Page 88 of Enchanted

I laughed. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

There was no removing my ridiculous smile as I returned to the cottage. I knew we hadn’t left anything behind, but I wanted to give Rami privacy for his call. Plus, I wanted a final moment to take in this place. This haven we’d shared.

Where we’d shared each other.

I was standing by the table, now free of any evidence of how Rami fucked me there, when hands settled on my stomach.

Rami nuzzled my neck. “How do you smell so good?”

I turned in his grip to grin up at him. “I mean, we’ve been using the same toiletries the past few days, so I probably smell the same as you.”

“Not true. You smell like jasmine at the end of a hot summer’s day.”

That was so oddly specific that it had my throat thickening. “Thank you.”

He kissed me, his lips lingering like he was reluctant to pull away. I knew I was.

“I guess we need to leave,” he said finally. “I don’t want to, but there’s some stuff back home that needs my attention.”

“It’s fine.” I smoothed my hands over his shirt. “I’ve demanded far too much of your time already.”

“Baby, you can demand all of my time as far as I’m concerned.”

My breath caught in my throat. We were meant to be casual. Friends with benefits.

Nothing about this felt casual.

Worse, I wasn’t sure I even wanted it to.

“But sadly, we should get back.” He sighed. “What appointment do you have?”

“Just blood tests. A check-up.” I stiffened as I spoke, fear creeping up my spine.

Rami ran his hand down it, like he could sense it and was defending me against it. “You don’t have anything to worry about.”

“You can’t know that,” I said, stepping out of his arms. At least, I tried to, but Rami held me stubbornly tight. “Pretending it’s magically gone forever isn’t good for me.”

He bit his lip, almost like he was wrestling with himself over something. When he finally did speak, I had a feeling it wasn’t what he’d originally wanted to say. “Can I come with you?”

I blinked in surprise. “You want to come with me?”

“Yes.” He nodded firmly. “I do.”

“It’s just blood tests. And it’ll be a lot of waiting around as they’re usually running behind.”

“I don’t care,” Rami said. “If it’s something you’re worried about, I don’t want you going through it alone.”

“I’m not worried about having blood taken.”

“No, but you’re worried about the results.”

I couldn’t deny that.

“And I imagine being back there isn’t going to be easy,” Rami continued. “Please? Let me be there for you, Eth.”

“Okay,” I found myself saying. “That would be great. Thank you.”

The problem with leaving didn’t hit me until we were about an hour outside of London. “Oh, fuck!”