He shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. “She doesn't blame me. No one does but me.”
“And now you blame yourself for this?” She pointed to her head. He nodded. “You big, sensitive cowboy.” She chuckled. After a moment, it turned into a giggle.
The tension between them melted like the ice on Tortoise Cove. Pretty soon, he was smiling down at her. Then he kissed her. Her breath caught in surprise before she returned his caresses.
“Looks like you’re not feeling any pain,” said Dr. Motaoka as she snapped her rubber glove in place and grabbed what looked like a handheld stapler. “If you’ll scoot on over there, Hunter, I’d like to staple up your girlfriend.”
Hunter flushed, his cheeks burning at being caught pinning Zoey to the exam table with his lips. Good thing his family wasn’t here to see this. Or Brandon. His eyes went wide at that thought, and he gulped.
Zoey caught his eye as Doc began stapling. She held out her hand for him. He grabbed on, brushing his thumb over her knuckles. She squeezed his hand in reply.
I love you, he mouthed.
Me too, she mouthed back.
His heart soared. This was both the most horrible day of his life and the best day of his life. He had a feeling that with Zoey, there might be quite a few of those. But he was okay with that.
