taking you to my place,” I said, the words spilling out without a second thought. It was closer than hers, and time was of the essence.

She nodded and snuggled in closer, her warm breath brushing against my chilled skin. It was better than any furnace at chasing away the cold.

Carefully, I carried her up the deck stairs, each step sending sharp stings through my limbs as the feeling returned to them. I gritted my teeth, refusing to vocalize the pain. My concern centered on Brooke.

I carried her into my bedroom, moving as quietly as possible, praying I didn’t wake Eden or Sophie. The last thing I needed was to explain why I was carrying a wet, naked Brooke into my room. I could only imagine the looks—or worse, the questions—that would follow.

I flipped on the gas fireplace, and its warm glow filled the room as I carefully lowered us into one of the fabric chairs—a creaky relic from the previous owner. It groaned under our combined weight but held steady.

Brooke curled deeper into me, letting out a soft sigh as the heat from the flames thawed her trembling body. I stroked her damp hair, a fresh wave ofwhat in the world am I doingcrashing over me.

“Thank you, Logan,” she murmured, her voice barely above a whisper.

“What were you doing out there?” I asked, concerned and in disbelief.

“Fulfilling one of the bucket list items,” she said.

“Which one was that? Have a near-death experience?”

She laughed, the sound light but still shaky. “No. Go skinny-dipping.”

I blinked, incredulous. “Your mom wanted you to skinny-dip at midnight in a freezing lake? Did she know how dangerous that is?”

“Well,” she said with a small shrug, “she didn’t exactly specify the lake. I just ... assumed.”

“Well, next time, assume the hot springs or a heated pool,” I said, trying to inject some levity.

“Good idea,” she breathed out, her voice tinged with exhaustion.

I had to disagree. It wasn’t my brightest move to mention it. The second the words left my mouth, vivid, uninvited visions of me joining Brooke in the water flooded my mind. I needed to get a grip.

Desperate to redirect my thoughts, I blurted out, “How was your date?”

Her body stilled against mine before she lifted her head with deliberate slowness. Her gaze locked on to mine, the firelight dancing in her eyes, which seemed to see straight through me.

“Logan,” she whispered, her voice laced with an intimacy that cut far too deep, especially given that only a blanket separated us, and we were supposed to be just friends.

Wasn’t that what she wanted? Wasn’t that what I wanted? The emotions that clearly bounced between us left me unsure of anything anymore.

“Brooke,” I replied, my tone foolishly mirroring hers. It was an unspoken invitation for her to draw closer, and she took it. Her breath brushed against my cheek, warm and disarming, unraveling the last threads of my resolve.

“My date was fine, but I missed you today,” she admitted, her voice hesitant, as if the words had slipped out before she could stop them. But her confession stirred something deep within me, something I wasn’t sure I could ignore any longer.

I inched closer until my lips hovered just above hers. The space between us became even more charged, begging her to close the distance. The temptation to do it myself was almost unbearable. Because I knew if I did, it would bring both relief and torment in equal measure.

She closed her eyes, a smile on her lips, before she took the invitation and seized the moment and pressed her mouth to mine. My lips moved over hers tentatively at first while I tried to forget every reason we shouldn’t be doing this. Brooke, on the other hand, leaned into it, a soft sigh escaping her, giving me permission to explore her lips and learn exactly what to do to claim them.

For a moment the guilt melted away and my hands slipped intoher wet hair, allowing me to control the pressure and deepen the kiss, leaving no part of her mouth undiscovered. She tasted better than I had imagined, salty and sweet, and her lips were just as velvety as I’d assumed.

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