I huffed. “Life is going to throw many awful things at her. But she isn’t alone. She has you.” I wanted to say more than that. I wanted to make declarations I couldn’t possibly support.
“I don’t have any idea what I’m doing. I can’t do this.”
“You are doing it.”
“I’m not her mother.”
“More than most.”
“She needs her real mom.”
“She needs you.”
She took a shaking breath in and out. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Nothing has to be decided right this moment,” I said, and she chewed her lip, nodding. I brushed another tear away.
“I’m so sorry to unload all of this on you.” She rolled her eyes to the ceiling. “I never planned for any of this. None of this.”
“I know. It’s okay.” Despite the sadness and anger I felt, having her come to me for comfort made me feel worthy on a level I never expected. It felt like a gift to be the person who took care of her. “What doyouwant to do?”
She licked her lips. Her eyes flicked around my face. Something about that darkness in her features sent heat down my spine. I cleared my throat. This would be a terrible time to misread a situation.
“I just need to forget for a little bit. I just need to leave my mind behind,” she said, shifting closer. She lowered her forehead to my chest.
I stilled, blinking at her in surprise. My entire body was fully online and awake now, instantly taut with tension. “Frankie …”
“Please, Harrison. I’m so tired. I need a distraction.” She scraped her fingers through my hair as she brushed her lips along the line of my jaw. I felt my throat move under her warm, soft lips. “Please, let me forget it all for one night. Tomorrow, I will figure things out.”
For one night … a distraction.
In any other scenario, this would have been my literal dream come true, but I hesitated with an unexpected pang of hurt. My body warred with my mind more than it ever had. I wanted her,Christ, I’d wanted her for so long. But her pain was visceral. How could she possibly be thinking clearly? The day had been long and emotionally exhausting. If I gave in to her now, I would only ever be seen as a distraction. I didn’t want to be a distraction from the real world, I wanted to be her whole world. I had hoped she had come to me tonight as a sort of partner—a person to count on and trust in.
I wasn’t her partner. I was a way to turn off her mind and turn on her body.
But the truth was that this was Frankie. She was here and so bloody gorgeous, and I would be whatever she needed me to be. Even if it hurt me later.
She leaned back to watch me expectantly, fragile, hopeful, vulnerable.
My hand lifted to her shoulder as the duvet fell away. I slowly let my thumb drag down the column of her neck, to her shoulder, and down her arm. She was incredible. She tilted her head to give me more neck to touch.
I spread my fingers as I palmed as much of her exposed skin as possible. She was breathtaking.
“Frankie. Are you sure this is really what you want?” I asked. The tether of restraint was seconds from snapping. She sighed as I moved my thumb to tilt her chin up, gaining her attention.
She blinked slowly at me with her heavy-lidded eyes. “Please turn off my brain. Make me feel good, Harrison. I know you can.”
Maybe I wouldn’t ever be more than a distraction. Maybe I would always be the person to make her forget the world.
But I could be damn good at it.
I leaned forward slowly, giving her plenty of time to change her mind. Her eyes watched me as I moved in, finally fluttering shut when my mouth hovered just a centimeter from hers. I felt her soft exhalations as I took in the features in the low light.
“How could anybody be so beautiful?” I asked myself, but the words came out as a whisper.
She swallowed under where my palm still cupped her neck. My lips barely brushed hers as the bedroom door whipped open.
Frankie shot away so fast it didn’t seem humanly possible. I hadn’t even heard the sounds of Collette leaving her room. Her tiny frame filled the doorway. Light pouring in from the hallway cast her in shadow.
“Collette? What’s wrong, sweetie?” Frankie asked.
I shifted to cover myself and blinked as I processed the sudden interruption. I felt … relieved? I would have given Frankie whatever she thought she wanted, knowing I would never be able to come back from it. She wouldn’t be happy in the light of day. She wouldn’t even look at me if we crossed that line.
“I threw up,” Collette said and started to cry.
