Page 88 of Sudden Summer

“I’ll take care of those.”

Her face relaxed as she smiled, tipping her body toward mine. I made fast work of it, careful to ensure the fabric didn’t snag on her brace.

“I’m so sick of wearing that thing,” she sighed as I pulled at the Velcro. It had to come off for the shower, but I’d make sure she kept as much weight as possible off it. I could probably slip that leg over my shoulder and⁠—

“Beau!” Her fingers slipped over mine, trapping them close to her skin. “Listen to me. Please.”

“I am listening. Unlike you, apparently, I can multitask.” I winked and tried to hold in my chuckle at the way she was scowling down at me.

“I want to do something. To help women in the community who need a safe place to go when things might be…bad.”

I nodded. “You have the most beautiful heart, Birdie. Do you know that?”

She shook her head. “It’s not that. It’s guilt. Penance. I could have done more. I should have done more. And this community should do more. I’m going to talk to Lacy. She got that grant from Sebastian when he was starting Montgomery Defense to open Petals. I was thinking we could use my house, but I don’t know if I can go back there all the time. I think maybe we should start someplace fresh. New. Like the new hope we’d be giving to the women who stayed there. I could sell it, and we could roll the money into our first safe haven.”

Lacy was married to one of Hawk’s best friends, Nash Caldwell, who also worked for Montgomery Defense, the security firm in Silver Springs.

“I think that sounds like the perfect idea. You can ask Lacy, or even Jessie. She helped Lach fill out the paperwork for his shop.”

“That’s right.” She nodded as she bit down on her lip. “You think it’s a good idea?”

“I think it’s a great idea. I just worry about you having all that on your plate, plus work, when everything gets cleared up at the hospital.”

Her eyes drifted toward the shower.

“What is it?” I asked.

“I don’t want to go back.”

Birdie

“You don’t want to go back?” Beau stared up at me, still kneeling on the floor in front of me. “Ever?”

“We’re wasting the hot water.” I was embarrassed. I’d worked so incredibly hard my entire life to make something of myself. All those years of struggling, juggling my responsibilities to Lainey and to my mom. All those endless hours of studying and test taking and boards, when it came to finally being in a spot where my dream job was attainable.

But it all felt so arbitrary now. I was fighting this battle in my mind about who I wanted to be at this time in my life. And all I knew was that I wanted to be the best example for Juniper. I wanted to show her that it was never too late to realize you’re somewhere that doesn’t quite fit. That dreams can change as we grow, and that when you feel called to help the world in a different way than what you first thought, it’s okay to pivot.

“Are you coming?” Beau’s question pulled me out of my downward spiral. I stepped cautiously over to him, my ankle finally feeling like it was almost healed. He held his hand out for me, which I was more than happy to take as we moved into the steam-filled shower. Beau hissed as the water hit his back, spinning us so I was now under the hot stream.

It felt so good. I know he was suffering with the temperature for me, but it was honestly exactly what I needed at that moment.

He reached over, tugging my hair free from the tie that was holding it up in a bun. As his fingers massaged my scalp, he tipped my head back so my hair was thoroughly soaked through.

“Turn, so your back is against my chest,” he whispered in my ear. “I’m going to wash your hair.”

“You don’t have to⁠—”

“I know I don’t,” he interjected. “I want to. Let me do this for you, baby.”

The reaction I had to that pet name should be studied, because as soon as he said it, there was a deep ache that sprang to life in my core. A pulsating desire that I knew wouldn’t be satisfied until he was deep inside me.

And judging from the way his dick poked at me as I turned, I wasn’t the only one affected by it.

“Ignore it, Birdie.” His gravel-filled voice did nothing to cool my overheated skin. I reached out, turning the dial for the water temperature down. The last thing I needed was to pass out before I got to tell Beau exactly what type of stress relief I needed. The kind I’d been enjoying waking up to and falling asleep with, since our interrupted picnic under the stars. My fingers dropped to the place between my legs that desperately needed some attention.

“No,” I pressed my ass against his erection, “I need you, Beau. I need you to quiet down the guilt in my mind. I need to just have a moment of calm. A moment of feeling good. Can we…”

“Are you asking me to make you feel good? Because I don’t think we’re done with our conversation yet.”