Love Like Her (Against All Odds #3) - Claudia Y. Burgoa Page 0,27

a timeline. He should be sitting up by tomorrow afternoon. He’ll stay in the Cardiac Care Unit for a couple of days before being taken to his room. They are going to discharge him five days after he leaves the CCU. Liv and Dan begin to make plans. She’s taking over the company while he’ll be in charge of Otto’s recovery.

Around five, they’re allowed to see Otto. We stay at the hospital until eight when Dan makes us go away.

“Thank you for today,” Liv says when we enter her apartment. “I don’t know what I would’ve done without you.”

I caress her forehead with my thumb. “I don’t like to see you frown.”

She smiles. “You’re leaving tomorrow.”

I shake my head. “No. I’m staying for a couple of weeks.”

“Why?”

“Because I need you to be okay before I leave,” I explain, crushing my mouth against hers.

This time, I don’t hold back like I did in the hospital. I have this need to absorb her. She kisses me back just as hungrily. The craving is mutual, but is she in the right state of mind?

“Liv.” I rest my forehead on top of hers. “We have to stop.”

I’m aching. I want her so much, but this time I don’t want to fuck things up like I did when we met.

“Why?”

“I don’t want to take advantage of you,” I say.

“I’m not eighteen anymore,” she claims. “Please, don’t make me feel like a fool.”

“I want to do the right thing,” I insist.

“Then erase everything that happened today,” she pleads. “Let this be the only memory I have of this day. You’re good at it.”

I take her mouth. Our tongues twist together like old friends who haven’t seen each other. Two lovers who had to be apart for so long but are finally together. It feels like it’s been a lifetime, maybe billions of years since the last time we were like this. Today, I want to make up for the time we wasted. Why is it that I have this big pull toward her?

Chapter Fourteen

Olivia

The days that follow Dad’s heart attack aren’t as exhausting as the doctor told us. I guess it’s because Eros stays with us. It’s been nice to have another person to lean on during these dark times. More so when we spend some time together either planning his business or having sex. Who knew both could be so gratifying, fun, and relaxing?

Dan, Eros, and I take turns being with Dad while he’s in the CCU. By Saturday evening, they discharge him from there and transfer him to a regular room. If we’re lucky, he’ll go home by Wednesday.

“Otto is settled in, resting. Why don’t you guys take the night off?” Dan suggests.

“It’s my turn to stay with him,” Eros says with a voice between a warning, a protest, and an order. He’s cute when he tries to be in charge—and hot. “You need to go home and rest, Dan.”

“We have an extra bed here,” Dan points at the cot that’s next to Dad’s bed. “I want to stay with him. I appreciate you guys, but I need to be with him.”

Eros smiles. “I understand. My parents would be requesting the same if the other one was in a hospital bed.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow after lunch. Maybe you can stay with him for a couple of hours while I go home to get another change of clothes,” he says.

“Are you sure, Dan?”

He bobs his head. “Positive, sweetheart.” He looks at Eros. “Why don’t you guys go out and have some fun. This boy has been here for several days, and you’ve only shown him the inside of a hospital.”

“It’s a fine hospital, sir,” Eros jokes.

We say goodbye to Dad and Dan before heading to the car.

“Where do you want to go?” Eros asks, opening the passenger door for me.

“Home?”

“That’s what I was thinking.” He gives me a mischievous look, hugs my waist, and presses me close to him. “I can eat you first, and then we can order some takeout.”

He kisses me like he’s never kissed me before. I’m getting used to having him with me all the time. In a way, I wish he had gotten the job. We could’ve been a lot more than just roommates. I avoid thinking about his departure and our future. Like Dad told me before his surgery, live every moment and don’t obsess about the future.

So, this is me, just giving in to the kiss, the night, and the next days with Eros. But how I wished