Page 5 of Awakened By the Guardian

“I know,” she said, “and that’s wonderful.” Her mind was still spinning. Why show her a ring meant for someone else?

“I can, you know. I can father children. The money I’ve made will more than cover any medical help I need.”

“I know.” She nodded, her heart breaking with both pride and loss. “You won’t let your handicap hinder you. You won’t let anything⁠—”

“It’s not a handicap!” he snapped. Then he frowned, and she noticed he was sweating. “I mean, of course it is, but it won’t stop me.”

“I know it won’t,” she repeated. “Gary, do you feel okay?”

“Of course I’m okay!” he huffed. “Remember last week when you said you wanted to break out of your routine? You said you were a full-grown woman who was ready to embrace everything that life offered.”

She blew out a breath. Yeah, she’d said that, but in a moment of weakness. Given her problem, the best she could hope for was hang-gliding or a painting class.

“Embrace life with me.” He leaned forward, his entire body coiled with power. “I don’t need legs. Not to kiss your breasts. Not to lick you to a thousand screaming Os. And the toys they have these days are better than any man! I mean, no man can vibrate a thousand times a second.”

“Gary!” she gasped.

“I love you, Margaret. I have for a really long time. I want you to love me, too.”

“I do love you!” she said without thinking. Then: “But I can’t be with you.”

He took a moment to absorb her words. His body stilled, and his jaw clenched. “You just said you love me.”

“I do,” she admitted. “But it doesn’t matter.”

“Of course it matters!” he snapped, his face tight. “I love you, and you love me. That’s what I needed to hear. The other stuff…” He gestured angrily to his wheelchair. “We can figure it out. I’m still a man, Margaret. I can—and will—give you physical pleasure. It doesn’t take a working dick to do so. Unless you don’t want to be seen with⁠—”

“Stop it right there!” Margaret hissed. “This has nothing to do with your paralysis.”

He snorted. “So what is it? I can give you love, money, a thousand orgasms. Everything you could possibly want.”

“No,” she said miserably. She reached over and pressed the ring box shut. Then she pulled it out of his overheated hand and set it aside. “You can’t. Because you can’t fix me.”

“Margaret—,” he began, but she touched his face, forcing him to look directly into her eyes.

“You’re my best friend,” she began.

“I—”

“Shut up. It’s your turn to listen.”

He ground his teeth together, and for a moment she thought she’d gone too far. He seemed so physically powerful sitting there. A wildness flared in his eyes, ferocity that would frighten her in anyone else.

“I know you’re a real man,” she continued. “And any real woman would be thrilled to have you.”

But she wasn’t a real woman.

“You think I don’t see those washboard abs? Those broad shoulders and this rugged jaw.” She cupped his face and felt the slight scratch of his five o’clock shadow. He was handsome, rich, kind… But she was dead down there. He wanted a sex life, and she couldn’t give him one. And she’d be damned if she’d promise him anything less than what he deserved. Her parents had done that, and⁠—

“Margaret.”

“Gary, please listen.”

He gripped her arm and hauled her forward, trying to get his mouth on hers. For a moment she had a vision of a movie kiss, passionate and life-changing. But that couldn’t happen with her. She was who she was.

Unfortunately, the angle was awkward, and she had levered up on one knee. With his sudden grip she lost her balance. She grabbed his shoulder with one hand while scrambling to get her bare foot out from under her. Worse—for a brief moment—she gave in to temptation. She wondered if maybe he could fix her. Maybe he had enough power to force feeling into her frozen body. If anybody could will her better, it would be him.

His grip tightened, and it seemed like he was doing just that. “I need you to see me, Margaret. I need you to know what I feel!”