16. Ruth
Chapter sixteen
Ruth
Ruth
I sighed into the hot bath, shivering as it scalded my sensitive skin. I didn’t have a huge bathtub, and it was an outdated, mauve color, but oh , it was heaven. My entire body had felt itchy and tight like I was covered in a thin film of dried-on glue. The sticky feeling melted away as I eased deeper into the bubble-filled water. I had my right leg propped up on the side of the bathtub, and I closed my eyes, letting my shoulders relax. I could have sworn I hadn’t relaxed one bit since Cal had been here. I hadn’t heard from Vaughn again, thankfully, but the stress of knowing that Cal had swooped in to rescue me from the state I’d been in was enough to make me scrunch my features in discomfort.
I cracked open my eyelids and stared at my bandaged knee. I couldn’t put it in the bath because he’d had to stitch the spot where he’d made an incision. Cal. The doctor. He’d been here and had not only potentially saved my life but had fixed my knee and then just vanished.
Poof . Like a sexy fairy godmother with abs.
I swiped my fingers under my glasses and over my eyes. It didn’t feel real… again . Like Cal was some sort of bizarre mirage that had appeared in my life to torment me with the promise of what I could never have, he kept showing up in all his perfection and then disappearing from my world again. The only reason I knew I hadn’t fever-dreamed the whole thing was because he had texted me last night and then again today. He’d also sent a nurse to take my vitals and remove my IV lock this morning. Although I hadn’t seen him—he’d had to catch up on all his patients he’d delayed helping me—he made sure to pester me.
Cal:
You’re supposed to take amoxicillin with food. Don’t forget.
Ruth:
Is diet cola a food?
Cal:
I know you know the answer to that but I still feel compelled to say it. No.
Ruth:
*angel emoji *
Cal:
Did Gemma come over?
Ruth:
She showed up right after you did.
Cal:
Is she… helpful?
Ruth:
This is Gemma. *middle finger emoji*
Cal:
Swamped today, but 3x a day. Pls don’t forget.
Ruth:
What if I forget?
Cal:
I’ll stab u again.
Ruth:
You said that was romantic. Maybe I want to get stabbed.
Cal:
Are you asking me to romance you?
Ruth:
*dead* No. Delete that.
Cal:
*Evil emoji* You did it now, Shortstop.
Cal:
I’ll be there tonight.
I sighed, staring at that last message on my phone. I scrolled up and down our short history of messages, playing with the screen idly. He was coming tonight, but did that mean like…?
I smacked my forehead with my phone. “You are such a moron,” I muttered. I put my phone on the side of the tub and sank down lower until only my nose peeked above the water. At least when he checked on my knee and ensured I was still alive I would smell like “sea breeze” or whatever.
A message from Cal appeared suddenly.
Cal:
Is Gemma there?
Ruth:
No, why?
Cal:
Wrong answer. Unless you haven’t moved at all?
Ruth:
It doesn’t even hurt anymore.
Cal:
Are you in the bath??
I gasped sitting up and sloshing some of the water over my propped-up leg. I looked around the bathroom like I would find Cal squeezed behind the toilet tank. I tapped out a rapid response.
Ruth:
Where are u?
Cal:
Living room. ARE U?
“Cal!” I shouted, scowling. “This is incredibly creepy.”
Footsteps sounded, coming from the living room toward the bathroom door. Suddenly, his muffled voice said, “You aren’t supposed to be in the bath.”
“I kept my leg out… also what are you doing ?”
A bag rustled. “I brought dinner. I did say I was coming.”
“At night!” I nearly screeched. “It’s four-thirty. And give my key back.”
“No,” he said with obvious amusement in his voice.
“Cal,” I growled. I reached forward to unplug the drain. “Wait in the living room. I’ll be there in a seco—”
“Ruth, let me help you,” he said with a note of censure.
“That’s a ‘hell no.’” I grappled for the towel I’d folded on the floor next to the bath. “Don’t you dare.”
“If you hit your head, I’ll really have to take you to a hospital,” he pointed out. The door creaked like he’d leaned against it. “I’ll close my eyes if you’re that worried.”
I struggled to get out of the bath. It was harder than I’d expected. The swelling in my knee had gone down almost entirely, but the tenderness around the stitches remained, and they tugged painfully as I leveraged myself up to sit on the edge of the tub. I hurried to wrap the towel around my body and then I lifted myself to a half-standing position on one leg.
Cal suddenly added, “I’m just going to get you naked later, anyway.”
I started, and the motion threw me off balance. With a screech, I grabbed the shower curtain. I went down with a loud thunk and then the clatter of the shower curtain hooks as they popped off the shower rod sang through the small bathroom. I landed hard on my ass in the half-full tub. The curtain broke the worst of my fall, and I managed to keep my leg up, but the curtain and rod popped clean off the wall and fell on top of me.
The door flew open, and before I could even gasp in shock at the absurdity of what had just happened, the curtain was wrenched away from me. Cal dove his hands into the tub, and with one swift move had me out and in his arms. He’d swept one arm under my knees and the other around my torso and had me in a fireman’s carry. We both splashed water all over the floor as he backed away from the tub, and I grabbed his shoulders in mute surprise. “Straighten your leg,” he scowled.
I did, staring up at him in disbelief through a smattering of water that had clouded my glasses. His bright, spring green eyes glanced at my face and then over to my knee. “Are you hurt?”
“No,” I gusted out.
With a sigh, he backed out of the bathroom. Dripping water everywhere, he carried me across the hall to my bedroom, and it was only when the cool A/C air hit my nipples that I realized I’d lost my towel. I rotated a horrified look down.
Yep. Naked.
I slapped my right arm around my breasts and kept my left hooked around the back of Cal’s neck as he carried me across my small bedroom. It had the same beige carpet as the rest of the house, and it was barely big enough for my full bed that had been wedged against the far wall. I had one window to the left and another above my headboard, and with the blinds pulled up, bright summer sunlight bathed the tiny space in a gold wash. My closet to the right had been left open, and clothing spilled out from it, falling off the open shelves. I didn’t have room for a dresser in the eight-foot by eight-foot bedroom, so I kind of lived in a state of near-constant clothing disaster. The wooden chair I had butted up against the wall usually served as another clothing hanger, and my pants dangled from its back.
Cal set me down on my wheat-colored comforter, and I immediately reached for the disheveled knit throw at its foot so I could wrap it around my wet body. Cal’s sleeves were soaked, and as he stood, he peered at them before raising his eyebrows at me. “I told you it wasn’t safe.”
I spluttered, trying to simultaneously keep the blanket in place and wipe my glasses with it so I could see again. “This was your fault! I was fine until you said you were going to get me naked.”
Cal looked like some sort of bronze statue with his hair burnished copper in the warm sunlight and his freckles illuminated over his summer-kissed skin. He had on the same green, linen button-down he’d worn when we’d first met, and although he must have come from work, he had that slightly disheveled look that signaled he was ready for the weekend. His eyes skipped down my body and back to my eyes. “I fucked your mouth with my tongue yesterday. That surprises you?”
My face flamed. “You can’t just say things like that.”
“I can if I mean it,” he replied with a twitch of one eyebrow. He peered at his sleeves again, and then with a shrug, he undid the top button of his shirt.
I clapped a hand over my eyes. “What are you doing, Cal?”
“What are you doing?” he asked with a laugh in his voice. “I’m just taking off my shirt so I can dry it.”
I peeked through my fingers. He finished unbuttoning the shirt, and after untucking it, he shucked it off. He had a white undershirt on, and his biceps stretched the hem of his short sleeves in a fascinating way. Lamely, I added, “You can’t undress when I’m already undressed.”
Cal inhaled slowly, watching me with quiet amusement. Deliberately, he dropped his shirt to the floor, gaze hooked on mine. And then, just as calmly, he leaned over me. He eased his body onto the bed, propping his right knee on the edge of the mattress, and bent down so his hands bracketed me on either side. I leaned all the way back, flattening myself to the bed as he covered me in his warmth and the intoxicating scent of coconut and something fresh and male. My heart went haywire as I stared up at him in surprise .
Cal dipped his head, scanning my face. “Would you rather have done it for me?”
He was so close, I could see the freckles that swept over his nose and the way his eyelashes lightened at the tips. I swallowed convulsively, my hands over my breasts. “I’m genuinely confused right now,” I admitted.
His gaze flicked up, like he was searching for patience, and then he returned his focus to my startled features. “Do you want me to leave?”
“No,” I said immediately.
He brought his left leg on the bed, fully bracketing my body with his. His knees pressed into my bare hips, and his toned arms imbued my shoulders with warmth. He tilted his head in question. “How do you feel when I’m this close?”
My heart leaped into my throat. Like my body was smarter than my mind, my back arched to get closer to him, and my chin lifted to angle my lips to his. “I like it,” I admitted in a breathy voice.
“Then why,” he asked, his voice low and his gaze gentle, “would you be confused?”
Good question. “Because… you’re you. And I’m me.”
Cal lowered his lips to my jawline, and his warm breath tickled my skin. A small, satisfied shiver raced down my arms. His lips moved against my jaw as he traced a line up to my cheekbone. “Well, I desperately want to reveal every inch of that gorgeous body with my teeth because you are fucking irresistible, Ruth. There is nothing confusing about that unless you would rather I didn’t.”
I sucked in a breath, and it stalled in my lungs. I didn’t have words. No one had ever said anything like that to me. What was the catch? What was I missing?
He kissed the apple of my cheek before skating his lips up to my temple where my glasses slashed across my face. “Do you want me to stop?”
I shook my head, speechless.
“Good to know.” He pushed away from me, elbows straightening and face lifting over me again. He looked warm and content, smiling softly. “How is your knee?”
“Better,” I whispered hoarsely.
“Fever?”
I shook my head, still dazed. “No.”
“Dizziness? Headaches?”
“Uh-uh,” I said with another shake of my head.
Cal carefully maneuvered himself off the bed so he didn’t knock my knee, and holding a hand out palm up, he said, “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”
I gestured to my body. “Can I at least get dressed?”
His answering look before he left the room was unyielding. “Don’t you dare.”
“Jesus,” I muttered, my face so hot, I was surprised I hadn’t steamed up the bedroom.
When he returned, Cal had his brown leather medical bag in his hand. He cleared off the chair I kept by the wall, then set it down facing the long edge of my full bed. He sat in it and patted his lap. “Let’s see your knee.”
I shifted so I sat on the edge of the mattress, and careful not to jar my throbbing leg, I lifted it for him. Cal took my calf in his warm hands, and I almost moaned out loud. His hands were magic. They felt so firm and solid as he cupped the back of my knee with one and pulled apart the dressing with the other. I did my best to keep the blanket around my body, but it pooled at the crease between my legs and left my sides bare. I held it with my left hand and supported my weight behind me with my right.
Cal removed the damp bandage with practiced ease. I watched him in silent fascination as his muscles bunched and shifted with each movement of his arms. I really loved the sharp focus that took over his gaze when he turned his attention to his work. I’d noticed it yesterday when he’d helped me—he went into “doctor mode,” and it was captivating to watch. He bent his head to the side, examining the stitch along the side of my knee, and his fingers gently probed the tender flesh. I gritted my teeth to keep from jerking away, but it hurt like a son of a bitch.
His green eyes flickered up to mine briefly. “Stop pretending it doesn’t hurt.”
“Stop poking at it,” I gritted out.
Not heeding me, he pressed against the area the sliver had been, and I jerked. “I think I got it all out,” he murmured. “And it does look good. You’re taking your antibiotics?” I nodded, wishing he would leave the damn thing alone. It was throbbing again, reminding me that the angry tissue had been sorely abused. Cal’s touch gentled, and he smoothed his thumb along my shin below it, distracting me from the pain. “It does look much better.”
“Are you going to stop fussing about it?” I teased.
Cal gave me an implacable look. “No.”
A long-since buried emotion poked its head out from the ashes of my decimated hopes. That feeling of being cared for. It trilled in my chest, filling me with warmth and caressing my heart. I sat up, carefully pulling my leg away from Cal’s hands, and I fixed the blanket, which had ridden up to the crease in my legs. A droplet of water fell from one of my drenched curls, and it slid down my shoulder.
Cal watched me, his gaze practically heating the air between us. He had his hands resting on his strong thighs, and he tilted his head. “Come here.”
Apprehension and excitement ricocheted inside of me like a drum roll. I knew if I said no, or if I demurred in any way, Cal would drop it. But he was watching me with a quiet intensity that told me he knew—he knew I would. He knew I wanted to, and the barely leashed heat in his gaze told me he wanted it just as badly as I did.
I stood slowly, and the knit throw drooped over my curves, doing little to preserve any real modesty. I lifted myself onto my left leg and keeping the weight off my right, I leaned into him. Taking that as permission, Cal braced his hands on the bare sides of my waist. He eased me onto his lap, and I realized as I straddled him, putting our faces nearly level, this was an ideal position for my aching knee to rest to the side without pressure on the joint. That was so like Cal; he thought of things before I could even consider them a problem.
But it also spread my legs wide, and even with a blanket between us, I found myself blushing at how clearly it exposed me to his gaze. I knew it wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen only minutes before, but I sank my teeth into my bottom lip and met his eyes tentatively. Cal reached up and pulled down on my chin until my lip released. “That’s mine. Stop biting it.”
I started to laugh, but then he framed my face with his strong hands, and his lips captured mine in a silky soft kiss. I melted, bracing my hands on his shoulders and angling my hips into him. As if to prove his point, he sucked my bottom lip between his teeth, and the heat between my legs clenched as I thought of his tongue giving me the same treatment where I ached the most. The hard length of his arousal pressed between my open legs, and I angled my hips down to meet his need for need.
Suddenly, the memories of my past sexual experiences surfaced, and I tensed. I tried to give myself over to the feel of his lips on mine, on the way he traced my teeth with his tongue and claimed my mouth. But unbidden, I was reminded of why this wouldn’t go well. It wouldn’t be as fun as Cal expected.
Like he had to force himself out of a trance, Cal broke our kiss to graze his teeth up to my cheek. “Tell me why you look like you’re on the threshold of a haunted maze.”
I screwed my eyes shut, and my fists tightened around his shoulders. “It’s not you.”
“Oh, very convincing,” he murmured with a hint of humor. He removed my glasses, and with utmost care, he leaned over to set them on my cheap, plastic side table. Even with my vision blurred, I made out the concern on his features. He held my face loosely between his hands. “Tell me, Shortstop.”
I clicked my tongue, rolling my eyes. It probably was better to get it out in the open. “Sex isn’t all that fun with me, I think.”
“Who told you that?” he asked with a hint of lethality that surprised me.
“No one. It’s just what I discovered on my own. I—” I scrunched my face, almost too embarrassed to continue. Out with it, Ruth. Come on. He deserves to know. “I take too long. Like… forever. You’ll probably get frustrated.”
“Ah,” he breathed out. His thumbs stroked my cheekbones. “I see.” He sighed. “You’re right. I don’t think we can have sex in that case.”
I froze, staring at him in shock. It was what I had suggested but…
“Ruth.” He tightened his hold, angling my eyes to his. “Can you see me alright?”
I nodded, my throat tight. “My vision isn’t that bad. I’m mostly far sighte—”
“Then look at me.” His eyes had darkened like a misty pine forest. “I will fuck you sideways, upside-down, and counterclockwise from now until sunup if that’s how long it takes to satiate you. Don’t think for one second it matters how long I get to tease you to orgasm. You’ll get there, and I’ll enjoy every fucking second. ”
My jaw went slack. “Uh…”
He reached around with his right hand, and flattening it against the small of my back, he pressed me down on his erection. “You just told me I get to fuck you longer. And you think that’s a bad thing?”
It had seemed inconvenient to others . But the way Cal was looking at me, I didn’t have much choice but to believe him. And I had a pretty good idea that he was going to put his money where his mouth was. Or… his mouth where his mouth was. I didn’t know what to say, but I dipped a look between us, and the sight of his lean body under my soft thighs sent a gush of desire straight between my legs. “If you’re sure,” I breathed out. Please, God, let him be sure. To lighten the moment, I added, “You seem awfully confident.”
“I am confident,” he said with a crooked grin.
I puffed out a laugh, relaxing in his arms. “It’s all your experience with anatomy, right? Doctor Reed.”
Cal got a funny kind of look on his face. His eyes traveled all over my features, dipping down to the drooping blanket over my breasts, and back up. “That’s… a good point. I do understand anatomy. Would you like a lesson, Shortstop?”