“I was so embarrassed when it happened, convinced you were going to fire me, but you didn’t. You were so cool about it. You must have thought I was a complete nutter.”

King shook his head. “It was endearing. You were like a breath of fresh air. I loved how impulsive you were. It made me want to be around you.”

We locked eyes, and I knew I’d done all I could with the shampoo, so I began to rinse it out. I noticed a few lesions on his scalp, and a bit of redness, but they’d heal fine so long as he kept up a decent hygiene regime. It was his cough I was worried about.

“Have you given any more thought to seeing a doctor?” I asked gently, taking advantage of his momentary good mood.

“Would it make you happy if I did?” His eyes flickered back and forth between mine.

“Yes,” I answered.

Determination formed in his gaze, and I knew my not coming to see him yesterday had given him a fright, made him realise he didn’t want to lose me. “Then I’ll go.”

I opened my mouth, closed it. It was hard to find words for a second, and then I finally found the perfect ones. I hoped he heard my gratefulness. “Thank you.”

I continued rinsing his hair then, and felt his hand come to rest on my hip. He left it there, and neither one of us commented on it. Warmth suffused my skin, radiating out from where he touched me. Once I’d wrung out all the excess water, I pulled the towel from his shoulders and wrapped it around his wet hair until it sat in a bundle atop his head. We shared a moment of eye contact as I laced my fingers through his and pulled him up to stand.

Leading him out into the living area, I brought him to the couch and sat him down while I went to rummage in my bag for a hairbrush. Then I came and lowered myself to sit beside him. I pulled the towel from his hair, let it fall around his shoulders, and scrunched it dry before I started brushing out the tangles. King sat there all the while, still as a statue, and allowed me to groom him. The act was so simplistic in its intimacy. He was turned away from me, and I’d just about finished when he suddenly moved, his eyes meeting mine.

I startled when I saw his tears and gasped when he suddenly grabbed me, pulling me into a desperate embrace. The speed at which he moved was shocking, but the tenderness of his actions stopped my heart. He rested his head on my stomach, and I couldn’t find my voice. He was open to me in that moment, laid bare, and his vulnerability provoked tears of my own. His breathing was deep, the rise and fall of his chest heavy, as I brought my hands to his hair and started to stroke.

I felt his face move and realised he’d placed a kiss on my stomach over the fabric of my top. I swallowed deeply, unsure whether I should touch him back or allow him to take the lead. His hand came to the soft part of my belly and began to push up the hem of my top until it revealed skin. The old, faded lines of the stretch marks I’d gotten when I was pregnant with Oliver were a stark reminder of everything I still had to tell him. I couldn’t stop him, though, didn’t want to, and he didn’t seem to draw the connection between the little silver lines and the fact I might be a mother. He simply marvelled at my skin, like it was a thing of wonder.

He started to stroke me, almost reverently, and every pore on my body drew tight. His hand was warm and big and manly, and I loved the feel of his callused fingers on my soft skin. I lay back, completely still, and allowed him to find his own way, go as far as he was comfortable. But he didn’t try anything else, seemed content to simply run his hands over my bare stomach and concentrate on the movement of his fingers.

After a long time, his hands stopped and his eyes fell shut. I closed mine, too. I only realised we’d both fallen asleep when the buzzing of my phone startled me awake. King still slept, but I managed to reach inside my pocket to check my text without waking him.

It was a message from Elaine, asking when I’d be home. I had to go, but I didn’t want to leave. I wanted to go back to sleep, lie here with King for hours, and just feel the peace of being with him. Unfortunately, life had other ideas. His breathing was loud and steady, with a little bit of a rattle. It reminded me that he’d agreed to see the doctor, and my heart felt suddenly lighter.

As quiet as a mouse I slipped out from under him and left the camper, and almost walked straight into Jack as I was leaving.

“Oh, my God, you gave me a fright,” I whispered loudly, my hand going to my chest.

He seemed awkward. “Sorry. I get that a lot.”

“You’re one of those big men with silent feet, huh?” I went on.

Unexpectedly, Jack smiled. He was gorgeous when he smiled. Well, he was already gorgeous, but he frowned a lot. It made him seem closed off. The only time I’d really seen him smile was when he was with Lille or his brother.

“Yeah, you could say that,” he agreed.

I glanced back toward the camper. “King’s inside sleeping, but listen, he’s told me he’ll go see a doctor. I work during the day, so I won’t be able to take him. Do you think you could do it? Maybe make an appointment for tomorrow.”

He nodded. “Sure. I’ll take care of it.”

“Thank you. Oh, and there’s another thing. Do you know that he used to play the piano?”

Jack shook his head. “No, but I did know that his mother played.”

“That’s right. Well, King used to play, too. Music meant a lot to him, and I’ve bought tickets for a concert I want to take him to see. I think it’ll be good for him to hear a live orchestra again, therapeutic maybe, but I’m not sure I can handle taking him alone. So, do you think you and Lille could come along?”