“In here,” I call from where I’m laying on the bed with my back propped against a stack of pillows. My eyes are closed and I have a documentary playing on the TV. I have worked my way up to one hour of screen time, but I’m desperate to get cleared for regular activity, so I’m listening instead of watching.
“What are we listening to?” Delilah asks, crawling across the bed with an overabundance of caution. Her concern for me is borderline comical, but sweet. When she’s within arms reach, I pull her to me.
“Cruz!Have you lost your mind?” Her voice comes out high-pitched as she places her hand on my chest, trying to soften the impact when I tug her on top of me. Which is ridiculous because she’s tiny and I’m not.
“It’s possible. I’m going crazy stuck here with nothing to keep me busy.” I tilt my head back, looking at the ceiling as I hold her snug to my chest. She’s given in and is laying across me. It’s not Delilah’s fault I’m in the situation. Her concern for my health is heartwarming and I appreciate everything she’s done for me, but I’m ready to get back to my life outside this apartment—back to the stadium and my team.
“I have an idea to get you out of here. I even called the doctor to make sure it was okay. They wouldn’t release any medical information to me, since we aren’t married, but gave me a hypothetical answer to my question.” She props herself up, so she’s looking at me and the way the tips of her ears turn red when she talks about being my wife has me swallowing the laugh that’s trying to escape.
“I’m listening,” I say, sweeping a piece of blonde hair that’s fallen loose from her bun behind her ear.
“How would you feel about going over to Saving Paws to walk some dogs? I’ll drive.”
“And here I thought you were going to propose so you had access to all that medical information. But sure, walking dogs sounds fun.” I pull her to me, kissing her on the lips hard. She relaxes against me. It’s the first time she’s given in this easily since my injury. Slipping my tongue into her mouth, I take full advantage of her willingness. “You taste like caramels. So sweet,” I whisper against her lips.
“There may have been a little snaccident on my walk home.”
“I can’t say I’m disappointed about it.” I deepen our kiss, chasing the high of having her like this.
She moans into my mouth when my hands tangle in her hair, holding her in place. Sweeping my tongue against hers, every cell in my body sparks back to life. She’s held me at arm’s length for far too long.
Delilah’s hands trail up my chest and when they cup the side of my head, she freezes. With a sigh, she pulls back, touching her forehead to mine. “We should stop. There are puppies waiting,” she says with a sigh, but doesn’t make a move to distance herself from me.
“I might be a sucker for puppies, but I’m not that easily distracted. Let me kiss you a little longer. I’ve missed this.”
“Siempre tratando de tentarme.”
I pull back, caught off guard by her use of Spanish in a full sentence. She buries her face looking guilty. Raising my eyebrow I ask, “What was that?”
Peering up at me with tentative blue eyes she nibbles at the cover of her lip. “I’ve been learning Spanish using an app for a while.”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I would have taught you.” I brush a strand of blonde hair from her face.
“It seemed like something I should do myself. Besides, I wanted to surprise you. But with everything that’s happened. I didn’t want to keep it from you.” Guilt that seems misplaced crosses her face.
“So many missed opportunities for dirty fun quizzing you on vocabulary. Say something else,” I demand, needing to hear more. Does she realize how much this means to me? These days I pretty much only speak Spanish to family and a few close friends. There’s never been a doubt that she owns my heart, but this is more that I could have ever imagined.
“Eres mi mejor amigo y no puedo imaginar mi vida sin ti.”
“You’ll never have to worry about that. I’ll always be your best friend and I’m not going anywhere. You’re stuck with me.” My lips brush across her forehead. “Not to sound pathetic, but you still want this, right? Nothing’s changed for you?” God, I sound like such a pussy, but I need to know that she still wants me as much as I want—no, need her. Delilah would do anything for the people she loves, and that includes staying here with me while I recover even if her feelings had changed.
She flinches like my question caused her physical pain. “Why would you think that?”
Shit.I didn’t mean to hurt her feelings. “Hey, Hermosa, look at me,” I say, cupping her cheek so she can’t turn away. “This is hard for me. Not being able to do the things I want to. It makes me feel completely useless. And you’re stuck here taking care of me.”
“Stuck here? Is that what you think? That I’m not strong enough to tell you no? I’m here because I want to be here. The single most important person in my life was hurt, and it scared the shit out of me. Do you really think that I would want someone else here with you?” She tilts her chin up and squeezes her eyes shut.
She’s pissed. “Single most important person, huh?” I ask, to defuse her anger. “I like the sound of that.”
“Are you mocking me right now?”
“Maybe? Not about the first part.” I sigh. “Remember who you’re talking to. I know you better than anyone else. You would do anything for me and I just wanted to make sure that you are still feeling the same. Since we got home, things have been different. This isn’t exactly what you signed up for. Things got real, fast. I don’t want you to have any regrets.”
“My only concern right now is making sure you get better. I want this big dumb brain of yours to heal so we can get back to being us. Watching you take that hit was the scariest moment of my life. If it feels like things are different, it’s because I need you to be okay.”
“So, no regrets.”
“Zero. You’re my person, concussed or not. Every decision I’ve made is about keeping you healthy and safe.”
