AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Since I work in the medical field, I should’ve been more in tune with my body, and how I was feeling. It had not been smart to ignore the signs that had clearly been written on the wall for a while now.
It was just plain ass stupid.
Thinking about it caused my throat to clog with gut-wrenching emotion and my lungs to frantically search for much-needed air. But in order to take a single breath, Gyth’s mouth, which was hot, firm, and tasted like sin with a dash of peppermint mixed in, needed to release the demanding hold it had on mine. He was gorgeous and a good guy too, but that didn’t mean I was going to do a thing about it.
I had enough to worry about.
Like getting my health back under control.
Needing distance, I pushed on his chest and stepped back. His gaze never wavered from mine as he stared down at me, his eyes filled with a sheen of scorching lust, probably a mirror image of what mine resembled too, determination twinkling in their depths.
Shit, I’m in trouble.
I was pulled from my thoughts by a sweet and thoroughly puzzled-sounding, angelic voice. One that belonged to my honorary niece Embry.
“Mommy, why is Uncle Gyth sucking on Auntie Summer’s face?” she asked, letting out a cute high-pitched giggle as she kept talking, not waiting for an answer. “They look silly, like that fishy at the quarium we saw at the beach.” A chorus of chuckles vibrated simultaneously throughout the room, probably at her analogy of our situation, as well as her trying to say the word aquarium. Then my dear, but trouble-making best friend, Jurnee, responded to her daughter.
“Honey, I will explain it to you later,” she whispered, as a hushed silence then descended over the guests.
Breaking Gyth’s gaze that was still boring into my own, I reluctantly turned around to face the rest of the guests, finding numerous sets of amused, yet curious eyes that were taking in our earth-shattering, knee-shaking, interaction. This was all Jurnee’s fault for loudly bringing awareness to the damn mistletoe that hung above our heads.
Everyone had gathered here at Jurnee and Braxton’s home for Christmas Eve and it had been quite an event. Great food, gifts, the surprise announcement that she and Braxton were having a baby boy.
We’d known she was pregnant already, but they hadn’t said a word about finding out the sex. And to top it off, they had given their daughter, Embry, her official adoption papers. They were a precious, amazing family, and I was so flipping happy for them.
And maybe a tad jealous too if I’m being honest.
I’d always dreamed of finding the perfect man as one of my two best friends had and creating my own little family, but so far it hadn’t been in the cards for me. The guys my parents tried to push on me, the ones they deemed suitable and were all about money and status, were all a bighell nofor me.Between their world, which I’d had no desire to belong to, and school, meeting the guy of my dreams hadn’t been in the cards for me.
What man would want to deal with a twenty-four-year-old virgin with medical issues and over-the-top, not-so-friendly, snobby parents? My older brother, Landon, was a different story, and despite my parents having their hooks in him, he was an amazing guy. I just better not ever find out he’d hurt Alley, and yet something told me he already had, judging from how awkward they are acting around one another.But for me finding the right person was unlikely, even though a featherlight-whisper chanted,Gyth.
I needed to stay clear, but he wouldn’t let me.
So here I was, reeling from the most fabulous kiss of my life, and also feeling a bit out of place with the people I loved the most. Being around my friends was what I’d always cherished, but these days, it was something I dreaded at times too. It was hard not to when I felt like I was under a microscope and they were all watching me like hawks as if I’d break like fragile glass.
Which, some days I feel like I just might shatter.
Not wanting to ruin everyone’s night, but needing some space, I tucked my tail and ran without a backward glance. Knowing my time was limited before someone came searching for me, I ducked into the bathroom and locked the door.
I just pulled a Jurnee. She loves running for the john when she is nervous or full of anxiety.
I couldn’t blame her, it was the first place that came to mind when I needed to hide out, so she was definitely on to something. Plopping down on the closed, white, porcelain toilet lid, I dropped my elbow to my knees and laid my head in the palms of my hands, letting out a sigh. Nausea swam in my gut, reminding me that I wasn’t fine, but had been trying to put on a good show for months.
Never wanting to be a burden and scared to death about what was wrong with me, I hadn’t been truthful to my best friends and family.I’ve been lying to myself as well.Because even without an official medical diagnosis, I was almost sure a test would tell me what was wrong. The signs pointed in a clear direction, but I had been procrastinating on making an appointment when I finally realized it recently, and doing my best to wish it away wasn’t yielding any results.
Knock, knock, knock.
Groaning, I reluctantly lifted my head from my hands and leaned it back looking up to the ceiling as I let out another huge sigh, and mentally wished that whoever had just banged on the door would disappear if I didn’t answer.
No such luck.
Three more knocks persistently rapped against the wooden door. Then a low, gruff, but oh so tempting voice boomed through, causing a mixed chain reaction. It was a rush of heady desire, causing a case of wet panties, but also a tad of dread. The man was an ever-present thorn in my side these days with all the emotions he brought swirling to life inside me.
“Go away, Gyth,” I said, knowing full-well my request would fall on deaf ears. He never listened. Part of me wanted him to and the other half of me was scared to death he would finally take the hint.I’m a damn mess.
“Sunshine, open the door,” he said with a pleading, but authoritative, tone.
I can’t remember exactly when he’d started calling me Sunshine, but I secretly loved it. I couldn’t tell him that though, it would only encourage the man more. “I’m fine, go away,” I tried telling him again.
