Selfless Hero

I settled for touching Lulu instead. She rested her head on my knee.

“Beautiful dog,” Max said.

“Thank you.”

An awkward silence stretched between us. As I stared down at Lulu, I could feel Max staring at me.

“How are you holding up?” he asked after a while.

I shrugged my shoulders. “Fine, I guess.”

“Have you ever had a patient die?”

I swallowed. “No—not on my watch. I’ve seen it from afar, but…”

“Never as close as what almost happened today.”

I nodded.

“Well, you can take comfort in knowing that she’s going to be fine. Your quick thinking saved her life. That’s something to be proud of.” He rubbed my back in what initially started off as a comforting gestured before he began to trail his fingers along my spine. I fought not to arch my back at his touch.

He lightly brushed my hair, and then returned his hands to his own lap. “Well, I just wanted to make sure you made it in safely, and that you were all right.”

I felt a panic rising inside of me. There was a tone of finality in his voice, but I didn’t want him to leave yet.

Lulu too, must have sensed his tone. She got up and retreated to the back of the apartment where her bed was located, ready for a nap after the day’s excitement.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Max motioning to get up. I placed my hand on his knee. He paused.

“Are you in a hurry?” I asked.

It took him a moment to answer, but when he did, he shook his head. “No. I just don’t want to overstay my welcome.”

“Let me be the judge of that then,” I said with a shaky smile. My emotions were a rollercoaster, and the one thing I knew for certain was that I didn’t want to be alone.

I also couldn’t seem to remove my hand for his knee. He covered it with his own hand, and if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought I felt a spark of electricity.

He was just too handsome for his own good…

With my other hand, I brushed through his hair. He leaned in at my touch and kissed my forehead, and then my nose.

Then he stopped, his mouth just inches away from mine.

I rested my head on his shoulders, breathing in the scent at the crook of his neck. And then I kissed his neck, unable to stop myself. A low groan sounded from his throat.

“Kylie,” he whispered.

But I couldn’t resist him anymore, nor could I keep my hands off him. Whatever he had to say would have to wait.

I hungrily cut off his words with a kiss, pleased to see that he had no objections about returning it.

CHAPTER 16

Kylie

The next moment, he pulled me to him and kissed me, taking my breath away as our tongues worked their way into each other’s mouths. His hands slid down my back and cupped my ass, pulling me flush against his body. He was already hard for me, and I couldn’t resist grinding against him, desperate to feel him.

“Kylie,” he muttered in between our kisses, “you have no idea how much I wanted you. I couldn’t stop thinking about you.”