Page 78 of Man of Honor
“Keep talking like that, and I’m gonna think you’re the romantic in this relationship,” I teased.
He laughed. “I am.”
“Yeah, well…maybe it’s about time I gave you a run for your money.” My throat tightened, and I cleared it quickly, digging around in my pocket for the bottle I’d picked up from the pharmacy. I shook a pill into my palm and offered it to him. “Time for your meds, old man.”
“Keep calling me old man, and see what happens,” he muttered, popping the pill into his mouth and dry swallowing.
“Looking forward to it, sweetheart.” I kissed his forehead, letting my lips linger on his warm skin. His lips twitched faintly, and I chased that smile with a featherlight kiss at the corners of his mouth. At the last moment, he turned his head, catching me in a deeper, longer kiss than I’d intended.
“Careful,” I murmured, pulling back to brush my thumb against the healing split in his lip. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
“You never will,” Wyatt rasped.
“Never is a long time,” I said, smiling despite myself. “You sure about that?”
“We’ve got forever to find out.” Wyatt cupped my face, stroking my cheek and coaxing me down for another kiss. I allowed it, reveled in it, but when he tried to deepen the pressure, I pulled away. He growled, frustrated, and gripped me by the back of theneck, tugging me back down and slipping his tongue into my mouth.
“Mm.”I grunted and broke away, gently forcing him back against the pillows when he tried to chase me. “We’ve got forever, remember? No need to rush.”
“You’re a terrible nurse,” Wyatt muttered, giving me the evil eye.
“Better get used to it,” I shot back. “Because I’m not going anywhere.”
His gaze stayed locked on mine for a moment longer, then he sighed and tipped his head back, gazing up at the ceiling until his eyes drifted closed. His mouth was flushed and tipped up at the corners in a lingering smile, and his whole body relaxed into the mattress.
I stayed where I was, watching him breathe, hypnotized by the steady rhythm of his chest rising and falling.
Yeah, I was terrible at this. But I was learning. For him, I’d learn anything.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
WYATT
Late afternoon sunlightpoured through the overgrown trees, streaking the garden with patches of gold and shadow. It smelled like fresh-turned earth and the pungent scent of jasmine and magnolia. The garden was in full chaos, the good kind, humming with life and hope. The garden had been dead for decades, a patch of forgotten history overrun with weeds and rot, but now, it felt like it was waking up again.
Just like the rest of us.
Summer break had just started, and the kids were going stir crazy, so Gage had concocted a plan to put them to work. He was good at instinctively understanding what they needed. I relaxed on a smooth, sun-warmed stone bench, letting the heat ease the knots in my unused muscles.
Gage was pacing the garden like a drill sergeant, churning up damp earth as he cleared dead foliage from a flower bed. His jeans were streaked with mud, and his shirt clung damply to his chest from heat and exertion. His hair was a wild mess form where he kept pushing it back with his dirt-smudged hands.Every so often, he’d pause to direct the kids in that calm, commanding tone that somehow never frightened them.
“Worm! Be gentler, man. Those roots are still alive. If you rip them out, they’re not gonna grow back.”
“I know, I know,” Worm shot back, jamming his tongue against the corner of his mouth as he worked to free an azalea border from weeds. He was covered in nearly as much dirt as the plants and loving every minute of it.
Across the garden, Loretta supervised Ivy and the older boys as they pried up the rotten wood framing one of the paths. Gideon worked with Ben at the far end of the garden, clearing the remnants of an old trellis that had caved under the weight of wild vines. Ben was sweating like a pig but grinning ear to ear, clearly happy to be doing something productive after weeks of being cooped up in Colton Langford’s apartment. Langford himself was leaning against a tree, arms crossed, watching Ben with a possessive expression that made me uneasy.
I let out a slow breath and stretched. I hated being sidelined like this, sitting on the bench like some kind of invalid while everyone else worked. My body wasn’t healing nearly as fast as Gage’s had, but I supposed that was to be expected for any man past thirty. I’d been sidelined too long, but Gage had stepped up in ways I’d never expected.
It was little things, mostly: the way he made sure there was always water at my bedside, or how he’d fluff my pillow when he thought I was sleeping. When my vision was too blurry for screens, he’d sit at my bedside and read to me from random mystery novels he’d found lying around the house. I’d never felt so cared for, at least not since I was a kid. Part of me enjoyed it more than I’d ever admit, but my pride had still taken a hit.It rankled every time I was forced to sit on my hands and let someone baby me.
“You look like you’re about to pop,” Gage said, strolling over wearing a lopsided grin. His hands were on his hips and his shirt was riding up just enough to give me a glimpse of golden muscle. “I see that look in your eyes.”
“I never lose my cool,” I said, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah, sure,” he teased, swiping a hand across his brow and smearing a streak of dirt across his forehead. “You’re practically a Zen master, babe.”
I bit back a smile and tilted my head, snapping one arm out to catch him around the waist. I hauled him close and buried my face against his stomach. “You’re working them pretty hard,” I murmured into the scented cotton of his t-shirt. “You sure this is just about keeping their hands busy?”