“Do you want me?” Caleb asked. He reached out and took my hands.
I blinked. Our eyes met, and I froze. Of course I wanted him. I’d always wanted him, but what did that matter? How could we risk going down this road again? After everything that happened before, we would be idiots to fall for each other again.
“It’s a simple question,” Caleb said. “Do you want me?”
“Yes.” My voice was low and hungry. Caleb moved closer to me, his lips searching for mine but I pulled away. I jumped to my feet and shook my head.
“Why are you fighting this?” Caleb asked.
“Because I don’t know if I can do this all over again,” I said.
Caleb slowly got to his feet, using his crutches for support. He moved closer to me, and my heart raced inside my chest. He was inches away and just when I was sure he would kiss me, the door opened with a bang.
I jumped and spun around. Cathy was walking toward us with a smile on her face.
“Hey, you guys about done?” she asked.
“Yes,” I said quickly. “He’s ready to go home.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN - CALEB
No matter what I did, I couldn’t get Tara off my mind. I pictured her face and her body every second of every day. It was torturous and awful. My cock got hard after just two seconds of imagining her face. I felt pathetic, but part of me didn’t care. I waited ten long years to be with Tara again, and now that I knew how it felt to be buried inside of her, I couldn’t let it go.
Still, as the days dragged on, I wondered if we could be together at all. She was so distant after we finally had sex. All I wanted to do was pull her close and fuck her senseless, but she pushed me away. She reminded me how much her father hated the idea of us being together, and nothing I said could change her mind. She wanted to respect her dad, and I didn’t give a shit what he thought.
As much as I wanted her, I tried to think about other things. Tara wasn’t the only girl in the world. I was a fucking firefighter who could get any woman I wanted. If Tara didn’t want me, what the hell did I care? As soon as I got back on my feet, I could use my tragic hero story to win over some sympathy pussy. Then, Tara would be all but forgotten in my mind.
Even as I thought it, I knew it would never work. No amount of free pussy could replace Tara. I wished it would be that simple to forget about her, but I wasn’t stupid enough to try it. Nothing I had done for ten years could dull the memory of Tara. I didn’t have a chance of that happening now, not when I saw her for PT multiple times a week. My head spun, and my body longed to be touched by her.
More than anything, I wanted to go back to work. If I could just spend a few hours on the job, then maybe I could get my head back on straight. There was nothing like delving into a few fires to clear my mind. I knew that wasn’t an option. I still had a lot of physical therapy left before I would be well enough to even walk without crutches. I felt weak and pathetic. I couldn’t work. I couldn’t convince Tara to be with me. My entire world was just crumbling around me, and there wasn’t a damn thing I could do to stop it.
By the time my next physical therapy session rolled around, I was eager to see Tara. I needed
to know where we stood and that couldn’t happen unless I saw her. As I walked through the door of the PT building, my eyes roamed around the room. Tara’s desk was empty, but there were a few therapy sessions underway all around me. I groaned quietly and cursed my early appointment time.
I’d grown to love my evening sessions with Tara. The building was deserted, no one around but us. It felt private and personal. Plus, it gave me a chance to get close to her. In the afternoon, with people surrounding us, I knew Tara would be on her best behavior.
“You’re early,” Tara said, walking up behind me.
“Yeah,” I nodded. “Just wanted to get this over with. I’m ready to get back to work.”
“You have to take it slow,” she said. “If you rush your recovery, then it will take longer.”
“I know,” I said. I didn’t think I could stand to hear that speech again. “I’m just bored sitting at home all day.”
She met my eyes, and my heart stopped. My stomach clenched painfully as I looked down at her lips. They were so inviting. It took everything in me not to claim them right there in front of everyone. As I trailed my eyes down her body, she cleared her throat and took a step back. Her expression was professional as she led me toward our workout area.
I sighed and followed her, resting my crutches against the wall. Instead of helping me to the low table like she had every other time, she led toward two bars and positioned me between them. I looked at her with surprise but didn’t argue. If she thought I was ready to try walking, then I would do it without a single word of complaint.
“Hold onto the bars,” she said. “Put all your weight on them the first few steps, okay? Don’t put pressure on your leg. Not yet.”
I nodded and did as she said. Even with my weight on the bars, it was hard to keep my leg from giving out. I felt sharp pains shooting through my leg and into my hip. I winced and grit my teeth, forcing myself through the pain.
Tara watched me closely, but there was something behind her eyes I didn’t recognize. It was as if she wasn’t all there like something was distracting her. I wanted to ask her about it, but I knew it wasn’t the right time. The other therapists were surrounding us on both sides, and a few patients were still lingering in the building.
I let Tara lead me through the session, all the while desperate for her touch. This was the first PT session where Tara didn’t touch me once. I didn’t realize just how much I longed for her hands on me until I had to go without it. I was frustrated. I hated this distance between us.
The room cleared as my session came to an end. I was beyond grateful to have a minute alone with Tara. When she gripped my arm to help me to a chair, I sighed and grabbed her hand in mine.