Outside her office, he leaned against me while we waited for the elevator.
“You asked about kissing.”
“Apparently.”
“Thorough.”
“I was planning ahead.”
“Clearly.”
His head rested on my shoulder.
“Cal?”
The name warmed me every time.
“Yes?”
“Do you resent me?”
“No.”
“Not even a little.”
“No.”
“You’re allowed to.”
“I know.”
His eye closed.
“I resent the lost jobs. The insurers. The fact you hurt. I resent that a fifteen-minute drive exhausts you.”
His hand found mine.
“I do not resent you.”
He nodded.
The elevator arrived.
He slept in the car before we left the hospital parking area.
I considered taking the coastal road, then chose the shortest route home.
His head rested against the seat. His left arm, free of the rigid brace, lay supported in the new sling. Without the molded shell, he looked more like himself.
More vulnerable too.
At the yard, Owen came outside when I parked.
He opened Noah’s door gently.
“Successful escape?”
Noah woke slowly.
