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He furrows his brow. “Why would you feel bad?”
“Because it’s not your job to take care of Izzy. You shouldn’t be put in the position of rearranging your night just so you can help me.”
“Ria,” Remy says, stepping toward me and closing off the distance I gained less than a minute ago. “I stayed because I wanted to. Not for any reason other than that. Your guilt is unnecessary, okay? Don’t think twice about any of it. I wanted to be here. I wanted to help you.”
All I can do is nod.
But then I also add, “Thank you.” Because hell, it’s been weeks since I’ve gotten a full night of sleep. One hour here, two hours there, that’s about all I’ve managed since Izzy was born.
And let me tell you, that starts to make you feel like a crazy person.
“Why don’t you go grab yourself a cup of coffee, and I’ll finish up in here?”
“Yeah, okay.” Anything to get me away from your deliciously naked body.
Once he’s safely behind the closed door of my bathroom, I can’t stop myself from walking into Izzy’s nursery to verify she’s okay with my own eyes. Not that I don’t trust Remy, but the maternal instinct is too strong to deny. I swear, I spent the first week of her life checking her every ten minutes to make sure I could see her chest rising and falling with breaths of air.
But I find her exactly where Remy said she was—sleeping inside her crib.
“Girlfriend, I’d really love to know why you refuse to do this for me, but for Remy, you’re all in,” I whisper down toward her, smiling at the way her eyelids flutter in her sleep. “I guess I can’t really blame you. He just has a way about him, huh?”
She doesn’t answer, but then again, she doesn’t have to. I wouldn’t be Mr. Miyagi-ing myself out of sexual thoughts every second and a half if Remington Winslow didn’t have a way about him.
Her eyelids flutter some more, but her eyes remain closed and her breathing steady. I’d say she’s going to be out for a while. Releasing the guilt, I pledge to savor the hour or so of calm before she wakes up so that I can be better and more present when she wakes up.
Back down the hallway, past the bathroom where my brain tries to remind me that a naked Remy resides, I head into the kitchen and make myself a fresh cup of coffee.
Man, what a strange turn of events the past twenty-four hours have been.
The past twenty-four hours? More like, the past year. I can hardly believe everything that’s happened in such a short amount of time. Everything I’ve gained, everything I’ve changed—everything I’ve lost.
I shake off the impending thoughts of grief and confusion. The last thing I want to do is turn into a blubbering mess thinking about my sister. And truthfully, I know that’s the very last thing she’d want for me, too.
“Hey, Maria.” Remy’s voice startles me out of my thoughts. I turn around to find him fully dressed and with his phone, wallet, and keys in his hand.
“Are you heading out?” I try to keep the question light, but I’m afraid the effort to do so makes me sound more like Screech from Saved By the Bell than easy-breezy. Why on earth am I feeling disappointed? Remy has a life of his own to live, and he’s been here all of yesterday and last night.
“I promised Lexi I’d take her to the Mavericks game today.”
“Oh, okay.” I force a smile to my lips. “That sounds like fun. I hope you have a good time.”
He steps into the kitchen and takes it upon himself to pull me into a hug. “Promise me, if you need me, you’ll call me.”
I lean back and look into his eyes. “I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
“Maria, I’m serious,” he says, still hugging me with his arms wrapped around my waist. “I don’t mind helping you and Izzy. It’s not a job, okay? I want to be there for you.”
When I don’t say anything, he reaches up to tap one gentle index finger against my nose. “I’m not leaving until you promise.”
“O-kay.” I roll my eyes. “I promise.”
“And what do you promise exactly?”
“Seriously, Rem?” I scoff, but he’s persistent, refusing to let me go until I acquiesce. “Fine,” I say through a sigh. “I promise I’ll call you if I need you.”
“Fantastic.” He places one soft kiss to my cheek and releases me.
I’m generally not the type of girl who goes back on her word, but I don’t know if that’s a promise I can keep. Remy shouldn’t have his life uprooted with emergency calls from me because my life is chaos.
No one deserves that. Especially not him.
And selfishly? I’m not so sure I’ll be able to stop myself from getting used to having him around.
