35
Wyatt
2018
I will remember every single word you write to me like I do every single word you say. It is all I have in the darkness, all that reminds me of the light. - Wyatt
The stars hangabove us and on the top of the mountain. It feels as if we can reach out and touch them. Hayley lies on a blanket and stares into the heavens dotted with diamonds, a smile playing on her lips. It’s freezing, so she’s huddled in one of those blankets you can wear. It’s an odd creation, and I have to hide the smirk. We’ll be driving down soon. She nearly fainted when I told her we were hiking, and she complained about most of the hike up. I had to throw her over my shoulder a quarter of the way, and she complained still. It wasn’t tricky terrain. She loves the outdoors, but she is not a hiker. She’s fascinated by the mountain flowers. She would be; she’s connected to the earth that way.
“Do you know the constellations?” I ask, and she snaps her head to me.
“You know them.” She sits up, leaning on her elbows.
“Right there is Andromeda, the Ethiopian princess, the wife of Perseus. She was imprisoned because she offended a couple of sea nymphs bragging of her daughter’s beauty.”
“She should have known better.” Hayley shrugged. “So, what happened?”
“Well, good ol’ Perseus saved Andromeda and made her his wife.”
“Well, talk about a heavy price to pay.” She giggles and snuggles closer to me.
“The price for love. She wasn’t complaining.”
“I bet she wasn’t,” she whispers, bringing her lips down to meet mine.
“I should get you home,” I say, grabbing her ass and squeezing it.
“I agree,” she says, nipping my neck.
Thomas drove my truck up and took the hike down. I’ll have to give him a raise or something for going over and above the call of duty.
I flip her over and kiss her nose. “You’re seduction on legs.” I press my erection to her, and she gasps.
I stand and hold out my hand for her. She takes it and is in my arms a few seconds later.
“Get this ass in the truck,” I hiss, and she makes a show of wiggling her blanket-covered ass all the way to the truck.
The drive to Seattle is in companionable silence. We listen to everything from NSYNCtoDr. Dre.I hold her close, and she dozes off on my shoulder. When we arrive at her place, I carry her in, and she leans into my chest, and I wish the moment would never end. I place her on her bed, and she opens her eyes, kicking off her shoes and curling into a ball. She’s exhausted.
“Need help getting out of those?” I wink.
She looks at me through hooded lids, grinning and nodding. She sits up, and I stand before her, pulling her shirt over her arms and take in the blue sports bra. She proceeds to remove it, and her tits bounce in front of me. I pull off her pants, and she’s left in her underwear. She curls up, and I undress and get in behind her. “I should shower,” I whisper in her ear.
“Scared of a little sweat?” she yawns.
I smile and snuggle closer to her. The scents of the earth and her sweat assault my senses, making me feel like I’d never lived until this moment.
I drift off to sleep with her face in my dreams, and I know, I know I will never let her go again.
The smell of blood burns my nostrils. I try to move but my legs won’t. I’m lying on a stretcher being carried away. I can’t feel my legs. I can’t feel anything.
“The injuries you sustained were severe, Barnes,” the doctor says. “You will never be able to have children.”
I want to scream, but I can't get the sound out. My life is over. Hayley has been waiting for me, and we were planning to have a dozen kids, and now I am half a man. I will never be able to give her what she wants.
I wake gasping. Hayley is sleeping soundly next to me. Sweat coats my body, and tears stain my face. I should tell her. I should be honest with her about why I reacted the way I did when I saw Logan with her baby. Our baby, I remind myself. I should put in words how it broke me and how I withdrew and lost myself. I should tell her that I loved Erin because she saved me from myself. Because she saved my life.
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