Page 69 of Rescuing Dr. Marian
“It is.”
“An unmissable one.” Foster shifted and sat up. “So you need better sleep than you’ll get with the two of us sharing this postage stamp.”
The silence that fell between us was different now—heavier, more deliberate. We both knew what we were doing. Rebuilding the boundaries that had crumbled somewhere between the shower and this moment. Reminding ourselves that we had different lives waiting for us.
It was the smart thing to do…
So why did it feel like we were both making the biggest mistake of our lives?
“Foster—” I tried again.
“It’s okay, Tommy.” He paused at the edge of my bed, not quite looking at me. “Today was… a lot. For both of us. But you have plans. Important ones.”
I wanted to argue, to tell him that my plans were just words on paper compared to this feeling blooming between us. But the rational part of my brain—the part that had gotten me through medical school and residency and a decade-long relationship I’d been too scared to leave—knew he was right.
Foster Blake had already prompted me to change my plans once, but I couldn’t keep doing it. Who would I be if I couldn’t achieve the goals I’d set for myself?
“Good night,” I whispered.
“Good night.”
Foster moved to his own bed, and I listened to the sounds of him settling under his covers. The cabin felt enormous suddenly, the three feet between our beds an insurmountable distance.
I lay there in the darkness, staring at the ceiling, and tried not to think about how right it had felt to have him take care of me. How safe I’d felt in his arms. How terrifyingly easy it would be to throw away everything I’d worked for just to stay in this moment.
Five weeks. We had just over five weeks left before I had to decide whether to chase the life I’d always planned or risk everything for something I’d never seen coming.
Five weeks to figure out whether what was happening between us was real or just the result of proximity and adrenaline and really good sex.
Five weeks to decide if love was worth changing the entire trajectory of my life.
As I finally drifted off to sleep, listening to Foster’s steady breathing from across the room, I had the sinking feeling that I already knew the answer.
And that it was going to break both our hearts.
17
FOSTER
I shouldn’t have cometo Timber alone.
The smart thing would have been to stay at SERA after the workday was over. Maybe take Chickie for a long walk, work on some training exercises… anything to keep my hands busy and my mind off the fact that Tommy had been gone for exactly ten hours and twenty-three minutes.
Not that I was counting.
But here I was, nursing a beer while Tommy’s cousin Alex polished glasses behind the bar and shot me looks like he had a solid guess why I was drinking alone on a Tuesday night.
The inside bar area was mostly empty, with most people preferring the outside seating area to enjoy the beautiful summer night with friends and family. It should have been peaceful away from the crowd, from the chatter. Instead, every time the door opened, my head jerked up like a goddamn golden retriever waiting for its owner to come home.
Pathetic.
Even more pathetic than the sulking hound dog at my feet, who was currently missing her favorite person.
“It’s funny,” Alex said, setting down his towel and leaning against the bar. “Ella and I were sure you had a thing for our cousin, but since you know Tommy’s not coming back until tomorrow night and you’re still eyeing the door, maybe it’s someone else.”
I took a long pull of my beer. “It’s not someone else.”
Alex’s eyebrows winged up.
