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“You’re sick. You aren’t doing anything except resting your gorgeous ass in my bed for a while,” he informed her gruffly. “And you aren’t paying me back, so quit stressing about money.”
Asha opened her mouth to reply, but promptly closed it again, his personal comment about her butt rendering her speechless. No one had ever told her she had a gorgeousanything, and it flummoxed her into silence.
Looking up at Kade, her heart skipped a beat as she looked at his stubborn expression. His beautiful blue eyes were kind, but his look told her that he wasn’t budging, and Asha had a feeling he had a stubborn streak a mile wide. She’d already discovered that he was bossy. Her eyes roamed his incredibly toned, buff body, his biceps bulging from beneath another colorful short-sleeved shirt as he crossed his arms and stared back at her, making her totally incapable of looking away. He was so handsome that it was almost painful to look at him. His eyes were as turbulent as the ocean during a storm; his hair was several different shades of blond, making him appear just a little bit wild and dangerous. He might be wearing a shirt that should have made him seem harmless, but it didn’t diminish his masculinity even a tiny little bit. Well over six feet tall, Kade Harrison was solid muscle, and all male, testosterone emanating from him in gigantic waves. Asha knew his size and bulk should probably scare her. After all, she didn’t even know him. Strangely, she wasn’t afraid of him at all. He fascinated her. His only flaw seemed to be his limp, but having that tiny imperfection made him even more captivating, making her wonder what had happened to him. Somehow, it made him seem more human.
“I can’t afford to be out of the job,” Asha admitted reluctantly, feeling like a complete loser next to this man who obviously had his shit together financially. He’d paid what was probably a hefty hospital bill without thought, and the hotel he was staying in was one that didn’t have average, middle-class clientele. It catered to people with money.
Kade didn’t answer immediately. He held her gaze as he stretched out on the bed next to her before finally saying, “I have a proposition for you. But I don’t want to talk about it right now. I just want you to work on getting well again. I won’t let anything happen to you, Asha. I promise.”
His low, reassuring baritone flowed over her like silk, making her want to sink into him and happily drown. No one had ever offered to protect her before. How strange and wonderful it seemed to have a complete stranger taking care of her like she was someone of value. “You must know that I’m not related to those two people in the picture. It’s a lovely thought, but it’s not possible. And even if it was, it isn’t a priority for me. I need to survive right now.”
Survive. Survive. Survive.
Kade put a finger to her lips and shook his head. “Not now. You’ll survive just fine. You’re safe and I’ll keep you safe. Trust me.”
Trust me.
Kade didn’t understand her background, or how difficult it was to put her future intoanyone’shands, no matter how tempting the idea was to her right now because she was sick and her defenses were down. She was fighting to survive, to be independent. But whether she liked it or not, shewascompletely at his mercy for the moment. She shook her head and closed her eyes. “I can’t. I need to take care of things myself.”
“You can trust me. I’m a trustworthy kind of guy,” Kade countered stubbornly, stroking the hair away from her face. “Sleep now. The doctor said that rest was the fastest way to shake off the pneumonia.”
Asha couldn’t argue. She opened her eyes for a moment, but her lids were heavy and her body felt like lead. Reaching out her hand, she fingered the collar of Kade’s festive shirt, red with green designs. It felt like silk. “This is beautiful. It looks good on you.” The red only intensified the lightness of Kade’s hair and the depth of his blue eyes. Bold, powerful colors and ornate designs suited him. Being partial to light and color herself, Kade delighted her senses.
She heard Kade laugh before answering, “I always said if I ever found a woman who actually likes my shirts, I’d marry her.”
Asha wanted to answer, wanted to tell Kade never to marry unless his whole heart was engaged. She’d been in a loveless marriage, and she’d never felt more alone. Her eyes fluttered closed again before she could answer, the drugs and pure exhaustion finally dragging her into a dreamless sleep.
“Do you need us to come and talk to her?” Max Hamilton asked, his voice coming from Kade’s phone, which was on speaker as Kade shaved with the bathroom door closed. He didn’t think Asha would wake up anytime soon.
“No. She’s sick. I’ll talk to her as soon as she’s well enough to travel,” Kade answered protectively. The last thing Asha needed was a three-ring circus with all her possible relatives coming to Nashville to talk to her.
“Is she okay?” Max asked, concerned.
“Yeah. I think so. She’ll recover. I don’t know her whole story, but her life hasn’t been easy, Max.” Asha obviously traveled from place to place, making just enough money to get her to her next job. She had nothing, yet there was a sweetness about her that had Kade on edge every moment he was near her…and every moment when he wasn’t. What kind of life had she known? Everything she owned fit in one small bag and her purse. “I’ll get more information in a few days. She needs to rest and recover right now.”
Max’s deep sigh came through the phone line. “Get her well, Kade. Take care of her.”
Kade intended to do just that, and not because she might be Max’s half-sister. His possessive instincts were all his own. “She likes my shirts,” he told Max jokingly, wiping his shaven face with a towel.
“She needs her vision checked,” Max answered drily. “What’s she like? Does she look like Maddie?”
Kade paused for a moment, tossing the towel into the laundry pile. “No. She doesn’t look like either one of you, but she’s beautiful. Her father was an Indian immigrant, but that doesn’t mean you can’t still be related. Her mother was American.”
“Does she have a birth certificate?” Max asked, obviously anxious to find out more about Asha.
“I don’t know. We didn’t have a chance to talk much about her past before she almost did a nosedive to the carpet. She collapsed almost from the moment I met her. Let me get her well, Max,” Kade answered irritably, not happy that Max didn’t seem to understand his main priority was to get Asha healthy. “I’ll get her to come to Tampa.”
“Thanks,” Max answered gratefully. “I don’t mean to push. I guess I’m just anxious to know. I’m glad you finally found her. I owe you.”
Kade was glad too, but for totally different reasons than seeing if Asha was related to Max. “I’ll remember you said that. I’ll keep in touch. I’ll get her to Florida as soon as I can.”
“How’s your leg holding up?” Max asked, the concern in his voice evident.
“It’s fine.” Actually, it ached like hell, but Kade wasn’t about to admit it.
He hastily ended his conversation with Max before his brother-in-law could pry any further. Or worse yet, put Mia on the phone to try to wangle more information out of him.
Stepping out of the bathroom, Kade’s eyes went instantly to the bed. Asha was still sleeping, but she was tossing restlessly. The sheets were tangled, thrown from her body, probably during a period when her fever had made her overly warm. He climbed onto the bed, touching the back of his hand to her cheek. Her face was slightly damp, but cool, her fever probably under control from the drugs he had given her before she’d fallen asleep.