He shakes his head. "I can't help it. I just want you to take care of yourself, baby. If I were there, I'd be doing all of that for you."
My stomach flips.
How is one person this soft and this attractive at the same time?
"Okay," I whisper back, pretending I'm not absolutely swooning. "I'll do the ice water. And the stretching. Happy now?"
"Very," he says with that stupid pretty smile. "Now I won't worry."
"Good." I settle deeper into my pillows.
We fall into a soft silence for a moment, just... staring at each other through our screens.
His hotel room light is dim, casting him in this quiet glow.
His hair's still messy.
He looks beautiful.
And I miss him so much it physically hurts.
He breathes out, slow, like the words slip out on their own.
"I want to touch you right now."
The words hit me straight in the sternum. Not sexual. Just pure longing.
My lips part, but nothing comes out for a second.
"I wish you were here," I whisper.
His eyes soften in that devastating way I can never handle. "Me too."
Another beat of silence, heavy and gentle.
"I'd have you right here," he says quietly, tapping the empty space beside him on the pillow. "You'd be under my arm, tucked against me. I'd hold you until you fell asleep."
My whole body warms.
"And you'd steal all the blankets," I murmur.
He smiles like he can feel me teasing him through the screen. "Obviously. And you'd complain, and I'd pretend I didn't notice."
"You always pretend you don't notice."
"Because I like when you curl into me to steal them back."
My breath catches at the sweetness tucked beneath his words.
"I miss that," I say softly.
"I miss everything," he replies. "Your voice. Your smell. The way you laugh when you're half-asleep. Even the way you smack my chest when I tease you too much."
A tiny laugh escapes me. "You deserve those smacks."
"Probably," he says, smiling gently. "Still miss them."
I press the phone a little closer to my chest, trying to soak him in, even though he's miles away.
