Page 101 of Sweet Caroline
Miles cuts me off. “You’re getting checked out.”
“Better safe than sorry,” the EMT says as he takes Gus’ temperature and pulls off the blood pressure cuff. “Go for it. Doesn’t take long.”
“Okay.”
“And hey, nice to meet you,” Gus adds. “I mean, minus the shitty circumstances.” When I give him a small smile, he returns it and lifts his chin. “Take care of my guy, alright?”
“Yes. Will do.” I squeeze Miles’ hand, still more worried about him than myself.
“Catch you tomorrow, buddy.” Gus stands and heads off, presumably to gear up and get back to work.
It doesn’t take long for the EMT at the next ambulance to check me over and declare me fit to avoid a hospital visit. She passes me a bottle of water and sends me on my way.
Miles paces nearby.
I take a drink as I walk over to him, then pass him the water bottle. “Here.”
“Thanks.” He takes a swig and swishes it in his mouth before spitting into the dirt, then has a proper drink. “I should’ve said something.” Miles frowns at his feet. “About the kid.”
“No,” I say, grabbing his face to make him look at me. “Not everyone in possession of a lighter is a safety risk. This isn’t on you, either.”
Why is he so hard on himself?
His voice is hoarse when he finally speaks. “Can we just go? I wanna take you home.” He sounds so tired.
“Okay,” I whisper.
“And I wanna stay with you tonight.” It’s not a question.
I nod, pulling him closer, and lean in to kiss his cheek. As I draw back, I slide my palms down his chest, wishing I could erase everything that hurts his heart—knowing that wishing isn’t enough. I peer up at him. “Come to my place? I’ll draw us a bath.”
He gives me an intrigued look, a glimmer of the Miles I know cutting through his still-pained expression. “Bubble bath?”
“Yeah, if you want.” I circle my arms around his waist. “Anything you want.”
“Anything?” He tucks a stray curl behind my ear.
I nod. “Anything you want from me. Anytime.”
He closes his eyes and slips his hands to the sides of my neck, pressing his forehead to mine. “Baby, you can’t say shit like that to an addict.”
I gently kiss his cheek again, letting my lips linger on his skin. It’s an apology. A promise. A plea.
20
MILES
I’m pulling on a T-shirt when Caroline rolls over, her sleepy little frown making me round her bed to crawl back in, big spoon style. Slipping my arm around her bare waist, I skate my fingers up over her ribs and palm her breast, squeezing gently.
“Morning, fancy girl.” I nose her neck, breathing her in.
“Mmm?” Caroline stirs, barely awake.
Fuck. She still smells faintly of her fancy lavender bubble bath, and the soft, clean scent brings everything back. Soaking in the tub last night, we’d barely spoken as we slowly scrubbed away every trace of the fire—all the fear, the relief, the vulnerability. She rested against my chest as I washed the smoke from her hair and kissed her warm, wet skin.
Later, she straddled my lap on her bed, never breaking eye contact as she sank down onto me and drew the air straight from my lungs. We kissed the whole time, hair dripping onto our still-damp skin as our tongues tangled in slow, deep strokes that were as unhurried as they were intense.
I held her tighter than I needed to.
