Theo
CHIROPRACTIC CARE
Wednesday Morning
I stood in the reception area, waiting as May eyed me from her seat. “You can’t treat me because of a scheduling mix-up?”
“Mike knows what he’s doing. Don’t worry, you’re in good hands.”
“I don’t want good hands; I want your hands.” May grinned up at me, and I had to admit, I walked right into that one.
“I can’t blame her.” Mia’s voice drifted into the room. “Your hands are pretty magical.”
All the tension seeped out of me the second she stepped in. It was so fucking good to see her.
She wore a powder-blue dress with small yellow flowers on it. It hung from her shoulders, nipped in at her waist, and flared out, stopping mid-thigh. Already, I was thinking of all the ways I could slide it down her body.
Mia threw out a quiet, “Hi,” and looked away. I caught the slight blush on her cheeks as she walked ahead of me.
I wanted to lift her into my arms and carry her to my room. Instead, I watched her hips sway as she moved. As soon as she set foot in my office, I caught the edge of the door and slammed it shut.
She turned to face me and held out her hands. “Listen, I might’ve saaaauhh–”
I gripped her by the back of her thighs, lifting her onto me. Her legs wrapped around my waist, and I braced her back against the door. I loved the way her dress hitched higher along her thighs, the way her body melted into mine, the feel of her gasp against my mouth. I loved all of it.
“Theo,” she breathed. “We need to talk.”
But I couldn’t wait another second. My mouth was on hers, taking in the full curve of her bottom lip. She locked her arms around my neck, fingers threading through my hair, prickling my scalp as I pushed deeper between her legs.
She broke away and dragged her teeth along my throat.
I groaned. “There’s a shower... I have a private bathroom.”
She laughed softly, her breath tickling my neck. “Aren’t you supposed to treat me first?”
I knew this would happen the minute I left that voicemail on her phone telling her I’d swapped her appointment from Mike to me. I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep my hands off of her, but I also knew I couldn’t take the thought of Mike treating her either.
She unwrapped her legs from me, dropping to the ground as I held her waist. I wasn’t willing to let her go just yet. I wanted another minute where it was just us. Just her and me, finally alone.
She didn’t fight me. Instead, she stayed in my arms and slid her hands to my chest as she said, “This isn’t going to work if Kira hates me.”
“She won’t hate you.”
She looked at me like I’d just said something stupid. “She already does. I spoke to her yesterday–”
I cut her off with a groan. “What did you do?”
“I told her that how I feel about you has nothing to do with how I feel about her.”
“And how do you feel about my daughter?”
She gave me another you’re so daft look. “Well, obviously, I care about her. And if she wants me to leave you alone, then–”
“No.” I tightened my hold on her. “We’re not doing that.”
She clamped her lips shut and waited. The slight wrinkle between her brows made me want to kiss her doubts away. “Mia, we both know this is more than just sex.”
Her gaze flitted over my face as she asked, “Are you sure?”
“Yes. I’m in love with you.”
Her eyes went wide. Her lips lifted like she was fighting a smile.
“I… love is a little strong, isn’t it? I mean, we just… it was one weekend–”
“I’ve been falling for you for months, and I’ve been struggling with it since. I don’t want to pretend that I don’t feel this anymore.”
She bit her bottom lip and stared at me.
“Mia, I want you. Like I’ve never wanted anything else in my life. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.”
“But we don’t even know that much about each other,” she reasoned, and it felt like she was looking for something that could explain this away. But I knew how I felt about her. I needed her to know it too.
“I want to know more. I want to know everything about you.”
She frowned and looked away.
My tongue suddenly felt too big for my mouth, but I managed, “If you don’t feel the same, I–”
“No. That isn’t it. I mean, I obviously have feelings for you.”
She chewed her bottom lip, and I was suddenly, completely, totally, fucking elated.
“And I want to be with you, but I’m worried about Kira.”
I was grinning like an idiot. I put my forehead to hers. “Then we’ll figure this out. Kira will be fine.”
Ending this would be the biggest mistake of my life. And even though she was confused and hurt right now, I knew Kira wouldn’t want me to make that mistake.
She would want me to be happy. She just needed time.
Mia sighed and thumped her head on my chest. Her voice was muffled by my shirt as she said, “I hate this. Kira is miserable, and it’s my fault. If I didn’t drag you to that bookstore, none of this would’ve happened.”
“We’ll work it out. It’ll be okay.”
“Are you sure? I mean, really sure? Kira is your whole world. I know that. Is being with me worth it? I don’t know if I can act like–”
“Mia,” I gently cut her off. “I know my daughter, and she’ll come around. We just need to give her time.”
She grunted into my shirt as I kissed the top of her head.
“But you’d better get on my table before May figures out what we’re really doing in here.”
She dragged herself away, and this time, I let her go. Once she was arranged on the table, I put her through her routine. When we were done, I helped her up and held her hand as we walked into the hallway.
She hesitated, then put her head on my arm, and I let her. I didn’t care about the odd looks we’d get in reception.
But what I did care about was the shocked, slack stare my daughter pinned me with.
Fuck.
Kira stood in the waiting area, still wearing her navy school uniform. Her backpack slipped from her shoulder, landing on the ground with a small thud. Her face was slack, mouth open like she’d just seen something from a horror movie.
And I couldn’t blame her.
Mia pulled her hand from mine and stepped back. I didn’t try to stop her. Instead, I saw what Kira must have seen. All the shit she was dealing with, all the shit that was my fault, was right here in front of her, in one of the only places she felt safe.
Guilt strained my chest. This was the kind of thing I was supposed to protect her from.
“Kira, I know how this looks. But we should talk about this.”
Kira’s eyes narrowed, and I didn’t like it, but I liked the edge in her voice even less. “I don’t want to talk to either of you.”
“Fine.” I could see where this was going, and this wasn’t the time or place for it. “Then wait for me in my office.”
She pressed her lips together, grabbed her bag, and stomped between Mia and me, muttering, “I knew you didn’t give a shit about me,” as she went.
The whole thing lasted only a few seconds, but the look on Mia’s face–she looked like she’d just been slapped.
“She must’ve left school early,” I said, reaching for her hand. “I’ll talk to her.”
But when Mia met my gaze, something changed. She turned and stared at the door my daughter disappeared through.
“God. Am I that stupid?”
Surprised, I tugged on her hand. “What?”
She pulled away from me, muttering, “I actually thought we could do this.”
“We can.”
She shook her head. “No. This isn’t going to work.”
My heart picked up speed as I studied her face. “What do you mean?”
Mia waved a hand at my office door. “Kira. She thinks I–Theo, I can’t do this. Not if it hurts her this much.” She spoke more to herself than to me as she said, “I can’t believe I thought we could.”
A hot, slimy feeling settled in the pit of my stomach. I gestured for her to follow me outside, then shut the door to my practice. A few curious patients turned in their chairs to watch us through the glass, so I stepped back until we were out of sight.
This time, Mia let me touch her. I held her shoulders and stared into her face. She met my eyes, looking so miserable that it stunned me.
“Just give it some time,” I said, my voice low. “She’ll be fine.”
Mia shook her head, her eyes now glassy. “I can’t act like this is something she’ll just get over.”
I tried again. “Let’s take a breath here. This photo thing only just happened.”
I slid my hands down her arms, trying to comfort her, but she stepped back, hugging herself as she said, “I don’t think that’s what this is. I think she–I’m sorry, but I can’t.”
She turned to leave, and I wrapped a hand around her elbow. “Hey. We can figure this out.”
We could get through this. We just needed a chance. She had to know that.
She bit her lip and eased out of my grip. Her hands were… shaking. This had hit her harder than I realized.
“She hates me,” she said, her voice strained. “I want to pretend it’s going to be okay, but it isn’t. She’s your daughter. I can’t be with you if she doesn’t want me to be.”
“Mia, wait, no. I want you. I love you.”
Her glassy eyes spilled over. She started sobbing. Tears trailed down her cheeks. I’d never seen her cry before. It ruined me. Acting on impulse, I pulled her into my arms and let her hide her face in my shirt.
I spoke into her hair. “Hey. It’ll be okay.”
She shook her head.
“Right now, it isn’t,” she sniffed. “And I don’t know what else to do. I don’t want to hurt her any more than I already have, and this is the only thing I can do to make it okay.”
It came on fast. Panic pulsed inside me. I felt desperate. Like I wanted to pick her up, throw her over my shoulder, and find a way to make her stay.
But I couldn’t think of a thing to say. I kept reaching for words and coming up short. I could feel her here, in my arms, under my fingertips, but somehow, it felt like she was slipping away.
I had to do something. I needed to do something.
But instead, I stood there, mind racing, chest pounding. I was losing her, and I couldn’t even fucking stop it.
My grip on her was tight as she murmured into my shirt, “We can’t do this. Not if it hurts Kira.”
Two Weeks Later
Rochelle’s Apartment
Friday Night
“When do we get our results?” Kira whispered to Miles.