Page 41 of Burn the World Down

“What?” I shot him a confused look.

He lifted another forkful of pancake to my mouth. “You’re staying here. With me. You’re going to get better, and I’ll take care of you.”

I hurriedly swallowed my mouthful of food. My lips parted and I felt a burning prickle in my eyes. How long had it been since someone had taken care of me?

Not since Elliot had been alive.

“Nash—”

“No arguing, Georgie. Not today. Snyder is still a risk to you, and I need to keep you safe. And you need to rest, eat, and heal.”

There was no way I could fight him on this. I couldn’t even get out of bed.

So I ate until I was stuffed. He helped himself to some of the bacon that I couldn’t eat, grabbed the tray, and set it on the nightstand.

“I really can’t impose on you.”

His face got a mutinous look. “You’re not going anywhere.”

“Nash, I can’t?—”

Suddenly, he whipped the sheet back, and before I could worry about everything being covered, he lifted me out of the bed.

“What are you doing?” I asked breathlessly.

“Showing you something you might like.”

You naked?God. Heat hit my cheeks. “I think you’re just trying to distract me so I can’t argue with you.”

He carried me through the living room and shot me a crooked smile. “No idea what you’re talking about.”

The living room definitely said ‘single man lives here’. There was a large, black leather couch, large TV, and a distinct lack of knickknacks or collectibles. I did note lots of books on the bookshelf against the far wall.

By the front door, he set me down, then nabbed a brown suede jacket off a hook. He wrapped it around me.

“It’s sunny today, but still cold. Don’t want you getting a chill.”

He opened the front door and scooped me up again. I squinted at the bright sunlight. He was right, the air was cool and swirled around my bare legs. He strode down a path, but didn’t go far. I saw our destination was a small greenhouse.

Oh. The glass walls were filled with green. He managed to hold me and open the door.

Inside was lush and humid, and I was assaulted by different scents. The rich scents of earth, of green things growing, and fertilizer.

“What is this place?”

“My greenhouse.”

“Yours?” I looked up at his rugged face. “You grew all of this?”

Suddenly, he looked uncomfortable. “Yeah. Seemed like a good hobby.”

I wriggled and he set me down. He held my elbows until I was sure I had my balance. Clutching the jacket with one hand so it didn’t slide off, I studied a yellow orchid beside me and reached out to touch it. “It’s incredible, Nash.”

He relaxed. “Ah…thanks. I was pretty surprised to find I was good at growing things.”

There were lots of different plants and flowers, at differing stages, but most of the flowers were orchids.

“I make some of my own hybrids.”