Page 32 of All Too Well
“With the sitter. She watches her when we have a call I need to respond to.”
“You didn’t have to come for this. I’m completely fine.”
He runs his fingers through his hair. “I’m not going to even dignify that with a response.” He starts to pace and then turns to me. “Of course I had to respond to this, Ainsley! Did you really think I wouldn’t? Don’t even answer that. I’m sure you doubted I would, which I deserve, but fucking hell, of course I came for you.” He keeps going in circles, having a one-way conversation. “Like I wouldn’t come to make sure you weren’t hurt. I’d have run through the burning house to get to you.”
That’s kind of nice. “I didn’t say you wouldn’t have.”
“Damn right you didn’t. Because I would.”
“You’d do that for anyone,” I remind him. “Since it’s your job.”
His brown eyes find mine, and they could probably set the woods on fire with the storm raging behind them. “Yes, but ... it’s not the same.”
No, I would assume it wouldn’t be. If it were him, I would go insane until I knew he was okay.
I take two steps closer. “Thankfully, none of that had to happen.”
The sirens are in the background again, and this bubble willburst soon. He moves to me, lifting his hand to barely graze my cheek. God, he’s touching me.
He’s touching me and it’s like lava being sent to every part of my body, warming me even in the cool morning air.
“Don’t ever scare me like this again.”
I fight back a smile. “You were scared?”
His eyelids lower, preventing me from reading any emotions. “You have no idea the level of terror I experienced when I heard it was the cabin.”
My hand presses against his chest, feeling the heat of him and wishing that this was a million other scenarios and we didn’t have a fire truck approaching. Although, the last time we had a similar moment, where we were close and emotional, it ended in disaster. So maybe it’s not a bad thing this will end.
“I can imagine it was an inkling of what I felt when I saw you run in.”
His thumb brushes my cheek, and then he steps back, putting distance between us as the fire truck enters the clearing.
seven
Lachlan
“You’re going to the hospital.”
Ainsley attempts to cross her arms over her chest, and it’s funny to see her try, since she has on my fire coat to cover the fact she was in her fucking bra.
She started shivering uncontrollably and I bundled her up and put her in the back of my truck.
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are. You have possible smoke inhalation.”
“That isnotwhat they said!” she argues. “They said I might have inhaled a little smoke.”
I raise one brow. “Isn’t that the same thing?”
She groans. “I swear to God, you’re maddening. When I told them that you went in there, they said you might have done the same. So are you going to the hospital?” Ainsley turns, smacking me in the face with her ponytail. “Of course you’re not, because you’re hardheaded.”
Boy, that’s hilarious coming from her.
I spit out some of the hair on my lips.
“No, I’m not going to the hospital,” I inform her.
