Page 78 of I Could Never
He pulled back to look at me, his hands wrapping around my face. I could barely make out his expression in the candlelight. Josh pressed his forehead gently against mine, and we just breathed together for a few moments. I suspected he understood why I’d freaked out so badly.
“Oh, man,” he whispered. “I’m sorry you were scared.”
With his face so close to mine, I ached for him to kiss me.
“I didn’t realize you would think something had happened to me,” he said, brushing his thumb along my cheek. “I couldn’t call you, and I was taking it slow. That’s why it took so long.”
“Josh...”
“What, baby?”
The sound ofbabyrolling off his tongue gave me butterflies.
“I’m just so glad you’re home.”
He spoke into my hair. “Me, too.”
I’d spent the last few weeks trying to deny my feelings for him, but everything came barreling to the surface tonight.
He finally let go of me and turned to Scottie, still sitting calmly on the couch. “How is he so quiet?”
“We had a good ninety minutes of major outbursts before he wiped himself out and decided to just play with his apps.”
Josh rubbed Scottie’s back. “That must have been so hard.”
“It was...but I handled it. I was more worried about you than anything else.”
Josh reached for my hand, and I sat down next to him, our fingers threaded together. It was a simple gesture, but felt very intimate.
“I’m sorry I scared you. I can only imagine how much it reminded you of the night Brad...” His voice trailed off.
“It did. That’s probably why I overreacted. But it wasn’t just about my trauma... I didn’t know what I would do if something happened to you.”
His eyes flickered in the candlelight. “When Scottie eventually gets a placement, and we go our separate ways, I want you to know, I won’t regret a second of this experience, Carly. It’s hard to believe I was ever dreading it.”
I squeezed his hand. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”
“Likewise, Pumpkin.”
A sudden burst of light broke us out of our private moment.
The electricity is back!
He looked around. “Holy shit!”
“Maybe the magic word waspumpkinall along! The second you said it, the lights came on.”
Scottie began to laugh hysterically and bounce up and down on the couch. He was so freaking happy and immediately logged on to YouTube.
Josh clapped his hands together. “I think we need to celebrate with some backwards Elton John and a bottle of wine. What do you say, Carly?”
“That sounds absolutely divine.”
Josh went outside to unload the pellets from my car. He refilled the stove and started a fresh fire.
As I reveled in the peace of knowing all was well again, I thought about how unexpected life can be. I’d always yearned for a sense of family. Having come from a broken home and being an only child, I’d always felt alone, despite my mother’s best efforts. The only real exception had been my time with Brad. But here, with this makeshift family, I felt far from alone. At least for the time being.
That night, before I went to sleep, I found a note from Josh by my bedside.