Page 189 of Broken Daddy

“Shit!” Hayes said, rushing over to pick her up. He sat on the sofa with her on his lap and rubbed her toes. “Gonna invest in bubble wrap.”

“I don’t need bubble wrap. I just need you to not sneak up on me. For a big guy you move awfully quietly.”

“You shouldn’t even be out of bed. You should still be sleeping.”

“Need coffee and painkillers.”

“Next time you need something, call me,” he ordered. “I was just outside and your phone was on the bedside table.”

The guy was nuts. She wasn’t going to call him because she wanted some coffee or to pee.

“There’s a basket of stuff . . . for me,” she said with wonder, wanting to change the subject.

“Yeah, the girls did that. They’ll be wanting to meet you soon.”

“There’s a lot of them,” she said.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure that they don’t overwhelm you. Right, let’s get you some painkillers and something to eat.”

“And coffee,” she said.

“And coffee,” he said.

“Can I help?” she asked as he set her on the sofa.

“Absolutely not,” he informed her.

Devi felt terrible as he made her breakfast and got her some coffee and painkillers. As soon as she could, she was going to try and help him out. She could still clean with one good arm.

After she finished eating breakfast at the small dining table, she tried to get up and take her plate to the kitchen, but he couldn’t even let her do that.

In fact, he frowned at her as he got up and took the plate from her. “Sit down.”

“Hayes,” she said with a sigh. “I can do some things. I’m not completely helpless.”

“You’re just out of the hospital. You need looking after.”

Sort of true.

“So if I wasn’t injured and just out of the hospital, you’d let me take care of you?” she asked.

He gave her a look that told her exactly what he thought of that. Yeah, just as she’d expected.

“Let’s get you in the shower. I don’t have a tub, unfortunately.”

“That’s okay. I noticed some of my clothes were in the closet. Thank you. Those other clothes, are they . . . are they May’s?” she asked.

She tensed. Was he going to get angry at her for asking? But he just looked confused. “No, they’re for you.”

“For me? But how? Where did they come from?” she asked, bewildered as he picked her up to carry her into the bedroom. He sat her down on the bed and walked into the closet. He came back carrying a cute dress with short sleeves. It was yellow with white trim.

“I bought them for you. Ordered them online and had them sent here.”

Shock filled her. This man just kept amazing her. She didn’t know anyone else who would have done all of this for her.

“You did?”

“Yes. I’ve ordered some things for your Little too,” he told her. “Some toys and outfits. A pacifier that you might like better.”