Page 45 of This Memory
At that moment, right there in the apartment above my toy shop, I fell in love with Gavin Quinn. Again. Of course, I would never admit it to anyone.
Smiling, I nodded. “Yeah, it’s okay. Safe, I mean.”
He nodded and walked closer, taking my hand in his. “What is the L for that you have tattooed on your finger?”
I swallowed hard. “I got it one night in college, with Harper. We both got one.”
“What does it mean?”
Shrugging, I said, “It symbolizes love. Or the love I wished to have someday. I was drunk…”
His eyes met mine. “Who were you thinking of when you got it?”
“My parents. How I wanted a love like theirs.” I left out a minor detail. I had also been thinking of Gavin.
Smiling, he brought it up to his mouth and placed a gentle kiss on the tattoo. I drew in a breath, and for a moment, I was pretty sure the world stopped.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m feeling…”
My words trailed off as a sudden wave of nausea hit me. Hard. My hand came up to my mouth, and I froze.
“What’s wrong?” Gavin asked, his brows drawn down in concern.
“Oh God,” I moaned. “I’m going to throw up.”
Running past Gavin, I headed into the bathroom, lifted the toilet seat, and puked.
Instantly, I felt Gavin behind me. He scooped up my hair and held it back while I threw up over and over again. I slid to the floor when I finally had nothing left to hurl. Gavin sat and pulled me onto his lap, gently holding me while my body trembled.
“Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone throw up like that.”
I leaned my head against his chest and let out a slow breath. “Oh my gosh, I think the morning sickness finally hit.”
He chuckled. “But it’s not morning.”
“That’s the cruel part of this whole thing; it can happen at any time of day.”
“That sucks.”
“Yeah,” I said with a soft laugh. “It sure does.”
“Do you have glasses or anything up here to rinse your mouth?”
I didn’t want to move. Being in Gavin’s arms like this was pure heaven. I had never in my life felt so safe. But I knew sitting on Gavin’s lap on the floor of the vacant apartment above the store was not something I could do for the rest of my life. “Yeah, the kitchen is fully stocked.”
Gavin helped me up, and we headed into the kitchen. While I got a glass of water, he took some paper towels and ran them under hot water, giving them to me with that sexy-ass smile of his. I rinsed my mouth several times before taking a long drink.
“Thank you,” I said quietly, setting the glass down and wiping my mouth. Tossing the towels into the trash, I leaned against the counter and let out a slow breath.
“I’m sorry, Bry.”
Forcing myself to smile, I shrugged. “It’s part of the deal.”
He walked over, lifted me onto the counter, and cupped my face in his hands. He moved closer, standing between my legs, our mouths just inches apart. I wrapped one arm around his waist and my other hand around his wrist. We were both breathing shallowly, and I’d never wanted anyone to kiss me as much as I wanted Gavin to at that moment.
“I threw up, so…”
