Page 14 of A Lonely Road (Spruce Hill #2)

Chapter Twelve

Nora

I awoke slowly, blinking against the brilliant sunshine streaming through the bedroom window as the blur of the last few days drifted in and out of focus.

When I rolled my head on the pillow, I saw Jake’s long, lean form stretched out beside me.

The fever must have broken, because sometime during the night I’d torn off layers of sweat-soaked clothing and thrown my burrito blanket onto the floor.

My skin still felt sticky, my eyes gritty, but I seemed to be back to a normal temperature.

Shower .

The urge spurred me into action as I sat up slowly and lowered my feet to the floor. I was relieved when the room didn’t spin drunkenly as it had before I finally collapsed onto the couch the day before, but my entire body ached as though I’d run a marathon .

“Careful,” Jake warned, his voice husky with sleep. “Sometimes your muscles are weak after a fever.”

Though I didn’t glance back at him, I felt his eyes on my back as memories of the night filtered into my mind in foggy glimpses.

A few hours earlier, I dimly recalled that he’d helped me to pull off the tangled blankets, then later the gray sweatpants and oversized hoodie.

The fever must have broken at that point and I was now down to a t-shirt— only a t-shirt.

I’d already been in pajamas when I started feeling too ill to care about something as unimportant as underwear. My spine stiffened under his gaze.

“Oh, god,” I whispered. “Oh. My. God.”

My hands were resting on my bare thighs and I suddenly recognized the coolness of the sheets against my ass.

Even though I was sure he couldn’t see anything incriminating from his current position, he’d spent the entire night six inches away from me.

It was too much to hope that he was unaware of my current state of undress.

“Steady, Cassidy,” he said, his even tone belying his amusement.

I glanced back, annoyed that my pathetic situation didn’t stop a smile from spreading across his face as I threw out a few choice expletives under my breath. In fact, his dimple only deepened. I closed my eyes as humiliation swept over me.

To my profound irritation, his comment about weak muscles was spot on.

There was no way I could stand up on my own right now.

My legs felt like jelly, and I would not risk falling on my face, bare ass in the air, with Jake watching me.

No matter how comforting his presence had been last night, I was beginning to wish I could send him on his way and crawl to the bathroom alone.

Logic waged a swift battle with emotion for a minute before I sighed and accepted my fate.

“I need to shower,” I said tightly, “but I think I’m going to need your help getting there.”

“I’d be happy to act as your spotter,” he said with a broad, innocent smile as he came around the foot of the bed.

The glare I shot him would've warned off a lesser man, but he still reached out and set his palm against my forehead, which was blessedly cool for the first time in days. Relief softened his features as he tucked a strand of sticky hair behind my ear.

“Seems like you’re on the mend, at least. You scared the hell out of me, Cassidy.”

The glow that sparked in my chest at his admission gave me enough of a boost to accept the hand he offered.

As he helped me to my feet, I gritted my teeth and prayed that the shirt covered my lower half adequately.

Jake, to his credit, didn’t so much as glance toward any bare skin.

When we reached the bathroom, he turned on the shower for me and stepped back, studying my face carefully as I leaned back against the sink.

“Not to sound indelicate here, but are you sure you can manage this on your own?” His lips twitched when I glared at him.

“I promise I’m not going to hit on you while you’re this weak, Nora, but if you slip and crack your head open, I’m going to see a whole lot more when I have to rush you to the emergency room. ”

“I won’t fall,” I ground out. If sheer determination alone was enough to keep me upright, anyway.

“You’re the boss. I’ll stand out in the hall, if you’ll leave the door open.”

At my sharp nod, he winked and moved to the hallway. Before he rounded the corner, though, he held up his hands and flexed those long fingers.

“Yell if you need any help.”

I relied on my own stubborn pride to steady myself as I pulled off the shirt and stepped into the shower.

As much as I wanted to linger under the soothing spray of hot water, Jake was right—I felt like I might topple over at any moment.

I washed my hair quickly and used my favorite pear body wash to rid my skin of the layer of grime that had accumulated during my illness, then turned off the water and reached for the towel hanging on the bar.

That was the precise moment when I realized I’d now have to face him almost completely naked, instead of just half, as I twisted the towel into a tight knot across my chest.

Jake appeared to be thinking about that exact same thing when I appeared in the doorway, upright but swaying slightly.

So swiftly I might have missed it if I hadn’t been focused on his expression, his gaze flitted across my bare shoulders, stroking over my skin so tenderly I almost felt it.

He offered his arm like a gentleman and, without any other option aside from collapsing onto him, I took it.

Once we reached the bedroom, Jake gently pushed me down until I was sitting on the bed. “Tell me what you need and where to find it. No sense using up all your strength going through drawers, unless you want me to have to dress you at the end of it.”

My eyes narrowed, but I did as he suggested, even though my cheeks flamed when he pulled a pair of plain cotton underwear and my favorite bra from the dresser with a nonchalance that contrasted vividly with the heat in his blue eyes.

When he handed me the stack of clothes, he gave me a dimpled smile and I was forced to forgive him the sin of being so helpful.

“I’m going to heat up some soup, if you think you can eat a bit more?”

With both hands clasping the towel above my breasts, I nodded. “Yes, thank you. My appetite seems to have returned with a vengeance.”

Jake grinned and left me there in the bedroom with the door not quite fully closed.

After dressing myself with slow, sluggish motions, I walked into the kitchen—not with any degree of grace, but steadily enough—and dropped into one of the chairs at the tiny table.

He'd rummaged through the cabinets to find a pot for the soup and buttered some of the rolls Sam had included in her delivery.

The sight of those rolls alone made my empty stomach rumble in anticipation .

“That smells amazing. Jake . . . thank you. For everything. I know I’m not the easiest person to try to take care of.”

“You’re welcome,” he said as he set two bowls of soup and the plate of rolls on the table, then he sat down across from me. “I would've come sooner if I’d known you were sick. I just thought you needed some space and I didn’t want to push it.”

I nodded, grimacing contritely. “I’m sorry you were worried. It’s been a long time since I’ve gotten sick. I figured it would turn into a cold and I’d be right back on my feet.”

“I’m just glad you’re feeling better now.”

The words were soft and heartfelt enough that my breath caught for a moment as a blush heated my cheeks and I dropped my gaze back to my meal.

Unconsciously, my tongue ran across my lower lip and I heard Jake fumble his spoon.

I took perverse pleasure in it after being the one at a disadvantage for so long.

Still, I’d never liked being fawned over and no matter how sweet he was, I wasn’t about to start now.

“You don’t have to babysit me, Jake. I know you’re busy, so please don’t feel like you have to stick around if you have other things to do. I promise I’ll keep my phone close at hand so I can call you if I fall down.”

“I have nowhere to be right now,” he countered, “so if it’s okay with you, I’ll stay at least a little longer. Just to make sure you don’t have a relapse. I’m tending the bar tonight, but if you need anything , Nora, I want you to text me right away. Please.”

“Scout’s honor,” I said, realizing I'd finished the entire bowl of soup and polished off two of the heavenly rolls that had become one of my favorite things from The Mermaid, second only to the strawberry shortcake from that first visit.

Jake insisted I continue to take it easy while I recovered my strength, so we ended up on the loveseat together to watch a baking competition on the small television.

I curled up at one end with Jake at the other, his long legs stretched out before him.

Somehow, my frozen bare feet ended up tucked against his thigh.

At some point, he set his palm over my ankles and I was too grateful for his warmth to complain, especially when his thumb hooked around to gently rub my arches.

I had to bite back a moan, embarrassed by my response to that simple touch.

When it was time for him to head to the restaurant, he found a spare blanket in the linen closet and tucked it around me on the loveseat.

“Remember, you need to rest,” he said. “Text me if you need anything, even if it’s a glass of water, got it? I’ll take the truck so I can get back here quickly.”

“That seems like overkill, but okay.” I squeezed his hand before he released the blanket. “And Jake, thank you again.”

He cupped his other palm over my cheek, brushing his thumb across the skin that no longer felt flushed with fever. “You’re welcome. Text me if you’re going to bed, so I don’t panic again over radio silence, deal?”

I couldn’t remember the last time someone had worried so much about my wellbeing. I let the glow of it surround me and nodded. “Deal.”

After Jake left, locking the door behind him, I rested my head against the arm of the loveseat and let out a soft sigh. Even my embarrassment over being helped to the shower was slowly evaporating under the soothing blanket of contentment he had left in his wake.

As the evening wore on, I fought back my exhaustion long enough to exchange a series of texts with Jake. As requested, I let him know when I finally caved and went to bed, hours earlier than usual.

Jake wished me goodnight and sweet dreams, then insisted I keep my phone with me in case of emergencies.

I felt a little silly, but tucking the phone under my pillow made me feel that same glow as I had under his tender care, giving a tangible connection to him to comfort me until sleep overtook me at last.