When I go through the door, I see her red head disappear around the doorway from the kitchen. “Nora! Stop!”
“Fuck you.” She shouts from the hall.
She’s halfway up the stairs when I get to the bottom. I won’t be able to go up the stairs, if I try, it will take longer than I want her to be out of my sight, so I tell her what I need to tell her here. “I want you to come with me.”
Her hand grabs the banister as her body comes to a halt mid-step. Slowly turning to face me, there are tears streaked down her cheeks, and it’s like a knife to my heart.
“What did you say?” She swats her hand across her cheek to wipe the tears, and her voice is wobbling.
Transferring my weight onto my good leg, I take a deep breath. “I have a plane ticket with your name on it. I was trying to figure out how to ask you to come with me.” Attempting to step up on the bottom step sends a shock of white-hot pain through my body, making me wince, and I decide to stay put.
Guilt flashes in her eyes, and she steps down to the bottom step, making her almost eye level with me. Her neck moves with a swallow again, and she clears her throat. “You want me to come with you?”
I slide my fingertips across one of her wet cheeks and then the other and let my hands fall to my sides. “Sugar, the past year has been one dark day after another.” I tilt my head, my eyes locked on her beautiful green ones. “Since I met you, life has meaning again. I went from feeling like an empty shell to feeling alive. I love you, Nora, and I want you with me always.”
Her chin wobbles, and more tears slide down her cheeks, which makes me wince again. “Don’t cry, sugar, I hate to see you cry.”
Without a word, she throws her arms around my neck, and I have to grab the banister next to me to keep us from falling over while grabbing her waist with my other arm. Her cheeks and nose are cold and wet against my neck, and then she peppers kisses under my ear, across my jaw and to my lips.
Tilting her head back, her nose almost touching mine, she smiles through her tears. “I love you too, Tuck. Wherever you go, I go.”
Letting go of the banister, I slide my hand up her spine to her neck as she presses her lips to mine again. Letting her set the pace, her full lips are soft and warm. She slides her tongue across my lip, and my dick swells in my jeans.
Just as I’m thinking about taking her into one of the rooms on the first floor with a lock, the kitchen door slams and Dad steps into the hall. “Are you two lovebirds going to join us? The kids are already covered in chocolate.”
Touching my forehead to hers, I smile. “Since there’s no chance of me walking up the stairs right now, we might as well.”
She pulls her head back, and her brows knit together. “I’ve been leaning on you for weeks. From now on, if you need help, you can lean on me.”
Smiling back, I try not to show my bruised ego. “Aren’t I supposed to be the strong one?”
She nods. “You can be strong in everything else, but let me help fill in the gaps. Deal?”
Kissing her softly, my heart swells as I nod. “Deal.”
***
After spending two excruciatingly painful hours around the fire while the kids ran off their sugar high, I finally made it into a hotsalt bath. Chasing Nora across the yard and into the house made my thigh swell, even three beers and ibuprofen haven’t touched the edges of the ache that is ricocheting up and down my leg.
Reclining my head against the tile wall behind me, I sip my beer and let my arms rest on the sides of the tub. With a deep sigh, I close my eyes.
She loves me.
A smile tugs one side of my mouth. Chasing after her was worth it to hear her say it.
However, I need full use of my leg for the meetup with her ex tomorrow. I know my brother will have that asshole in his crosshairs the whole time, but I want to be able to move fast if needed.
It doesn’t take long for the water to lose its steam, so I pull the plug and wrap a towel around me, but when I grab the little jar of Tiger Balm from my medicine cabinet, the self-sabotaging thoughts sprout in my head.
Is it fair to her? Will she want to be attached to a half-cripple a year from now?
I’m only thirty-four, but I already smell like an old man covered in ointment.
She hasn’t really seen the scar in the light of day yet, will it be a turnoff?
As my insecurities mount and swirl in my head, my mood turns sour in a matter of minutes. I don’t want to lose her, but what if she gets her fill of me and decides to walk away? The ache in my leg moves to my chest, and I rub my palm over my heart to try to ease that pain.
A soft knock on my bedroom door interrupts my downward spiral. I already know it’s her; I can feel her, like stepping into home.
