Page 7 of Accidentally on Purpose

My breath knotted in my lungs, and a different kind of heat diffused into my cheeks. I didn’t need to be a doctor to declare that Decker Conolly was a specimen of masculine health and physique. My hands were flat against hard, sculpted pecs. My unsteady breaths mapped the ridges of his abdomen with each inhale. And lower—

I stepped back so quickly I almost stumbled.

“What were you thinking?” I hissed and pointed an accusing finger at him and then toward my mom.

His brow furrowed, and he folded his arms, distracting my attention for a moment with the swell of his biceps. “She seemed upset, so I figured I’d try to help.”

“Help?” I choked out. “You let her think you were my…”

“Boyfriend?” He finished for me, arching a brow.

I gritted my teeth, refusing to unpack the psychology of my hesitation to say the word right now.With him.

“It’s fine. She’s just on heavy pain meds right now. Come tomorrow, she probably won’t even remember this—or you—happened.” I wasn’t sure who I was trying to comfort, him or myself. “And if she does, the Dilaudid will be out of her system, and I can just tell her the truth.”

No big deal.

Decker cocked his head. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Fine. Perfectly fine.” My head bobbed, and then I exhaled in a whoosh. “Sorry, it’s just been a long day. Thank you. For the ride. For the help. Even…for her.” My gaze bounced to Mom, comfortably snoozing in her chair.

“Don’t worry about it.” He flashed that tipped smile that kept tilting my insides off-kilter. “My dad thought he’d come out of surgery in the middle of the zombie apocalypse. I forget what pain meds he was on, but trust me, pretending to be your boyfriend is nothing compared to having to pretend with my mom that the world is ending but also that everything is okay.”

I let out a strained laugh. I couldn’t help myself. This was all ridiculous—a silly fib to calm a drug-induced emotional fit, but it was also going to be okay.

“Alright, well, I’m going to go grab my tow truck and get the Jeep. I’ll text you when I have it back at the shop, and I know what’s going on.”

I bit my lip, rolling it through my teeth and then murmured again, “Thank you.”

“Just here to help. Whatever you need.”

Not a boyfriend—real or fake—that was for sure.

I smiled and saw him out the door, sagging my back against it as my gaze drifted back to the living room.It’s my fault she’s been alone…In spite of her condition, her words gutted me.I closed my eyes.I needed a drink.

My mom assumed my mechanic was my new boyfriend…and I’d agreed.At least she had the excuse of being high on Dilaudid.

ChapterTwo

REESE

It was goingto be okay.

Last night had passed in a calm stupor. Mom dozed on and off in her chair. I napped on the couch and then made myself a frozen pizza for dinner. She didn’t mention Decker or my boyfriend again, though to be fair, she hadn’t mentioned much before falling asleep for the night.

But even though she seemed to already be forgetting him, I wasn’t.

He’d texted me when he had the Jeep back at his shop. He said he was going to fill it with coolant and then determine where the leak was coming from, and that he should have an answer for me by tomorrow. The answer wasn’t really for me, but I still hadn’t received any response from the owner of the car, so for right now, it was in my care.

Of course, the conversation hadn’t ended there; he’d asked how Mom was doing, and I’d felt too guilty to not answer.

He’d settled her mind, and I knew how big of a difference that could make at a time like this, so I gave him the rundown, and he’d shared how he’d had to cover the doorways in aluminum foil, convincing his dad it was a special kind of zombie-proof metal that would keep him safe.

It made me smile, and that was when I let the conversation fizzle—when I started enjoying it too much.

I’d watched a couple of episodes of some crime drama that was always on and then grabbed the comforter from my childhood bedroom and slept on the living room couch even though my room was just a couple feet down the hall; I couldn’t leave her alone.

In all—in spite of the eventful day—the night had ended peacefully.

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