Page 661 of One More Kiss

All right, that’s easy enough.“Lochlyn JoAnne Nottingham.”

“Do you know who those people are?” She points over to my parents.

“Mom and Dad.”

“When is your birthday?”

“December first.”

“How old are you?”

“Twenty.”

Jenny’s brows pinch together, and concern fills her eyes. Faster than it appears, she wipes the worry from her face. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, I didn’t quite catch that. How old are you?”

“Twenty,” I repeat.

Just as I’m about to ask about Lennon, a creaking sound of the door opening catches my attention. My eyes follow the sound, but the sea foam green curtain drawn around the outer perimeter of the room separates the door from my view.

“I’m going to let Dr. Chaudhary take it from here,” Jenny says. “But I’ll be popping in a few more times before my shift is over. If you need anything in the meantime, just have your parents let us know, or hit the red button on the side of your bed.”

She pushes through the curtain, just enough so I can get a glimpse of who is standing on the other side.

At the sight of him the beeping sound of my heart rate accelerates just enough to slightly change the steady, consistent pattern it’s been in since Jenny pulled the oxygen mask off my face.

He’s easily the best-looking man I’ve ever seen. Even from across the room, I can see sapphire-blue in his eyes. He’s tall. And muscular. And I’ve always been a sucker for a boy in a backward baseball hat.

Next, I notice a white football glove on his right hand.

He’s a football player.

The all white jersey with a navy number sixteen, black fitted football pants peeking out from under loose navy shorts and the cleats on his feet solidify my theory. Like my parents, he looks tired and concerned.

“Lennon called me,” he says as he steps into the room. “She said Lochlyn is…”

He looks over in my direction, whispering the word “awake” when our eyes connect. There’s a sense of familiarity in his gaze, but I can’t place where I could know him from. There’s no way I would have forgotten that face. Or those muscles.

“Milo!” my dad exclaims, jumping up from the chair he’s been occupying since he came in the room with Jenny. “How about we chat outside for a minute, son.”

My dad ushers Milo out of the room and I look over to my mom. She offers me a smile, but there’s something wrong.

“Mom, who was that?”

---