The physician shakes his head, raising both brows. “Whatever calms him down. Fine. Two minutes. Leave them alone,” he says to the nurses standing adjacent. They walk to the end of the hall to give us privacy. Isaac engages them in some sort of jovial people-person conversation.
“What’s really going on?” I ask, scooting to sit next to him.
He closes his eyes and when he opens them, there is a flicker of apprehension. “I can’t lose you. I can’t lose you, Maeve. It can’t happen.”
I won’t tell him about how I already lost him once today. “I won’t leave here. Promise. That’s one I know I can keep.”
A stark ripple of fear washes across his face. “If I don’t wake up from the surgery?”
“You will.”I lost you once today, I won’t lose you again.But his fear doesn’t fade and I realize this isn’t about just wanting to make sure I’ll be okay; Lincoln is terrified of going into surgery. “Lincoln, you have to get the bullet out of your shoulder and they need to fix the damage. It’s a simple in and out process. I’ll be here when you wake up. I’ll even go find Turner so we’re all together.” That seems to calm him for a moment and then his nerves ratchet back up when he sees the doctor and nurses coming back to us.
“I love you, Maeve. So much more than you’ll ever know.”
I lose my breath, but keep my face neutral. “Ditto.”
He lets them wheel him back to surgery, but the fear in his eyes is palpable.
Chapter 2
Lincoln
“I hate this. I feel like such a useless asshole,” I moan. “Please just leave me here to die.”
Maeve rounds the bed. “Funny, a couple weeks ago you were scared to die under anesthesia. Dramatic much?”
I raise my voice in surprise. “Are you being fresh?” I like it. I want to hear her talk like that, naked and horny.
She leans down and readjusts my arm, but I steal a kiss while she’s so near. Maeve, true to her word, stayed. Not just at the hospital, but now that we’re back at home, she’s fallen into a routine with Turner while I’m incapacitated. She’s scheduled her days around my son and caring for me. I couldn’t be more grateful or feel like more of a burden. Her lips are potent, and as always, she pulls away just when we get to the good part.
“Rest now. You shouldn’t be moving around so much. Call me if you need anything, you hear?”
It was a mere scratch on my shoulder, but I feel like I got hit by a truck. The pain gets a little better each day.
“If you won’t fuck me in my bed like a man, at least let me out into the living room. I’ll sit in the recliner, unmoving. Like a statue of a middle-aged man watching Sunday football.”
She spins at the doorway, cheeks blushed. “They said nothing strenuous until they check you out at your next appointment. I’m not making up the rules, I’m following them.”
“Yeah, yeah. That’s for normal people. Not me. You are an A+ professional rider, Maeve. Are you saying you wouldn’t be willing to give it your best effort?”
Her mouth pops open. “You really are desperate, aren’t you?”
“I have to see you walking around every day. I almost lost you. I’m desperate to claim you.”
She smirks. “You’ve already claimed me, Lincoln. I’m yours.”
I groan and hit her with a dissatisfied look. “Could have fooled me.”
“We could do this all day, or you can let me go clean up so I can come to bed to sleep earlier than usual tonight.”
I huff. “You should know I can control my heart rate exceptionally well if that’s what you’re concerned about. It will be like I’m sitting here watchingPlanet Earth, not like I’m getting my socks rocked.”
My statement garners an actual full-bodied laugh from her. She bends over, shaking her head. “You won’t quit, will you?”
“How can I when you’re the prize up for grabs?”
Holding her stomach, she shakes her head. “There’s no way you can control your heart rate during sex. I’m calling your bluff. Maybe you can control it while you’re working, and doing sneaky things during the night in scary places, but there’s no way a man can control his orgasm heart rate. Impossibility.”
I raise one brow. “You saying you want to find out? I’ll keep the heart rate monitor open on my watch the entire time. I accept this challenge.”