Page 107 of Stolen Bases

Talia tilts her head back to look at me. Her gray eyes sparkle like moonstones with tears, taking my breath away. Even sad—her face red and swollen with grief—she’s the most beautiful woman I have ever seen. I’d kiss her if she wasn’t a gorgeous, vulnerable mess in my arms.

“You really want to know?” she asks, her uncertainty clear.

She’s mentioned that her family doesn’t share her interest in medicine, and I might not either, but everything about Talia interests me. I’m utterly captivated by her. She could talk to me about anything, and she’d have my complete attention.

I brush a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Of course I do. I know I can’t make anything better, but if listening to you and holding you will make you feel better, then I’ve done my job.”

She places her small palm on my cheek as her eyes bounce between mine. If I was a cat, I’d totally purr at the way her nails gently scratch my scruff.

“Thank you. You don’t know how much that means to me.” She places a feather-light kiss on my lips. “Do you remember me telling you about Emma?”

I recall Talia telling me all about the young girl and her friends a couple of weeks ago when we had our dinner date at my house. I knew she was passionate about her work, but I really saw it thatnight. The love and care she puts into every young patient she works with is astounding. She is astounding. The way she talks about her patients is like they are her family. She gives her heart to every person she works with. Her compassion and empathy are limitless. I’m constantly in awe of her and her beautiful, tender heart.

“The girl with the bad heart, right?”

“You remember?”

“Baby, I remember everything you tell me,” I say.

She gives me a weak smile. I’ll take it for now.

“Keep going,” I urge her, hoping that opening up to me will be cathartic.

“Emma was on the transplant list, and for a while, she was good. She was getting stronger. But today, after her walk, she fainted. We did everything we could, but she went into cardiac arrest and—” Talia chokes back a sob. “We-we couldn’t save her. She was only sixteen. She had her whole life ahead of her, and now she’s just … gone. I don’t understand. I did everything by the book: watched every number, every heartbeat, read every scan, and triple-checked her medication. In the end, there was nothing I could do. Her heart was too weak. I know that logically. But in here …” Talia taps her chest. “I feel like I failed her. Like I didn’t do enough to get her the new heart she deserved. She was so young. Why her? Why did she have to die, Cam?”

Talia falls apart in my arms, and all I can do is hold her. No amount of pretty words or platitudes can take away her hurt.

My heart breaks. For the teen girl who doesn’t get to attend prom, grow up, get married, have babies, and have a life. For Talia, who is going to carry the weight of Emma’s loss with her forever and will probably question whether or not she’s doing everything for her patients.

I squeeze Talia tightly, breathe her in, and revel in her warm body pressed against mine.She’s goingto be okay.With time, Talia will process her feelings, heal, and move on because she’s strong as fuck.

When her muffled cries fade and her breathing eases as she drifts off to sleep, my body relaxes. I’m not far behind her, falling asleep, and selfishly thanking the universe that she’s safe and here with me.

twenty-seven

Talia

Thick ropes of heattwist around my body like a boa constrictor, tightening its hold every time I move. Panic has my heart rate spiking and a layer of sweat breaking across the back of my neck.

Memories of last night have my eyes flying open.

Cam showed up for me. He rushed to my side because he was concerned. Without worrying about the consequences, he snuck into my room and held me as I cried and mourned the loss of my young patient.

How did I get so lucky?

Cam’s breath fans across my neck as he mumbles in his sleep. It hits me just how much I missed him these last few weeks while he was traveling. I sink into his warmth, my back to his chest, feeling protected, safe, and treasured.

The soft orange light of the sun rising outside my window slowly fills the room as I lie still, wishing I could stay in this cocoon with my big cuddly man.

His hips shift as he pulls me tighter, and his morning wood pokes me in the ass. Try as I may, I can’t stifle my giggle. I wiggle my butt into his crotch again, and my playful movement turns into a roaring fire of lust as his hand splays across my lower stomach, fingers inches from my aching center.

“Stop moving, itty bitty. You’re making me hard, and we can’t do anything about it,” Cam mumbles into my ear.

His gruff, sleep-laced voice hits me like a bolt of lightning. Butterflies flutter in my stomach, the hairs on my arms stand on end like static electricity, and heat shoots directly down to my pussy.

I hum low in my throat. “Says who?”

“Feeling bold, are you?” Cam grazes his lips across the back of my neck, sending shivers down my spine.

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