Page 24 of Take My Kiss
“Take these,” Colton says, making me yelp. “Shit, sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“No, you’re fine. I’m more jumpy than usual.” I try to shake it off, but with him so close, it’s impossible.
“I’ll be more careful next time. I was tryin’ to be quiet so I don’t wake the kids.”
I face him, then lower my eyes to the two white pills in his hand. “What’re those?”
“Somethin’ for your back. It’ll make you sleepy, too.”
“How sleepy?” I ask, hesitantly.
“Hopefully enough so you don’t wake up exhausted.”
I suck in my lower lip, tempted by the thought of waking up refreshed. “Not sure I should take anythin’ that’ll knock me out in case one of my kids wakes up and needs somethin’.”
He grabs my wrist, shoving the pills in my palm before wrapping his hand around my fist. “I’ll leave my office doors open, so if they get up, I’ll hear ’em and help ’em back to bed.”
“You don’t gotta do that.” I shake my head, looking away.
He tilts my chin, forcing my gaze back on him. “I don’t mind. I wanna take care of you.”
I swallow roughly, breathing heavier than before. Men have said this to me before, and they’ve always left me disappointed and broken-hearted. I learned to stop believing them.
“You shouldn’t,” I say just above a whisper.
chapter four
Colton
Fuck,she’s beautiful.
After convincing her to take the meds, I head to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. Then I grab extra blankets and a pillow for the futon since I didn’t have time earlier.
“I don’t have space in my office to keep extra clothes, but I’ll knock before enterin’ so I don’t startle you,” I say, grabbing a pair of flannel bottoms from my drawer.
“I sleep with the door open so I can hear if the kids wake up, so you don’t gotta worry about it. Just c’mon in whenever you need. It’s your bedroom.”
That’s an interesting open invitation, and although it’s not how she meant it, I like the idea of not having closed doors around here. Although technically, it’s safer in the event of a fire because it slows down the spread of it, but I know she’d run through the flames to save her kids anyway.
“Let me know if you need anythin’, okay?” I walk to the door, then glance over my shoulder at her sitting on my bed. “G’night, Amelia.”
“Night, Colt.”
The sound of her saying my name does something to me, but I push it down and lock it away. Now’s not the time to think about her like that. She’s in a vulnerable state, so if all we can ever be are friends, that’s good enough for me.
For now, anyway.
The futon is uncomfortable as fuck, even expanded into a full-size, but I make do and eventually fall asleep. At some point, I hear footsteps creaking against the hardwood floor and jolt awake.
Sam stands in my doorway with his blanket and stuffed dinosaur clung to his chest.
“Hey, buddy. You okay?” I throw off my covers and walk toward him. “Need some water?”
He shakes his head and rubs his eye with one hand. “I had a nightmare.”
“Oh no. Do you wanna tell me ’bout it?” I ask softly, kneeling in front of him.
He shakes his head again.
