Page 121 of Wrecked

“We don’t own a pool.”

“I know.” He picks an apple up from a basket on the counter and takes a large bite.

As disturbing as the little freak looks, I do admire his imagination. “You need a feather boa.”

He cocks a brow.

“And boots. Your ski boots would be amazing!” I’m suddenly very into Luke’s Speedo idea.

He widens his grin. “You’re a genius. I’ll be right back.”

Luke runs upstairs, and I wipe down the counter, cleaning up the mess I made from baking. The doorbell rings, and I nearly run to answer it.

When I open the door, my eyes instantly collide with a man’s torso, clad in a tight orange T-shirt that accentuates his muscular chest. He’s wearing cargo shorts and sneakers, and when I look up to the top of his six-foot frame, he’s wearing aviator sunglasses that show my love-struck expression in the lenses.

I throw my arms around his neck and kiss him.

His hands wrap around my waist and pull me into him. His tongue glides along mine as his lips suck me into an abyss of everything Adam.

He walks us inside and kicks the door closed with his foot. In my living room, he releases me, and I slide down his incredible frame.

“Hi,” he says, placing his forehead against mine.

“Hi,” I say back, looking up into his illustrious glasslike eyes. My hands skim down his torso and over the fabric of his shirt that’s covering his bandaged incision.

He breathes through his teeth when my hand strokes the tender area.

“Are you taking your pain meds?” I ask.

He shakes his head. “I’m fighting this on my own. Getting hooked on pain meds is a major pathway to opiate use. I’d rather do this the old-fashioned way.”

“Suffering through the pain?”

“I’m sure my girl can think of some way to distract me from it.” He smirks.

I grab his hands and hold them tight, swaying them from side to side, as we stand and stare at each other.

“I wish I could run away with you right now, but my family is in the backyard.”

He leans in and kisses me again. “I wasn’t going to take you away. Keeping you here sounds like a great idea.”

I pull his hand and walk him through the kitchen and out to the backyard. Mom is husking corn while Dad marinates the ribs. Grandma is sipping her Tom Collins in the corner, and Emma and Parker are seated at the patio table. Emma is dressed in a red shirt with white shorts while Parker is wearing khaki pants and a blue-and-white button-down. I really want to explain to the guy that it’s ninety degrees today, but apparently, he likes to “dress well.” Whatever that means.

“Mom, Dad, Emma, you remember Adam.” I stand by the patio door, holding on to Adam. “Parker Ryles, this is my boyfriend, Adam Reingold.”

“Honored to meet a hero.” Parker stands up to shake Adam’s hand.

It’s a lovely gesture, something respectable to do. It’s how I know he’s going to do something douchey soon.

“When I was in Kenya, I saw a man will a lifeless elephant back to life with a single breath and the touch of his palms.”

Yep, there it is.

“You are a brave soul to have willed life back into Leah the way you did.”

“I wasn’t dying,” I say.

“I almost did,” Adam adds.