I’d finished with the kitchen when I heard the tub draining. A few minutes later, she came out with her hair in a towel, wearing only her robe. It was open just enough at the top that I could see the swell of her right breast, taunting me. Dammit, I needed better self-control.
“Everything okay?” I said, so she’d know I was across the room.
“All good,” she smiled. “I’ll just get dressed then be out.”
There wasn’t much to straighten in the living room, her condo was neat as a pin. When she came out, I said, “I’m here on the couch. Want to join me?”
“Sure,” she said. She had a hairbrush and elastic tie in her hand. Once she was sitting down, she started to brush her hair, but I could see from the way she was sitting it looked awkward.
My urge to take care of her was making me question where any lines should be drawn. But if I was her temporary caregiver, certainly something as innocent as brushing her hair would be helping. I almost wondered if I should text Gwen, but she would either tell me to stop being so stupid, or ask me why I was being so weird.
“Kayla, may I help you? I used to braid Gwen’s hair now and then. She trained me to do a pretty good job.”
Her soft smile almost unraveled me. “Sure, thank you,” she said gently. She reached out to hand me the brush and elastic, then turned around sideways so her back was to me.
I wanted to wrap my arms around her stomach and pull her against me. I wanted to lean in and whisper sweet things in her ear. I wanted to tell her that everything about her was making me crazy, and that I genuinely felt like I was falling for her.
But instead, I swept her hair down her back, then began brushing out the tangles starting at the bottom.
After working completely through without tugging on her scalp once, she laughed. “You really are good at this.”
I liked that she was letting me care for her more intimately. Though restraining my instincts was becoming increasingly difficult.
CHAPTER SEVEN
* Kayla *
It was fascinating that Liam seemed amused when I referred to his tough guy status, but didn’t think twice about brushing my hair. It was sweet. The gentle, confident way he dealt with me was refreshing.
A few guys had hit on me awkwardly, and were either nervous to the point of being disturbing, or so overconfident they behaved like jackasses.
I’d only gone out with two guys before. One of them was just a single sad, short date. I’d never clicked with anyone. I’d never felt comfortable enough to be myself when I always felt like people were staring at my weird eye. But I was pretty relaxed with Liam. I wondered how relaxed I might be if I were able to see.
The curiosity about what he looked like was absolutely killing me. From what I could pick up, he was tall and brawny, obviously ridiculously muscular. He was so kind, and so quick to make me laugh that I found myself not really caring what he looked like.
Once my hair was completely brushed out, I heard the clack as the brush was set on the coffee table. He ran his fingers through my hair, making me need to restrain a shudder. He divided it into sections, skimming his fingertips along my scalp. It felt so nice, and I felt strangely pampered. Twisting the hair as he picked up more along the way, he quickly created a loose French braid down my back and tied it with the elastic.
Then his fingers lightly brushed the underside of my hairline, as if freeing any hair that had been captured too tightly. But it also felt like he didn’t want to stop touching me. I felt my body leaning back toward him, then his hands fell to my shoulders.
“There you go,” he said. “That should keep it out of your way.”
“Thank you,” I said, turning to him and pulling the braid over my shoulder. “This feels really tidy.”
He reached out to give the end a playful tug. “I keep forgetting that you can’t see when I’m smiling at you,” he said.
I nodded. “It’s really weird to feel my face making expressions, but knowing that they might be read differently because you can’t see my eyes.”
“It’s only for a few more days,” h
e said. “So far, I think you’re doing pretty well. You haven’t gone crazy, or started throwing things. You haven’t been demanding special exotic foods just because you’re bored.”
I laughed loudly. “Trust me, I’m getting a little squirrely on the inside.”
“Is there anything I can do to help? Or do you want to talk about it?”
I shook my head hard. “I can’t… I don’t think I should talk about how this feels. So, um, I’m going to stick to the basic things that are annoying me. Like not being able to walk around without putting my arms out like a zombie.”
Liam laughed. “Yeah, that must be annoying. Do you miss walking? Do you walk a lot?”