Total pages in book: 127
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122219 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 611(@200wpm)___ 489(@250wpm)___ 407(@300wpm)
“Thank you,” I whispered.
He smiled in reply before he lifted me into his arms and carried me back to my bedroom. He set me down on the edge of my bed, went into my drawers, and pulled out clean panties for me to slip into.
He held them beneath my feet and slid them up my body. He then went to my bathroom and grabbed my lotions from the counter. Without thought, he knelt in front of me and began to lotion me up from the tip of my toes all the way up to my neck. Every inch of me was moisturized. As his hands rolled over my breasts, I let out a small breath. The care he took was almost overwhelming.
He then left the room for a few moments. When he came back, he was wearing sweatpants and no shirt. He held a blow dryer and an oversized T-shirt of his. He slipped the T-shirt over my shoulders and then plugged in the blow dryer.
I removed the towel from my hair, and he sat behind me, placing me between his thighs, and dried it. My back brushed against his rock-hard abs as he did so, holding me in place.
Once he finished, he unplugged the blow dryer.
I figured he was done, but he headed back to my bathroom and grabbed my toothbrush along with a glass cup.
“Open,” he said. I parted my lips, and he began to brush my teeth for me. After he finished, he held the glass up to my mouth and said, “Spit.”
I spat out the paste in my mouth. He then headed back to the bathroom, rinsed out the glass, and came back.
He gave me that same lazy grin. “Can I hold you again?”
“Please do.”
He climbed into bed with me and wrapped me in his arms. He didn’t ask me to talk. He didn’t ask me to be okay. He didn’t ask me for anything. All he did was hold me.
And there it was…
My beam of light.
He stayed with me the whole day, feeding me meals, lying with me on the couch, and watching movies that I didn’t pay attention to because I was too invested in looking at him. Whenever I looked at him, he was looking at me.
He asked me if I needed anything every second our eyes locked, and I’d shake my head and whisper a “no.” He’d then give me his lazy smile, and I’d feel that smile vibrate against my heartbeat.
When nightfall came, he carried me to my bedroom. I lay in his arms as he kissed my forehead again before closing his eyes.
“Nathan?”
“Yeah?” he whispered, eyes still closed, halfway asleep.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Being my sunbeam today.”
His tired eyes flickered open and locked with mine. His lips turned up in an exhausted grin, and he brushed them gently against mine, giving me the tiniest kiss that felt so big before he fell asleep.
I fell asleep, too, in his arms.
When I woke up, he was still there, holding me in his arms.
32
AVERY
The following morning, I showered on my own and came out of my bedroom to find Nathan cooking breakfast for me. I could get used to the current living arrangement.
When he turned to see me, he smiled. “Morning, sunshine.”
“Morning.” I moved over and gave him a small kiss. “Food smells good.”
He buried his face against my neck, covering me in kisses. “You smell good.”
We moved to the living room and did one of our favorite things—watched ESPN with our plates in our hands. After we finished, Nathan turned to me. His eyes were slightly somber, and I could tell something was up.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“I want to give you something, but I’m not sure if you’ll think I’m an asshole.”
I narrowed my eyes. “That lead-in makes me nervous.”
He slipped a hand into his back pocket and pulled out a business card. “It’s the name of the wellness clinic I went to in Chicago when I was going through a hard time after losing Mickey and my injury. My therapist was amazing and helped me get back on my feet. Yet they have a lot of different, extremely talented individuals. Some of the best in the industry. I still go bimonthly. Just wanted to offer that up to you if you ever want to speak to someone other than me.”
I smiled shyly as I took the card from him. “Thank you, but I don’t think I can afford the same level of treatment that an MLB all-star receives.”
“Don’t worry about the cost. I’ll cover it.”
I shook my head. “No, Nathan, I can’t let you—”
“I’ll cover it,” he assured. “You don’t worry about that. I just want you to feel the best you can. That’s all that matters to me.”
“Oh no…” I murmured, moving closer to him. “You must really like me a lot if you want me to be mentally stable, huh?” I joked.