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F I F T Y - T W O
The flight of stairs seemed never-ending, the clinical smell of the hospital saturating his senses. His heart raced emphatically, desperate to reach Kate. She had finally answered his call, her voice trembling explaining the situation. Paloma and Heath had been in a car accident. She couldn’t say much else, her words trailing off into soft weeps. Colton had wanted to pick her up, to be the one to comfort her, but she told him Dylan was picking up Florence and would drive her to the hospital.
Never again would she need someone else to take care of her, he swore it. No matter how bad their fighting had become, he would never leave her side again.
Rounding the corner, Colton almost collided with her shaking frame. Dressed in sweats and a thick, blue sweater, her hair messy and her tan eyes red and puffy, Kate looked as beautiful as ever. Strong arms enveloped her, crushing her tremors with the firm planes of his chest.
“Are they okay?”
Sniffling, Kate wiped her
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Rude Awakenings F I F T Y - T H R E E
It took a few days before Paloma and Heath were released from the hospital. Heath had suffered a concussion, a broken leg and a few broken ribs, but he was healing well. Paloma had been mainly unharmed, although she was knocked unconscious during the collision. Doctors had done a multitude of scans to make sure she wasn’t bleeding internally or suffering any underlying issues and had found that she was doing okay.They couldn’t remember much of the accident, only that the car had redlined as if it had been stationary before their arrival at the intersection. There had been a small crowd of witnesses at the scene but all had been unable to provide a definitive description of the perpetrator, only causing Kate’s stomach to churn in unease.Guilt had consumed her at the officer’s words. She had offered for Paloma and Heath to stay with her, but they had declined. All Paloma wanted was to spend time with Florence. The brief hospital visits hadn’t been enough. She had gratefu
Rude Awakenings F I F T Y - F O U R
Exhaustion pushed Kate into bed, her eyes flickering to her phone and noting it was only 10 pm. She had tried to stay awake for the second American Pie movie, but her body was tired and she had admitted defeat a quarter of the way through. Heath had been sleeping for the majority of the day, being lovingly spoon fed soup and pasta by Paloma as he rested, so of course, he was so wide awake that he could marathon all four movies. As Kate had made her escape, she saw Paloma curled contently in his lap, her eyes drifting closed as she watched the movie.Colton’s voice trailed down the hallway, saying goodnight before he slunk into the bedroom. Pyjama pants hung low on his hips and as he tugged off his white shirt, the delectable v of his lower abdomen was exposed, pointing straight down towards his impressive member hidden beneath the gray fabric.A pillow flew in her direction, whacking the side of her head softly as Colton laughed, “Fucking perv.”Giggles erupted fro
Rude Awakenings F I F T Y - F I V E
“I’m sorry. What did you say?” Kate squeaked, caramel eyes bulging as her mouth hung open in shock.“I said… marry me.” His voice was a whisper, husky and raw, as he ran his thumb down her cheek, “I can’t live without you. I barely got through one night without you. You make me feel things I haven’t felt before. You make me want to be a better person. You make me want to be a husband and a father, someone responsible and not living off my fuckwit father’s money.” He took a deep breath, his voice wavering as he continued, “I knew from the minute I saw you in that damn hallway, with your sweet smile and your thousands of boxes full of crap, that you were the person I was going to spend forever with, and it scared the fuck out of me. So I made sure I kept my distance, but I could never get you out of my head. Never. You had a permanent residency and it was annoying as fuck, and I tried hard to fight it, but once you let me in, I knew for sure, you are the love of my fucking life.
Rude Awakenings F I F T Y -S I X
Music blasted from Kate’s phone, her body swaying to the rapid tempo as she brushed her teeth. An amused snort echoed behind her, earning Colton a playful glare from over her shoulder. His hands quickly found her hips, kissing the side of her head lovingly as she continued to dance.“You’re in a good mood,” he murmured, the faint scent of coffee lingering on his breath.Bending forward to rinse her mouth, Kate smirked as her rear pressed into Colton’s lap. She maintained the swing of her hips to the music, giggling at the soft hiss that slipped his lips. Rising, Kate spun around, resting her palms on the slippery porcelain sink as her eyes flamed. Colton’s hands framed hers, caging her in.“What are you playing at?” he asked in curious amusement.“It’s been four weeks.”Low eyebrows creased, “Okay?”Wiggling her brows suggestively, grinning at the hard laugh that rumbled in Colton’s throat, Kate bit her lip, “The doctor gave me the all-clear to… y
Rude Awakenings F I F T Y - S E V E N
Wrapped up together between the sheets of the bed, Colton clutching Kate to his chest, her eyes lingered emotionally at the pretty ring that glimmered on her finger. She didn’t know how long they’d been lying there, but she was in no rush to move.An abrupt knock on the door interrupted that idea though. Kate frowned, checking the time on her phone, “Who would be coming over at quarter to ten in the morning?”A month ago, a random knock would’ve made her curious but not startled. The car accident however, had her constantly on edge. Every bump in the night, every phone call from an unknown number, every shuffle of footsteps outside the apartment made her nervous. She felt bad for searing permanent moon-shaped gauges in Colton’s muscular biceps.“It’s probably Paloma, or maybe Heath,” he murmured comfortingly, sweeping her hair from her face as he rose. “Don’t stress.”Slipping from the bed, Kate wrapped a robe around her pyjama-clad body, hesitating in the do
Rude Awakenings F I F T Y - E I G H T
Friday afternoon had fast approached. Kate was grateful to see the end of the week. Work had been incredibly busy and she ended up coming home late most nights. Colton had been as amazing as usual, cooking dinner without complaint and offering her foot massages as they curled up together on the sofa. She was looking forward to spending a weekend of doing nothing, entwined with Colton for the majority of her waking hours.Dropping her bags at the front door, Kate let out an exhausted sigh, hastily kicking off the new flats she had stupidly decided to wear on her busiest day. Blisters littered her heels, legs sore from the copious amount of walking she had done as she flittered between meetings.“Hey, babe,” Colton smiled, his bare back greeting her from the stove. Glancing over his shoulder, he frowned, “Bad day?”“Just busy,” Kate suspired, undoing the buttons of her light pink blouse as she wandered into the kitchen. She kissed his bare shoulder, then his cheek as
Rude Awakenings F I F T Y - N I N E
The pub was bustling, crowded with young club-goers looking to start their club crawls with a few cheap drinks beneath their belt, as well as the wearily-employed hoping to enjoy the start of their weekend with a buzz. Sinking into the plastic-covering of the barstool, Colton downed the frothy amber liquid before pushing the empty glass back at the bartender. Glancing toward the door, his foot tapped impatiently against the steel base of the stool as he awaited Heath's arrival. He’d already been here for over thirty minutes and there was no sign of his friend. Colton rolled his eyes at the thought of Paloma suckering him into staying home.A fresh pint of beer slung towards him, the attractive bartender winking seductively, flicking her platinum blonde hair over her bronzed shoulder.“I didn’t order this,” Colton snapped, averting his gaze as she leaned in closer.Resting her forearms against the polished counter, the woman squeezed her arms against her chest, her
Rude Awakenings S I X T Y
Swinging open the freezer door, Kate chewed her lower lip, staring longingly at the coffee toffee ice-cream and debating whether she should bother with a bowl. She decided against it, grabbing a spoon and retreating to the sofa. Condensation dripped down the blue sides of the tub as she flicked through the channels absentmindedly. Settling on a rerun of some true-crime show, she rested the tub between her crossed legs and began distractedly shoveling ice-cream into her mouth.The baffling cold case that played wasn’t enough to stop her thinking of Colton, wondering what he was doing and when he planned on coming home. Picking up her phone, she dialed his number, holding her breath as she awaited the hoarse growl of his voice. The call went straight to voicemail and Kate let out an aggravated groan. He was so fucking stubborn. Tapping out a message, she hit send and prayed he would turn on his phone soon;I’m sorry for being a bitch. Please come home. I miss you xA
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