Page 10 of BillionHeir

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Maxwell

“What did I tell you about trying to get out of bed on your own?”

I try to hide the fact that I am rolling my eyes, but apparently, my nurse doesn’t miss a thing. Nor will she let me get away with it.

She is dressed more casually than I have seen her before.

Unlike yesterday when she was wearing her nursing uniform, today she is sporting a softer look in some joggers and a fitted white T-shirt that is not at all revealing but somehow accentuates her generous breasts.

Her dark hair is down and flowing around her face which has not a stitch of makeup.

She nearly takes my breath away with her natural beauty.

“Don’t you roll your eyes at me, mister. I will not tolerate it. If you cannot follow my instructions, I am going to take you right back to the rehab.”

She gives me a stern look, forcing me to relent. I sigh as I flop back against the pillows I was struggling to get out of like a petulant child.

Tristan and Liam are long gone. Liam said something last night about an important meeting he had today that couldn’t be rescheduled.

Tristan wasn’t happy about it, but Liam declared they would be leaving at dawn.

When that man sets his mind to something, there is no arguing with him.

He has apparently been known to pull Tristan from his bed by his ear when Tristan won’t wake up.

“Fine.”

“I know you are not used to needing this level of care, and I can appreciate how hard all of this must be for you. But that is no excuse for you to overexert yourself. You are going to reinjure yourself if you are not careful.”

All the fight goes out of me at the thought of a setback. “You are right,” I admit finally, too proud to tell her just how sore I am today after everything we did yesterday.

“I know,” she says, sassily with one hand on her slender waist as she stares me down .

I can’t help but chuckle. “Are you always this arrogant?”

“You are calling me arrogant? That is quite rich, isn’t it? I am not arrogant, I am confident. There is a difference. And when it comes to nursing, I am at the top of my game.”

“That is why I hired you,” I say, choosing to ignore the comment about my own arrogance.

“No, you hired me because I was your only hope.”

I stay quiet and let her believe that. The truth is, I could have hired any nurse I wanted. With as much as I was willing to pay, I would have had them falling all over me. But I wanted Chloe. And the fact that I got what I wanted still feels like a win.

Even if I did have to spend an obscene amount of money to get her.

“What do you need?” she asks, catching me off guard.

She reads the dumbstruck look on my face and clarifies. “What were you getting up for?”

“Right,” I answer, wiping one of my hands down my face as I struggle to get myself together. “I am not used to being so dependent.”

“Well, that is what I am here for, right?”

I nod. “I need to use the bathroom. And I would really like a shower, if you think I can manage it.”

I can see the refusal on Chloe’s face, but something makes her hesitate. “We are still waiting on the shower chair I ordered. You are much too weak to stand for any amount of time. ”

Normally I would scoff at such a declaration, but I have to admit that she is right.

I wouldn’t last thirty seconds on my own, let alone have the fortitude to wash myself.

She thinks for a moment before continuing.

“Let me help you into the bathroom. While you are using the loo, I will see what I can figure out in the meantime.”

I find her little Britishisms quite charming. She is almost like a softer, kinder, much hotter version of Liam. Just the thought of Liam as a bedside nurse causes the corners of my mouth to turn up with amusement. He would kill me if he knew the comparison I just made.

She sits down on the bed next to me, and I have to fight my body not to react to her closeness.

Chloe positions one of my arms around her shoulder so that when she stands, she lifts me up with her.

If I had met her under normal circumstances, I might have doubted her ability to support all of my weight, but she is managing quite well.

We walk, with her supporting most of my weight, into the bathroom where she takes me to the small room with the toilet.

“I can take it from here,” I say once we are close enough for me to grab a hold of the railing that I always thought was unnecessary.

Chloe gives me a dubious look. “Are you sure?”

“Yes. Focus on the shower,” I grunt out before thinking about it. “Please,” I offer a second later .

I hear her turn and walk away, probably cursing me silently with every step as I slowly shuffle the rest of the way into the bathroom.

By the time she gets back, I am leaning against the counter brushing my teeth all on my own. I will admit that it has never been harder to care for myself, but the satisfaction at having done the most mundane things for myself supersedes the exhaustion.

Her look of surprise at my progress makes it all that much more worth it.

“Look at you!” Chloe says with a smile. “Worn out yet?”

I smile as I lean a bit more against the marble for support. "The idea of taking a shower outweighs how tired I am.”

I can't describe the joy I feel at the thought of finally getting clean. Since the accident, I have only had sponge baths, which are definitely not as sexy as Hollywood makes them sound. In fact, they are awful. I never quite feel clean enough. Having to sit in the chair means the shower won’t be as thorough as I would like, but something is better than nothing.

She glances down at the mesh outdoor lawn chair in her hands before explaining. “I think this chair will do the trick until Ethan can have the equipment I asked for delivered. He said they should be able to have everything delivered by tomorrow.”

I watch as Chloe maneuvers the chair into the spacious walk-in shower. She slides it open and positions it in the center of the floor, then turns to inspect the dials on the wall. I watch as she squints at the controls trying to figure out how to work the high-tech shower.

A few years after I inherited the house from my parents, I hired a contractor to update the technology throughout Seabanks.

All of the lights, curtains, appliances, televisions, and sound systems can now be controlled from a digital interface, the security system allows me to see live footage from anywhere on the property, and there are heated floors in every room for when the Maine winter’s get cold.

But of all the upgrades, I am most proud of this shower.

It has three shower heads at varying heights each with customizable water temperature and pressure, and a rain shower system built into the ceiling.

It is one of the best purchases I have ever made.

When I am here, I want to be as relaxed as possible, and this usually does the trick.

It takes her less time than I expected to figure out how to turn the water on.

Soon after, she discovers how to set the temperature and adjust the various shower heads so that they are focused on the chair, making sure that the pressure isn’t too strong on my injuries.

Once she is satisfied with her work, she turns back to me.

“Do you need help getting undressed?”

I feel the tension in the room grow as I carefully consider her question. I hadn’t thought about this part, or how awkward it could get. “I guess I just assumed that you would leave me alone and let me do my thing.”

“And let you slip and fall?” She plants one of her hands on her hips and gives me a dissatisfied look.

“I won’t slip. The floor is heated and has anti-slip technology.”

She looks down at the tile. “I am not buying it.”

“I am not letting you shower me.” I draw a line in the sand. I can do this myself, damnit.

“Maxwell, I am a professional. I have done this hundreds, if not thousands, of times. I can’t just leave you in here on your own. It is not safe.”

I give her a desperate look. “I need this, Chloe. I haven’t had a moment alone for weeks. I just want a damn shower in peace.”

“I understand your situation, but there is no way that I am leaving you here alone to hobble your way into the shower and wash yourself for the first time. Have you forgotten that you only have one good hand?”

I look down at my arm that is immobilized in the sling and sigh in defeat. She is right again. I am beginning to sense a pattern.

There is no way that I can wash myself one handed. But to let someone else do it for me? That sounds way too mortifying for my comfort .

“I will do my best to avert my eyes, and to let you do as much as you can. I will stand behind you the whole time. But at the very least you are going to need help getting out of the chair, dried off, and back into bed.”

I nod, relenting. I am used to exercising control over everything in my life, so giving this up to her is not at all comfortable for me. I might not be independent yet, but I will be as soon as it is humanly possible.

“Let me help you get your sling off, and untie your trousers, that sort of thing, and then I will let you handle the rest, alright?”

I nod my acceptance.

She immediately gets to work in surprisingly high spirits after the fit that I just threw.

Maybe she is used to dealing with patients like me, or maybe she just feels bad for my situation.

Either way, I feel lucky to have her. It takes a strong person to go toe to toe with me and Chloe seems more than ready for the challenge.

As she comes to stand in front of me, I notice the fresh scent of her perfume for the first time.

I am not the kind of guy who likes a flowery scented woman, in fact, it is a turn off when a grown woman smells like peaches or, even worse, coconut.

But Chloe smells light and airy. It reminds me of a clean linen scent, and for some reason that I can’t put my finger on, I find I like it .