Page 17 of Come Back to Me

I pause for a second, wanting to be honest with her but not wanting to share too much, as it’s not my story to share.

“You noticed that, huh?” I ask.

She nods, her face serious.

“Well, Teddy hasn’t always had the easiest time in life, and he’s been estranged from his parents and brother for a long time. He’s a good guy but has made somemistakes and those relationships didn’t recover. You probably noticed only Trina was there from Emily’s family as well. The rest of her family don’t approve of Teddy and so they said they couldn’t show support for the marriage.”

I look up to see her frowning and her eyes moist.

“I’m sorry,” she says, “that just makes me sad for them. They’re both such wonderful people.”

There’s that compassion I’ve seen in her when I’ve watched her in the ER since we first met. It’s shined through when she’s comforted a scared child, or an elderly husband who just lost his wife. But this time, it’s for my fun-loving best friend and his lot in life. Her capacity to empathize with others hits me square in the chest.

I stare unabashedly at her for a minute, and she turns her gaze toward me. We’re quiet for a few seconds, and then, when her gaze lowers to my mouth, I can’t stop myself. I place my hand on the nape of her neck and gently pull her toward me until I’m only inches from her face.

Her breathing picks up, and she looks me right in the eyes with those gorgeous green beauties of hers.

“Annie, I’m about to kiss you, so if you don’t want this, I need you to let me know that really quick.”

She inhales sharply and then closes the gap between us, bringing that sweet mouth to mine.

She’s gentle and tentative at first, and then, within seconds, the electricity of the kiss has her running her hands through my hair and opening her mouth to let my tongue in. She moans softly and I about lose my shit right then. Deepening the kiss, she climbs into my lap, straddling me as she takes control of the kiss.

She teases me, running her tongue across my lower lip then gently biting it and pulling it toward her.

I growl and flip her onto her back on the couch, kissingher neck as she exposes it to me. She arches her back, making those glorious, hard nipples rub against my chest.

She moans as I move my kisses lower, to her collarbone and down toward her chest.

My eyes meet hers, the unspoken question in them clear.

She nods and whispers, “Please, Jack.”

That’s all I need to hear, and I have her nipple in my mouth, through her tank top, gently biting and sucking while rubbing circles along her trim waist with my other hand.

She grips my back under my shirt, her nails slightly digging into my skin, encouraging me.

I’m so lost in the moment, but then Annie giggles just before I feel a wetness in my ear. Bean has apparently woken up, come over to check things out and decided I needed a wet willy for making out with his mom. I groan, grossed out, and look up at Annie before we both start laughing uncontrollably.

We make our way back to a seated position and, when we stop laughing, I turn to her and hesitate before saying, “I’m sorry I lost a bit of control there. I hope I didn’t overstep.”

Annie stares me straight in the eyes, her gorgeous green eyes boring into me and says, “Don’t you dare apologize, Jack. You didn’t take advantage of me. I wanted that as much as you did. I wanted more than that, actually.”

ANNIE

Arriving at my house, Jack insists on walking me to the door and, after I let Beanie in, I come back down to say goodbye and find him leaning against the porch rail. His hands are in the pockets of his perfectly worn jeans and he looks sexy as hell.

Once I step outside onto the porch and pull the door shutbehind me, he speaks. “I like you, Annie. A lot. I want to get to know you better. Can I take you to dinner this week?”

Hell, his directness is hot.

I back up to the door, leaning against it for support. I’m both excited and a little panicked because my first thought is,Yes!

I stare at him for several seconds, grateful I hadn’t said that yes out loud. I choke out, “I don’t date people I work with.”

His eyes narrow and his gaze intensifies, but he doesn’t miss a beat when he calmly replies, “We don’t work together. I work for the city and you work for the hospital. Problem solved.”

I pause for a few seconds to gather my wits and silently wish I agreed with him, but I don’t.

---