“Please stop doing this to me,” she says, and I can see in her glistening eyes how much she loves him. “Please.”

“Mom,” Jeremiah starts, “it’s not fair to make me decide between my family and doing something I love. You know I’ve cut back. I can’t truly feel anything unless I put myself out there.”

“Agreed,” I say with a smile. He gives me a grateful look.

“It sucks that I’m trying to make you happy so you’ll let me come around the house and see my sisters…and you haven’t noticed that at all. I’ve given up a lot.”

His mom ruffles his hair and shuts her eyes. “I appreciate that you’re taking better care of yourself. I don’t like the things you do…” She pauses to glance over at me. “We can talk about this more later.”

He grins. “I’m definitely willing to talk. We can discuss how I want to go skydiving again.”

“Young man, that is not the kind of discussion I was thinking of.”

“But PopPop got me another gift certificate!”

Matt and his father enter the room to join the argument about whether Jeremiah can go skydiving again, but I just hold his hand, thinking about what he said.

If you don’t put yourself out there, if you don’t take risks, you can’t truly feel.

And I’m ready to feel again.

•••

“So we’re gonna try this?”

“Yeah, let’s see where it goes,” I reply.

“Thank the Lord,” he says with a smile, sweetly kissing my cheek. I turn to catch his mouth with mine, grasping his T-shirt in my hands, careful to mind his sling.

The morning after my first official half marathon, we’re lounging in my bed, discussing a relationship. Vanessa is visiting Rory in Knoxville, so Jeremiah slept over and we had the room to ourselves. I took care of him all night, giving him his painkillers and icing his shoulder. He liked having his own personal nurse. And I liked kissing him constantly. I couldn’t keep my lips off him.

Speaking of. I cozy up and slip a hand under his T-shirt, touching his rock-hard stomach. His pretty blue eyes light up and I know I love this guy. I press my lips to his, kissing him deeply, then trail kisses down his neck and lower. Soon he stealthily steals my pajama bottoms, which takes skill considering he only has one arm right now. I steal his shorts in retaliation, leaving him in black boxer briefs. Then he pulls me on top with his good arm, throws my tank top on the floor, and gently dips his hand into my pink panties. And wow it feels great.

I look into his eyes and catch him grimacing.

“Does your shoulder hurt?”

“Like hell. But I don’t care right now.”

He moans as I slip my hand inside his boxer briefs, moving my hand up and down until he wants me back on top. I love feeling him pressed up against my body, and I sort of hate that we’re separated by underwear as we take care of each other’s needs. I rock against his hips until I’m seeing spots, pressing my forehead to his when tingles fill both our bodies.

“Yeah, a relationship sounds just fine,” I say, working to catch my breath.

“I reckon this means I finally get to take you on a real date, huh?” he responds with a lazy smile.

“You’d better.”

“How about tonight?”

“Can’t. Kelsey and I are grabbing dinner at the dining hall and then seeing that new Brad Pitt–Angelina Jolie movie where they’re cyborgs trying to kill each other. It’s girls’ night.”

He grins at that. “How about roller blading this afternoon, then?”

“We are not going roller blading with that shoulder a mess like it is.”

He laughs, tangling his feet with mine. “Just kidding.”

I drag my fingertip up and down the surgical scar on his arm and bury my face in the warm hollow of his neck. “You’re gonna take it easy for a while, right?”

“I can’t move my arm. I don’t think I have a choice but to relax.”

“Until you find some new crazy stunt to try next week, you mean,” I say with a laugh.

“I’m not doing any more stunts.”

I can’t control what might happen. All I can do is live. “I don’t want you to give up what you love for me.”

“That’s not it.” He shakes his head. “Don’t you understand how you make me feel?”

“You told me you love me—”

“I’m going to show you how much you make me feel. You’re gonna feel it yourself.”