Page 68 of New Growth
“What is it?” I questioned, then tilted my head.
He hesitated, then said softly, “Can I… hold you?”
Oh.
Oh.
I blinked rapidly. “Hold me?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, his voice barely above a whisper. “Just for a minute.”
A strange warmth spread through my chest. His eyes held something I couldn’t place, but the closest feeling I could describe it as was infatuation.
“Oh. Um. Okay.”
He immediately pulled me into his arms, holding me firmly but carefully. In return, my hands slowly crept up his muscular arms, feeling his warm skin beneath my fingers as a strange comfort until they rested on his broad shoulders.
“I’m sorry,” he murmured against my hair. “It’s just… the last time I had you in my arms, you were limp. My body still can’t register that you’re breathing now.”
I relaxed into his hold. “I understand.”
His arms tightened around me like he still needed the reassurance that I was really standing here, alive.
“This is nice,” he admitted.
“It is.” I inhaled. “You smell like vanilla and paper.”
He laughed lightly. “And you smell like the hospital.”
I let out a dry chuckle. “Sorry.”
“It’s okay. You usually smell like coconut and jasmine.”
He buried his nose into my neck, his eyelashes brushing my skin as he closed his eyes. A shiver ran down my spine.
“This is still nice, though,” he repeated quietly.
I swallowed hard. “Elliot…”
His grip didn’t loosen. “I thought I was going to lose you before we even started.”
I sighed at his words. He still didn’t get it. Nothing was starting between us. My hands dropped from the embrace, but he still held on.
“I’m so grateful you’re okay, Elliot. I prayed the whole run to the hospital.”
I pulled back slightly, frowning. “You ran? The whole way?”
He nodded. “Had to. With traffic, it was too risky to wait. Every second counted.”
He ran through the streets, carrying me to a hospital at least two miles away. Then, he waited for me to wake up, which could have been hours, and the nurse assured me he never left my side.
After that, he paid for all the medicine I received and drove me home without question.
The man was unbelievable. The man was intense. The man has shown me more care than people who have known me for years.
Without thinking, I wrapped my arms around him again.
“Thank you so much. For everything.”
