For a second, I froze.
What if he’d switched while I was gone?
I’d just given him the perfect opportunity to kill me.
However, he shifted away from me as if my freezing like a cornered cat unsettled him. “What? What is it?” he asked warily, his eyes darting over my shoulder, looking for something he should be afraid of. “Is something out there?”
His voice remained sweet and young.
Unbroken before abuse.
“No.” I exhaled heavily. “Nothing is out there.” I forced myself to relax and scoot closer to him. “It’s nothing, truly. I was just worried about you, that’s all.”
“Me?” He gave me a shaky smile. “Why?”
“Because you’re hurt.” I frowned at his swollen arm he was cradling. “You remember what we talked about?”
He frowned and looked to the side, his mind obviously struggling to recall something that only happened a few minutes ago.
God, what did this mean for him?
Would he be destined to spend the rest of his life flickering in and out of reality and mirages?
Dropping his gaze, he stared at his arm, then twitched as if memories physically pinched him inside. “Oh, I remember.” He nodded. “My arm is broken. It hurts.”
“I know.” I resisted the urge to cup his cheek. To just touch him. I ached to touch him—to somehow keep his mind from straying, aging, breaking. “Should we fix it?”
He made eye contact and smiled again. This time, it was the most beautiful smile I’d ever seen. It made me tremble as he carefully placed his arm into my lap and shuffled closer until our knees touched. Until his body heat from the blankets tingled over my skin.
The same chemistry that existed between us from the very first moment we met existed even now. A gentle buzzing from his body to mine, sending my blood shivering as well as my bones and breath.
He inhaled sharply.
I stiffened, ever so jumpy in case the kid had become the killer again. But instead of angry dark eyes filled with murderous intent, they stayed a syrupy golden brown filled with absolute trust and gratitude.
“I like you,” he murmured, licking his lips. “I think I know you from somewhere. I feel it...” He tapped his chest with his free hand. “In here.”
I struggled to swallow, doing my best to ignore the humming electricity twining around us. “I like you too.”
He blushed.
Actually blushed.
And I swallowed tears because what kind of boy could blush at the confession of affection after every sexual desecration he’d been through.
“Thank you for looking after me,” he murmured.
“You’re welcome.” My heart absolutely pounded, wanted.
“You’re really pretty.” His free hand came up to twist a lock of my hair, his knuckles kissing my cheek. “Want to go out with me? Once my arm is better? We can go swimming at my favorite lake.”
Despite the fire in my cheek from his touch and the constant tingle in my blood from being so close to him, I forced pragmatism to focus on the pieces of his past. He’d given me his name. If he gave me the town where he lived, then perhaps, I could find his family. Maybe, after years of being alone, he could go home.
“Where is your favorite lake?” I whispered as he pulled my hair, tugging me closer to him.
His eyes lit up, remembering something I couldn’t see, but then they clouded, and he shook his head. “I-I don’t remember.”
“Was it somewhere hot all year round, or did you ice skate on the lake in winter?”
His face grew darker, his forehead knotting with stress. “I-I don’t know. I—” He squeezed his eyes shut. “Why don’t I know? It’s-it’s...nothing is straight in my head. It’s all jumbled and—” His eyes shot wide, flickering with horror. “Where is everyone? I...I had a family. Wes and—” He tapped his temple as if trying to dislodge more. “God, what were their names? Who are you?”
Worry replaced the softness of before, making me backpedal. “I’m your friend, remember? Don’t worry about anything else. Just focus on us, that’s all.” Cupping his cheek, I ran my thumb over the soft skin above his scruff. “I’m Gem, and you’re Kas, and everything is okay now that we’re together.”
He exhaled hard.
It was as if the evil trying to snatch him back receded, leaving him empty and quiet. Entirely willing to let me protect him. “Okay. I’ll just focus on you.” Swaying forward, he bumped his forehead against mine. “I really, really like you, Gem.” His chin moved, and his mouth fastened over mine.
I froze for the third time.
He sucked in a breath.
Our eyes stayed locked as if he was as shocked as me that he’d kissed me.
I waited for him to pull away. To act shy and blush again.
Instead, his lips moved over mine, hesitantly and softly. His eyes drifted closed, and he pulled me closer with the lock of my hair.
Pull away, Gem.
Stop.
I fell into him.
I parted my lips and trembled as the tip of his tongue tasted me.
As far as kisses went, this was the sweetest I’d ever had. Sweeter than my first stumbling when I was fourteen. Sweeter than my ex-boyfriend or any other kiss with Kas before.
This man had kissed me full of violence and aggression. It’d been messy and barbaric and resorted to us rolling around in the mud like beasts.
But this?
This was delicate and exquisite, full of innocent passion and everlasting care.
He moaned under his breath as I touched his tongue with mine. A tiny lick of welcome.
His fingers moved from my hair to my cheek, his palm burning me as he deepened the kiss. Our mouths parted in unison, our tongues connecting in a dance. His heartbeat drummed in his fingertips, soaking through my cheek to my own drumming pulse.
His head tilted to the other side, the choreography between us unhurried and indulgent. Deepening then retreating, kissing and learning.
Our breathing synchronized as everything inside me went heavy.
Inhale and lick.
Exhale and kiss.
His lips and tongue were hypnotic.
The connection between us tangled tighter.
The strain of the past few days melted as his tongue continued tasting me, claiming me. Our breathing turned harsher, bodies no longer content with just a simple kiss, no matter how precious.
My nipples ached. My core clenched.
His moan turned to a harsher groan as he reached for me.
Passion overflowed, demanding we finish whatever magic we’d started.
His right arm looped around my waist, and I bowed into him. His left arm swooped around my shoulders and—
He cried out, his mouth slipping from mine.
The moment instantly shattered.
The spell around us vanished as he winced and cradled his broken arm. Giving me a sheepish shrug, he murmured, “My arm...it’s killing me.”
For a second, I felt as disorientated as he must feel when his mind played tricks on him. Shaking my head, I inhaled fresh air and slipped into my role of nurse. “Here, let me.”
Nodding gratefully, he gingerly placed his arm on my lap, and we both gritted our teeth against the remaining need between us.
I dared not make eye contact with him, focusing instead on my task.
Grabbing the slim stake I’d brought from the garden, I wiped off any obvious dirt then placed it along his broken arm. “Keep that there.” Reaching sideways to my medical station, I gathered up the sliced pieces of cloth that I’d prepared while he’d been in and out of sleep.