Page 58 of 40 and (So Over) Fixing It
“Good.” He closed the last few centimeters between them and took her mouth. She tasted like sugar and spice and Erin, and it was the Erin part he liked best.
Finally, a moment of real connection with her. He hadn’t realized how badly he’d needed it until that moment. And he wanted more, a lot more.
Reminding himself they weren’t alone, he eased back.
“Mmm.” Erin licked her lips. “You taste good.”
“Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about you.”
“Dad! Look at the bunny I made!”
Marshmallow ears stacked on a s’mores bunny were pretty impressive, but Carter regretted the loss of intimacy with Erin. A few minutes later when things were quiet again, he asked, “Can you stay?”
Erin looked down at the ground. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea. You really need to rest, Carter.”
“Then you can rest with me. Just…stay.”
She stared at him in the firelight for a moment; then a hint of amusement tipped up the corners of her mouth. “Okay.”
Since it was their last night of vacation, Carter let Thad stay up a bit later than usual, but finally it was bedtime. Thad complained—and Carter understood, but he also needed some time alone with Erin. After getting Thad showered and tucked into bed, he got himself cleaned up, then gave Erin her turn in the bathroom. A quick peek assured him Thad was asleep. Carter breathed a sigh of relief and escaped into the other room.
When Erin exited the bathroom, Carter was already beneath the covers. Despite the sleep he’d gotten all day, sinking into the mattress beneath warm covers was pure bliss. As was seeing Erin cross the dim room toward him. She was clothed in the Henley he’d given her last night, thin enough to drape softly across her braless breasts, and soft boxers that left her long legs bare to his hungry gaze. His fingers itched to take the clothes off her, to explore even more than what they’d gotten to explore last night, but Erin was right—with a two-hour drive to Nashville and a long flight home tomorrow, he needed to rest.
That didn’t mean he couldn’t enjoy her being beside him.
As she lifted the covers to crawl into bed, he raised one arm. “Com’ere.”
No protest. With a soft smile, Erin crossed the wide mattress on her hands and knees, scooted her body right up against him, and laid her head on his shoulder.
Warmth. Woman. He wanted this to last.
Maybe forever.
“Are you all right?”
Erin huffed, reminding him that though she could be soft, she could also be tough as nails. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
He reached up to brush her hair back from her face, giving him a clear view. “Care shouldn’t be one-sided.”
She ran her fingers across his chest. “You’re right.” A pause. “Today was rough.”
He sighed. “It was. I’m sorry to put you through that.”
She gave him a light smack. “Don’t apologize to me. As if you could help it.”
He chuckled and clasped her hand, protecting himself from any more retaliation.
Another pause. The silence was loud in his ears, but he waited Erin out.
“Today brought up a lot of memories that I’m still struggling to process.”
He squeezed his eyes shut. “Memories of your husband?”
He wasn’t jealous. Even if he’d wanted to be, he’d slap that shit down. Erin didn’t deserve to deal with that. She’d loved her husband; he knew that much. And his death had hurt her deeply. But she also wasn’t pushing people away because of that. Hell, she’d even given him a chance at a time when she’d have been totally justified in pushing him as far away as possible.
“I saw Stephen die,” she finally said, her words barely more than a whisper. Her fingers clenched in his chest hair. “I rode in the ambulance with him to the same hospital you were in today. I was holding his hand when he took his last breath, in a bed in the same ER.”
He cursed under his breath. “I’m so sorry.” He had moments of his own, from his own marriage, that he still remembered starkly—not the least of which was the moment his ex-wife had admitted she was cheating. But that kind of devastation was nothing compared to what Erin had endured.
