Overexposed

Ch. 25 Progress

He stood up with a grunt before offering his hands to help her up. She considered them for a moment before putting her hands in his. His strong arms pulled her to her feet slowly. She wobbled a bit, grabbing onto his forearms to steady herself. His dark eyes met hers for a moment, concern written all over his face. "You good?"

Her heart sputtered in her chest. God, why did he have to be so goddamn attractive? "Y-yeah. I'm good. Thanks," she said, straightening up a bit and standing on her own.

"Here," he said, grabbing her crutches and handing them to her.

Chloe thanked him softly before shifting a bit. She held in her breath for a moment and looked up at him. "I can...I can clean up your hands if you want," she offered quickly.

The corner of his mouth moved just the slightest bit, threatening a smile, and she blushed. One of their first solo interactions had been when she patched up his hands after he'd gone a round in the ring with Juice. He'd kissed her forehead and thanked her then. The first time she'd seen the smallest hint of interest from him. She'd taken care of him so many times after that, it was hard to count, but she'd never forget that first time. Clearly, neither had he. "Okay," he rasped in reply.

"O-okay," she repeated with a nod. "Okay, good. Let's...let's go get you patched up."

They found a small, open exam room on Elena's floor, and she quickly pulled out what she needed from the cabinets. Turning around to face him, she realized a little too late that it was a mistake to offer to clean him up. It put her too close to him and in a situation that was all too familiar and comfortable. She focused on the kit in her hand, opening it up and gesturing for him to sit on the plastic chair in the corner while she eased herself down onto the doctor's stool.

She held out her hand to him, and he placed one of his in it. His palms were rough as they usually were, well-calloused from years of work as a mechanic. She tried not to think of the way those hands felt on her, the way his fingertips would trace patterns across her skin, invisible tattoos he created as he lay beside her. Clearing her throat, she began her work, trying to focus on the task and not on Happy.

She could feel his eyes on her as she worked and had to force herself not to look. In the past, she would've looked up, and he'd lean down and surprise her with a kiss, a look of pride in his face when he pulled away. He was proud of the work she did. Always had been. He never said it out loud, but she knew he was by the way he told everyone she was a nurse. By how often he called her to the clubhouse to treat his brothers, a look of pride on his face as he stood beside her and watched her stitch up wounds and pull out bullets. She loved those moments. Loved that he'd let her in to his life for them.

Those memories brought with them a painful reminder of how dangerous his life was. As much as she loved him letting her in, that's what had gotten her hurt in the first place. No, she couldn't give in to him. As good of a man as he was, he lived a dangerous life, and she'd gotten hurt because of it. She wasn't ready to jump into that again. Wasn't sure if she ever would be. "All done," she said, dropping his hand quickly. She wouldn't look at him because if she did, instinct would take over, and she'd lean in for a kiss.

"Thanks, Braun," he muttered as he stood. The smell of him surrounded her as she sat beside him. Still, she couldn't look at him. As if giving up, she felt his lips press into the crown of her head; something she'd seen him to do Angela many times before. It wasn't an act of romance nor was it meant to be something to entice her to kiss him back, it was a kiss meant for family. To show appreciation for what she'd done and to show her he still cared about her. Her shoulders tensed a bit as she heard him walk away; had he given up on her? Was she just family now? She hadn't closed the door on her relationship with Happy just yet, but had he? She had never considered that. For some reason, he thought he was waiting on him to put the final nail in the coffin and end it, but maybe...maybe he'd already done it. She didn't like the thought of that. She wasn't ready to give up on loving him for good just yet.