Page 84 of Swept for Forever
So I stepped outside, keeping my expression even. “Jimmy.”
His face twisted into something sheepish. “Hey, Autumn. I…uh, thought I should come by. I wanted to say sorry.”
Lulu sniffed him like he was a power pole that had seen too much action. When he reached to pat her, she sashayed away, all class.
“Oh, come on,” I said, keeping my tone light. “That was in the past.”
He winced. “Thanks. But look, I was an idiot, okay? I panicked. You know I’m bad at serious stuff.”
First confession. Not bad.
I gestured toward the living room. “Come on in.”
He settled onto the couch. “How’ve you been?”
“Fine. Great.”
“I heard about your injury. Tough break.”
“Yeah, well.” I stretched my leg out, showing off the scar on my calf. The shorts were pure coincidence, but I wasn’t mad about it.
His brows shot up. “Geez, that’s more than a cut.”
Who said it was a cut? Classic Jimmy, always underestimating. But for once, I wasn’t bothered.
“It hurt like hell,” I admitted. “The ground was slick, so I slipped and tried to hang on, but then I tumbled, and my calf met a sharp branch. Bam. Impalement.”
“God, Autumn.”
“Tell me about it,” I said.
“You got help after that?”
I scoffed. Oh, how I’d love to tell him about Dominic Powell. But I let my face do the talking instead.
Jimmy frowned. “How did you get help?”
“I didn’t. I dressed the wound myself. And I kept going.”
“Shit!” He whistled low. “That trail’s no joke. What’d you do? Somersault your way down? Marathon swim?”
Decent line. That covered both my gymnastics and swimming glory days.
I smirked. “I finished the trail. Just as I would’ve if I’d been with you.”
His smirk twitched just a little, but I caught it. “No way. The whole thing?”
“The whole thing.” I drew out the words, savoring the moment.
“Damn. Bet that was rough.”
I shrugged. “Wasn’t easy. But I got through it.”
“Superwoman,” he said, smiling as if it were still our inside joke.
“Nah, I’m just an otter,” I corrected smugly.
Jimmy chuckled. “That’s new.”
