Page 10 of Hot Response
“Evie? Baby, you okay?” Ron asked. There was thatbabyagain. My face heated up. I hated to admit I liked it. A lot. It was sweet and rough from his lips. But I shook it off. I had all butthrown myself at him, and he hadn’t responded. He’d obviously been too embarrassed to turn me down.
“I’m just having a little trouble getting the shirt on,” I responded. Maybe he was ready to get back to work and felt obligated to give me a ride home. “Just give me a min––“ But there he was, his eyes dark with what I could have sworn was lust, but it vanished. He was nothing but professional. Without asking if it was okay, he was there helping me get dressed.
“Thanks,” I whispered softly, my gaze laser-focused on the ground like it was the most interesting thing I had ever seen.
“Baby, look at me,” he urged, but when I didn’t, the tips of his fingers touched my chin so softly, so tenderly, my eyes fluttered shut as I tried to absorb the sensation.
Our time was coming to an end, and it scared me.
It was crazy. I didn’t know him. Not really. Past small talk and usually grunts from him, we didn’t know all that much about each other. But I knew the moment he’d drop me off, probably out of some sense of duty, I’d probably never see him again. And the thought of it hurt.
With the bakery closed for the foreseeable future, he wouldn’t be popping by anymore, and I’d miss his grumpy face.How can I be more worried about not seeing him than the state of my business?My brain was a mess, but when he called out my name again, I had no choice but to open my eyes.
“There you are. Let’s get you home.”
“Actually…” I cleared my throat and stepped away from his touch. “I’ll just call an Uber or a friend,” I suggested, and by the way his brows bunched furiously, he didn’t like that idea.
“What?” he asked.Rip it off like a Band-Aid, the realistic part of me whispered in the recesses of my mind.
“I just…” The words felt stuck in my throat.
“Breathe,” he quietly urged, and I did as he asked.
“Look, I’ve already made a fool out of myself, and I think it’s better if I just find my own––“ I didn’t say another word because he moved forward, crowding me to where the back of my thighs touched the hospital bed.
“I know we didn’t get to finish talking, but you invited me to your place. That still there?”
“The invitation?” I squeaked, and he nodded, his gaze warm and intense while his hand stroked the side of my face with so much care, with the most-gentle touch, I had no idea why tears started to form in my eyes.
“Yeah, the invitation.” His voice sounded raspy in my ears.
“Yes. But I don’t want you to feel obli?—“
“I don’t,” he cut my off. “When it comes to you, sweetheart, there is a lot I feel, but obligation is not one of them. Not even close.”
“Is this because you’re a paramedic and—“ His lips started to twitch, and his brows rose so high I was almost positive it touched his hairline.
“You think I’m taking you home out of some sense of duty?” Because I didn’t trust my own voice, I simply nodded. There was something going on in his eyes and his head.
I could see there was a war waging inside of him.
I recognized the look. It was the same one he had whenever he caught himself letting his guard down at the bakery just when I was close to making him smile. But he shook his head.
“No.” The two-letter word rasped so deeply it felt like it echoed in the semi-private area we were in. “I need you to know something right here and right now, Evelyn. The only sense of duty I feel is to this.” His hand found mine and placed it over his chest.
Right over his heart.
My eyes felt like they were about to pop out along with my heart.Is he saying what I think? Have I been hit in the head and am imagining this whole thing?
“And to this.” Our hands moved from his heart to mine. My lips parted, and I blinked. Everything inside me was jumping up and down, but the realistic part of me, the one scared of falling and feeling what I knew was possible the moment I’d seen him that first time, kept my feet on the ground.
“You don’t mean that,” I whispered hoarsely.
“I’ve been an ass,” he blurted, and blinking the tears away was close to impossible. But I didn’t have to worry because the thick pads of his thumbs wiped them away carefully. “I’m so sorry, baby. I promise I will make it up to you. I just… I didn’t know how to handle what I felt and thought I had time but—“ He scoffed. “Life likes to remind me just how precious things can disappear in the blink of an eye.”
“Ron.” I sniffled
“I was going to ask you to dinner.” His Adam’s apple bobbed. “Now, I know you don’t know me. Not really. You could have easily told me no and?—“
