I reach for my T-shirt stuffed into dry storage above the steering wheel, but I can’t reach. I relax my grip on Taylor’s fingers so I can grab it, but he clamps down on my hand, his eyes flying open.
“Where are you…oh fuuuuck.I must be closer to death than anyone realizes if you’ve been shirtless this whole time, and I’m just noticing.”
Jake snorts from behind the wheel, and Livvy laughs behind me. I hear her add, “Yeah, he’s going to be just fine.”
“Jake, hand me my shirt, will you?”
“No!” Taylor cries. “Don’t put it on!”
“Relax,” I growl, wanting him to stay calm. I catch my T-shirt and hold it over Taylor’s face so he can open his eyes more comfortably. “Do you want my sunglasses, too?”
“No, but do you know what would make me feel a lot better?”
“What?” I ask, knowing I’ll give him anything he needs right now. Shame on me for thinking he was going to give me a real answer.
“If you stretch that beautiful body out along mine and shield my delicate skin from the sun.”
I roll my eyes and shake my head.
“Your body’s already in the shade. The canopy’s up,” I point out.
“Okay, fine,” he pouts. “If you want me to burn to a crisp on top of having this killer headache, then I will.”
Livvy swats his ankle. “You’re such a horndog. Could you at least wait until we’re sure you don’t have a brain bleedandyou’re somewhere private before trying to dry hump him, please?”
My thoughts go haywire at her words, and I stay lost in the fantasy and the feel of Taylor’s skin all the way back to the marina.
Jake pulls into my slip at the dock, the jet skis still bobbing behind us obediently. “I’ll handle gassing up the boat and take care of the returns,” he says.
Hudson grabs my wallet and keys. “I’ll bring your truck down to the dock.”
Phoenix slides his hands under Taylor’s head. “Can you sit up?”
Taylor winces as he moves, which has a ball of anxiety growing in my stomach. Gently, I swing his legs over the side of the bench, straddle his knees, and wrap my arm around his torso, guiding him to a standing position so he doesn’t have to use his own power.
“Fuck. Does the world always spin this fast?” he asks.
That’s all it takes for me to bend down and scoop him into my arms.
“Phoe, steady the boat against the dock, will you? Be careful not to pinch your fingers.”
Phoenix gives me a dry look that saysThanks, Dad.His look is valid. Phoenix was a full-time firefighter at our station for five years. He’s as safety-conscious as I am.
“Sorry,” I mumble, carefully stepping off the boat with Taylor’s head against my shoulder.
Once we’re on solid ground, Phoenix stands and follows me. “Let’s lay him across your back seat. We’ll take him straight to the ER. I’ll drive so you can sit in the back with him.” When Livvy throws a look at Phoenix that we both catch, he adds, “You know, to monitor the situation.”
“I’m riding with you, too,” Livvy says, as I carefully set Taylor in the back seat. Phoenix steadies him by the arm as I walk around to the other side.
“Sitting up really isn’t conducive to preventing the contents of my stomach from making an appearance,” Taylor says, scrunching his eyes closed and listing to the side.
I quickly slide onto the seat next to him and guide his head into my lap to help him lie flat. Brushing his hair back, I run my fingers lightly over his face. My mom used to do this for me when I didn’t feel well as a kid. It gave me something to focus on besides how shitty I felt.
“Mmm,” Taylor hums. “That feels good.”
Phoenix begins to pull out of the marina, and I feel his eyes on me from the rearview mirror. “You’d better not be doing any of the things that make Walker say those same words.”
Livvy turns in her seat to see what’s going on back here.
