the ground beneath my feet, and I’m not terrified of falling.”
Like me, I was sure she didn’t recognize the person she was becoming.
But there wasn’t a doubt in my mind when I gripped her even tighter and said, “You’re not capable of falling. Not even tripping. The only thing you’re going to do, baby, is fly.”
She carefully wrapped her arms around me, her chest aligned with mine, her exhales gusting against my neck.
I knew in that moment, no matter what my future looked like, I was going to be all right.
We stayed out on the balcony long after we finished eating the pizza I’d ordered, the first bottle of wine running dry and now onto our second. The air was getting chilly even though she had covered us in a blanket, and despite my wanting to stay up for hours, my body could feel the hardness of the day and how unforgiving this wheelchair could be.
“It’s time for bed, isn’t it?” she asked, my thoughts always so obvious to her.
I lifted my hand off her leg and held the back of her head, rubbing her neck with my thumb. “I just need to lie down; this has been a lot of sitting.”
“You’ve done wonderfully.” She got up and began pushing me inside. “I’ll get you settled, and then I’ll come back out and clean up.”
I reached behind me and grabbed her wrist. “The hell you will. My housekeeper will tackle it in the morning. I’m not letting you out of my sight tonight.”
She squeezed back, her embrace more affectionate than mine, and brought me into the master suite, where she parked me in front of the sink.
I took my toothbrush off the counter, staring at her from the mirror while I said, “Grab whatever you want to wear from my closet.”
I’d never brought any of the women I’d dated into my home. I had only stayed at their places and hotels—something I’d learned to do early on because most of my relationships only lasted a few months. Therefore, I wasn’t used to this step of the process.
I thought of what else she might need and added, “There’s plenty of extra toothbrushes in there,” pointing to the next set of cabinets. “Help yourself to anything.”
While she disappeared to get changed, I brushed my teeth and washed up, and then I rolled myself into the bedroom. As I rounded the corner, she was just exiting my closet in a T-shirt that she’d knotted at the waist, showing hints of her belly button, and a pair of my boxers.
“Hell yes,” I said, taking in her lean stomach and toned legs. “You look so hot.”
She pulled at the loose bottoms of the shorts. “They’re a little big.”
“But incredibly sexy on you.”
A blush crept across her cheeks. “Let me help you into bed.”
I knew I could do it on my own, something I’d practiced with my physical therapist, but I certainly wasn’t going to pass up having Whitney’s hands on me, the closeness of her body while she assisted. Once she got me under the comforter, she went into the bathroom, and I heard the sound of water turning on.
I was hitting the buttons on the tablet, dimming the lighting, when she finished and came out. Her skin shimmered as though it were wet. She walked toward me, her tits bouncing, braless in my shirt.
Fuck me.
She climbed onto the other side of my bed, sliding over until her head rested on my bare chest.
I reached into her hair, the softness of her locks falling over me. “I could get used to this.”
I took my time in massaging her scalp, gradually shifting to her face, tracing her lips. She glanced up at me, a hunger so deep in her eyes.
“Whitney … I don’t know how to navigate my limitations. The old me would have had you naked and pinned against the wall right now.”
“Is that what you want?” She leaned onto her elbow. “To have me naked?” She held the knot at the bottom of her shirt, as though she were about to loosen it.
“Yes.”
“I know your restrictions, and I think we both know how careful and gentle I can be.”
She got onto her knees, slowly lifting the cotton over her head.
“Fuck,” I groaned as I stared at her beautiful tits, big enough to wrap my hands around.
My thumb swiped the hardness of her nipple, and she moaned as I pinched the end and again when I moved to the other side, doing the same. I