Total pages in book: 81
Estimated words: 77124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 308(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
“That’s my line.”
“I’m borrowing it,” he said as he sat up, letting me slide him out of his shirt and jacket, then slide him into the hoodie. I zipped it up then worked his belt loose to make him more comfortable. “Are you okay?” he asked again when I was done busying myself.
I sucked in a breath that shook across my chest as I sat down next to him on his good side, leaning my head into his chest, listening to his heartbeat against my ear. The sound of it had my eyes filling up again.
“I don’t know,” I admitted. “Today was a lot,” I added as his arm went around me, holding onto me surprisingly tightly for someone who’d gotten pretty weak already from the blood loss.
He tilted down, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.
“We’re both breathing. Everything else, we can deal with.”
Well, that was certainly true.
“Ugh, what now?” I grumbled when my phone started to ring.
Folding up, I grabbed it and swiped the screen without looking. “What?” I asked, hearing the exhaustion in my own voice.
“Just calling to let you know that Fury is snuggled up nice and comfy with her Uncle Keith,” Keith said, making a snorting laugh escape me.
“Thank you, Keith. I appreciate it.”
“We had a long talk about Mommy and Daddy being a little under the weather,” he went on. This time, instead of wanting to roll my eyes at his comments, I felt that warm sensation move across my chest again. “She took the news remarkably well. Though, to be fair, she was eating a treat at the time.”
“Keith, you better not be feeding her pizza rolls.”
“Don’t be silly,” he said, as if it was insane to assume such a thing. “She has a cheese and bacon-flavored treat we picked out at the bodega. Which is basically a pizza roll. But for dogs.”
“Okay. Good. I’m glad she’s content with you. You sure you’re okay with her for a day or two?”
“Or five or six,” he said, making me shake my head.
“I’ll pick her up as soon as things are stable,” I told him.
“Sure sure. Or not. Whatever.”
“You’re not stealing my dog, Keith,” I told him.
“She really likes me.”
“She really likes me too.”
Anthony reached for the phone and set it on speaker. “Keith, as soon as my shoulder heals up a bit, Saylor and I will go with you to the shelter to get your own dog, okay?”
“I mean, those dogs won’t be Fury.”
“No, they won’t,” Anthony agreed. “But Fury already has owners. So you can’t have her. But there are dozens of other dogs who need someone to love them.”
“I guess,” Keith agreed. “Did you really get shot?”
“Yep.”
“Did it hurt?”
“Didn’t feel great.”
“Cool,” Keith said, making Anthony shake his head. “Well, Fury wants to go to take a nap now,” he said, making a little laugh escape me. “I have to go tuck her in. Talk to you later.”
With that, he ended the call.
And we finally had some peace and quiet.
“So,” I said, snuggling into Anthony who insisted that he was going to need to sleep sitting up for a day or two, so we’d settled on the couch for its proximity to both the bathroom and the kitchen, making short trips for him easy.
Though, my plan was to do all the running around for him.
No, I’d never been put in the position of being a caretaker. And, sure, Anthony was probably right that I could be a bit brusque at times. But I was determined to do a good job, damnit.
“So?” Anthony asked when I got lost in my own thoughts.
“How long do you think we have until your entire family descends upon this place?”
“Oh, we have a solid… two hours at least,” he teased, shooting me a small smile. “Keep in mind, though, that they’re all going to show up with dishes of food.”
“I mean, I wouldn’t be opposed to a visit right now in that case,” I said, getting a little chuckle out of him.
“You know, you could go catch some sleep in bed. I’m okay, I promise.”
“Nope,” I said, snuggling in closer still. “I’m staying right here,” I told him. “You’re not allowed to get shot again,” I told him.
“I’ll try not to,” he said, leaning the side of his face against the top of my head. “Figure if I got you with me, you’ll keep me from hurting myself too much.”
“Not if,” I said, sliding my arm across his stomach.
“No?” he asked.
“I’m right here,” I told him. “I don’t plan on going anywhere.”
It was the closest I could come to a declaration of my feelings. Pathetic, I know. But I had to start somewhere. I figured that the longer I was with Ant, the more comfortable I would get with telling him how I felt, how important he’d become to me in such a short amount of time.