Page 64 of Free to Breathe
Dropping a quick kiss on her lips, I pull back slightly to admire the pout forming on her swollen lips. “Agree with you a hundred percent. But baby, I want to know what your sisters were referring to last night.” Sitting down in the lounger, I spread my legs over the sides to make room in between. “Sit back down and let’s talk.”
Eying me warily, she says, “I’m not having a foursome with my sisters and you, Colby. Our sister wives’ pact involved us and vibrators.”
I chuckle. “Wouldn’t have even thought it. Please, Cori.” I pat the spot between my legs again. “Just come and talk with me.”
After nodding, she arranges herself between my legs, muttering, “I hope the chair doesn’t collapse with my added weight.”
I don’t even think. I pinch her ass.
“Jesus, Colby.” She swivels around and glares at me. “That hurt.”
“I swear if you bash your curves in front of me, I’m either going to slap or pinch that magnificent ass. If you knew how many times I’ve dreamt of taking you from behind…” My voice trails off. I focus in on her again to find her glassy-eyed. “Are we understood?”
“That was you who mentioned spanking last night?” Her voice sounds dreamy.
“Sure as hell wasn’t that asshole doing tequila shots off your stomach. Which, if I have my way, will never happen again,” I growl.
I expect immediate acceptance in the wake of that kiss. Instead, I get a mild “Hmm, we’ll see.”
“Excuse me?” I’m irrational. I know it. We’ve just shared our first real kiss, but we’re already so much more.
Corinna lays her head back on my shoulder. “If I unilaterally agree to what you’re saying, then how are you going to have the choice of doing that in the future? So—” She shrugs impishly, making my cock get harder against her ass. “—we’ll see.”
I shake my head, even as a smile teases my lips. The difference between Corinna then and now is astounding. Back then, she may have had these thoughts, but they would never have left her lips. Now, the sexual innuendos are a delicious addition to her already dynamic personality.
I brush my lips over her forehead and wrap my arms around her to hold her close. My chin rests on her head as we sit for a moment, observing the breeze move the wildflowers back and forth. I bring us back around to the question burning in my gut. “What were Em and Holly talking about last night? You’re not having the surgery?”
Her body stiffens. “Shit.” She tries to pull away, but I don’t let her.
“Talk to me, Corinna. I’m not judging.” Yet. “I want to understand where your mind is.”
“I need to move for this conversation,” she requests quietly. I immediately open my arms, and she flies out of them faster than a bat flying out of hell.
Something’s not right.
Corinna immediately begins pacing around the deck, frustration in her every movement. I sit quietly, a testament to my willpower, as I want to scoop her into my arms and get her to the nearest doctor to remove the one final barrier that could prevent me from having a lifetime to explore the feelings I have for her.
But it’s not my choice. It’s not my life. It’s hers.
Finally, she begins talking. “There’s no pain, Colby. I had a small episode that was a sign the tumor grew. Frankly, I’ve been in too much shock to think about it logically. Not that logic has been my strong suit.” The wry look she sends me is an acknowledgment of her part of the breakdown of us years ago.
I nod, unwilling to interrupt but willing her to continue. She does. “I want to make certain I have the best medical care possible. When I was hiding this”—she faces me head-on—“I was limited in the doctors I could work with. Until this week, I never would have doubted my surgeon was anyone but the best. Now…”
“What happened this week?”
As Corinna recounts the relationship she’s enjoyed with her doctor and the newfound pettiness he’s engaged her in, I’m infuriated. Frankly, I don’t blame her for second-guessing her medical team. This isn’t a mole removal; it is a craniotomy. She has to have full faith and confidence not only in her surgeon, but the nurses, anesthesiologists, the hospital—everyone involved with the procedure from scrubbing her down to feeding her afterward.
Corinna sits down again, having spent most of her energy. “Maybe I’m tired of feeling like a fool for believing in someone so wholeheartedly, but no one else knew but my primary care. Who, by the way, is a part of Jack’s practice. Did they make the best choice for me, or were they influenced? I can’t trust anything after the other night,” she ends bitterly.
I make a mental note to find out everything I can about my former friend, from his outstanding debt to his favorite brand of underwear, so I can make his life a living hell. I open my arms, and Corinna moves into them. “You haven’t explained this to the family like this, have you?” I ask quietly.
She shakes her head against my chest. “Just Em, and well, you saw how that ended up last night.” She tips her head back with a small smile.
Now, so much makes sense. While they’ve always had a now-or-never attitude, the Freemans were reacting to thinking Corinna was giving up. She isn’t. She’s trying to regroup in the wake of some pretty severe blows. “It might be possible this Moser guy is a dick, but is still the best choice of a surgeon. You just want the choice to find out.”
Corinna nods. “I’m about to give someone my life, Colby. Can they give it back to me? Will I be able to drive a car again? Bake again? Make love again? Eat again? Smile again? Breathe again?” Her face crumbles. “I understand no one’s guaranteed a tomorrow, but I need to know I have a chance.”
The strength of the woman lying on me is equally humbling and staggering. And to have held this in for so long? “How did you feel when you first found out, Cori?”
