Page 10 of Matthias’s Protective Embrace (Cardinal Falls #3)

Chapter Six

FRANK

Most embarrassing moments in my life?

The time I got food poisoning on a high school class trip and shit myself on the bus. The time I asked Cara Masters on a date in eighth grade, and she literally laughed in my face. And tonight.

Getting caught sleeping in the backyard would be one thing. Sitting in Matthias’s house while he fusses over me is another.

Fuck . Sam’s going to kill me. The question is whether it’ll happen before or after he fires me. Maybe he’ll kill me first and spare me additional embarrassment.

“Alright, let’s get you in the bath.”

I start to get up, but I’m caught in the blanket burrito and end up falling right back onto the couch.

“Are you dizzy?” Matthias grabs for me, keeping me from tipping over and off the couch.

“I’m a little…” I hold the edge of a blanket up. “Stuck.”

Matthias comes closer to me and puts an arm around my waist. For a second, I think he might pick me up and carry me upstairs—an idea I don’t hate. Instead, he unwinds the blankets and drops them on the couch.

“Come on.” He leads the way up, hovering close to me on the stairs. Not uncalled for either. My feet are frozen solid, and while I can see them moving, I can’t feel them.

When we walk into the bathroom, I pause. I’ve been in some crazy places as part of renovation jobs, many of which were very impressive, but this is a fucking palace.

A separate bath and shower? Both top of the line? If that tub was in my house, I’d be in it every night. The last bath I took was sometime in elementary school.

The water in the tub is cloudy. And… I sniff the air. It smells like flowers.

“Did you put something in the water?”

“It’s Epsom salts. They’ll be good for your muscles. Help loosen you up.” Matthias’s face turns a shade of bright red. As the one who’s routinely making an ass of myself, it’s nice to see someone else blush.

“Okay.” I stare between the tub and Matthias. He doesn’t really expect me to strip down in front of him, right? I’m not typically shy, but standing naked in front of the guy who’s been filling my fantasies lately might get a little… hard.

“Oh, um, I’ll leave you to it. If you stick your clothes outside the door, I’ll put them in the laundry.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I want to. I’ll bring you something of mine to put on in the meantime.” I highly doubt anything he owns will come close to fitting me, but I’m too spent to argue with him.

Matthias sighs and starts out of the bathroom. “I’m going to leave the door open a crack so I can hear if you need anything. ”

I can’t help but nod my head. “Sure.”

As soon as he leaves, I strip off my work clothes and leave them outside the door as requested, suddenly thankful I’m not going to have to put them back on. I didn’t realize they were damp from the ground.

I dip a toe into the tub. The water feels way too hot, but after a few seconds, I acclimate to the heat. I let my foot slowly sink until it hits the bottom before I repeat the process on the other side.

It takes me way too long before I’m able to sink down into the water. I admit to being skeptical, but now that I’m in, it’s magical. The tub’s big enough that I can stretch out without my feet hitting the other end. I relax until I’m floating, enjoying the feeling of water surrounding my body.

I’m going to miss this when I go home to my tiny stall shower. I barely fit in it. If I drop something, too bad. There’s not enough room to bend over and pick it up.

There’s a knock at the door that pulls me from my thoughts. “Yeah?”

“I’ve got some clothes and food for you.”

Clothes I expected. A snack? In the bathtub?

“Um… you can leave it at the door.”

“I can, if you want.” There’s a long pause, and I wonder if he’s left them on the floor for me. “You missed dinner, and I think you could use a little bit of food and sugar in your system. It’ll help you feel better. I promise I’ll be quick.”

I look down into the water. It’s a bit cloudy from the salts, but it doesn’t keep my dick from being on display.

“Okay.” I try to arrange my hands in my lap to cover up while also looking completely relaxed and normal. It’s impossible. Instead, I’m pretty sure I look like a little kid.

It’s too late. He’s in the bathroom.

“These will be a bit big, but they have a drawstring.” He sets a stack of sweats on the counter between the two sinks. Seriously, two sinks for one person?

“Thanks.” I wiggle awkwardly, unsure of what the rules are for this kind of situation. Maybe there’s a guidebook I didn’t read.

“And I’ve got a couple of options for you here. I brought some grapes, some pretzels, and a slice of toast with jam. Hopefully, there’s something in there that you’ll eat.” He moves the towels from the bench next to the tub and replaces them with the plate.

“Take your time. If the water gets cold, feel free to add more to warm it up.”

“Okay.” I appreciate how Matthias has kept his gaze fixed on my face, making sure I know he’s not looking. I’m certain he’s seen my sorry attempt at modesty. But at least he’s polite enough not to say anything. Apparently, he has a copy of the guidebook.

“I’ll be downstairs whenever you’re ready to get out.”

“Thanks again. I’m really sorry for the inconvenience. I’ll be out of here soon.”

“Don’t worry about it. I like taking care of you.”

Fuck . I hope he’s not looking because I can feel the blush spreading across my skin, and I’m sure it goes all the way down.

I swear he’s going to say something else, but instead, he walks out, leaving the door open a crack.

I wait a few seconds, listening to his footsteps. When I’m sure he’s gone, I let myself sink back into the tub.

God, I’m still so tired. The brief surge of adrenaline is starting to wear off. I could fall asleep like this, warm and surrounded by the scent of lavender. Eventually, Matthias would come to check on me. If he found me asleep again, he might actually kidnap me .

It wouldn’t be such a bad plan if I thought he’d have his way with me instead of tying me down and forcing me to sleep.

When the water starts to cool, I pull the drain.

As suspected, Matthias’s clothes don’t really fit me, but with the help of the drawstring and some creative styling, I make them work.

I check the mirror and freeze. I barely recognize myself.

My eyes look empty, with dark circles under them that make me look more like a raccoon than I care to admit.

Not the way I’d prefer to look around Matthias, but at this point, I’m not sure I have much dignity left to preserve. At least now I can head home and fall straight into bed. Maybe not get up until Monday.

Except to do homework. And study group. Fuck .

MATTHIAS

“How are you feeling?” I ask when Frank reappears in the living room. He still looks rough, but at least now he doesn’t look like he might collapse at any moment.

“Better. Sorry.”

“Stop apologizing. There’s nothing to be sorry for.” I’m only glad I found him when I did. Imagining what would’ve happened if I didn’t is too much. Every time I do, my chest tightens.

“Thanks for the bath. And the food. I’ll get going so you can enjoy the rest of the night. I can wash your clothes and bring them back on Monday. Or sooner if you need them.”

Insanity. Fifteen minutes ago, I’d been ready to shove him in my car and drive him to the hospital. I’m still not convinced that isn’t the best course of action. Now, he thinks I’m going to let him get in his car and drive home. “I’d really prefer you didn’t.”

“Didn’t what?”

“Leave. You’re exhausted, and it’s been a long night. It’s not safe for you to drive.” If he really won’t stay, I’ll drive him home. Anyone who can fall asleep like that in the yard is in no position to be driving until he’s had a full night of rest.

“I can’t stay here.” He swallows, and I watch as his Adam’s apple bobs. “With you.”

“I have a spare bedroom. I put new sheets on the bed, so everything’s clean and ready.” The room gets very little use these days. Aaron stays over sometimes when we play video games and drink a few too many beers. Otherwise, only the occasional out-of-town visitor uses the space.

“That’s really not…”

“Please.” I’m not above begging. Every cell in my body is crying out for me to take care of this man.

He might not be willing to say, but he’s obviously going through some things.

Frank deserves a little comfort and caretaking.

Both things I’m more than happy to provide.

As much as I want to demand he tell me the whole story, I don’t have his trust. Not yet. “For me.”

“I… I guess.” Frank stares at the ground, eyes fixed on some spot I can’t quite see, chewing on his bottom lip.

“Thank you.” I lead him back toward the staircase, following close behind to make sure he doesn’t lose his balance as we climb to the second floor.

It takes all my self-control not to stare at the pert ass right in front of me.

Ogling him when he’s had such a shitty night is wrong, but I can’t help myself.

“Help yourself to anything you need. I plugged your phone in on the nightstand.” Thankfully, I checked his pockets before sticking his clothes in the washer.

“The TV remote is there as well, in case you can’t sleep.

” I highly doubt that would be the case, given how heavy his eyelids look, but I don’t want to assume.

“The guest bath is right across the hall. There’s a toothbrush out on the counter for you and clean towels under the cabinet.

” Overboard? Absolutely not. Frank deserves to be spoiled, something I’m starting to suspect he’s had very little of in his life.

“If you need anything else… anything at all… come and get me. You know where my bedroom is.”

“Thanks. I’ll be fine.”

Nope. That’s not good enough. “Frank”—I use my best serious voice—“if you need something, I expect you to let me know. Especially if you aren’t feeling well.” Google hasn’t convinced me that he’ll bounce back from this quickly.

“Okay. Thank you.” Better.

It takes a lot of convincing for me to step away from the doorframe once Frank makes a move toward the bed.

More than anything, I want to wrap him up and make everything better.

Right now, I’m not even sure what everything is, but it’s exhausting him.

I could kick myself for not taking action sooner.

Each morning, when I took him his coffee, I could see the growing dark circles under his eyes.

I could’ve said something, pushed him to get some more rest, even asked Sam to give him a paid day off.

I won’t forgive myself for letting the signs of exhaustion slip by so easily.

For tonight, though, he needs sleep. Until he’s better rested, there’s nothing for me to do. I leave my bedroom door open a crack in case he needs something during the night. Tomorrow, we can talk.