Page 175 of Nobody's Girl

With a softness in her eyes, she says, “You’re so kind. Why are you so nice to me? You should be home, sleeping, but you’re here with me. Why?”

Because you’re the love of my life. My mate for eternity.

Instead of that, I say, “This is where I want to be, Alyssa. Here, with you. I don’t wish to be anywhere else.”

Her brow furrows. “I need you to remember I have a boyfriend, Eden.” Her words punch me and a nurse walks in, getting between us as she inserts a needle into Alyssa’s IV. I could use a shot of that to numb this pain.

The nurse turns to me. “This will knock her out again for a few hours. You should get some rest, Mr. Fontaine. I can bring in a roll away bed for you.”

I wave her off. “I’ll sleep once I get her back home.”

Alyssa giggles, making me turn to look back at her. “I feel funny,” she says with another giggle, which I find myself captivated by.

“It’s the morphine,” the nurse says. “Alyssa, you can let your fiancé lie down with you if you want.”

The nurse’s use of the word fiancé has me worried Alyssa will let out my little white lie to the hospital staff. So I hurry the nurse out the door as Alyssa has a fit of the giggles once more.

“Thanks. I’ll do it if I get tired,” I tell the nurse.

Back at her side, I see tears streaming down her cheeks as she laughs. “She thought you were my fiancé. How funny is that, Eden? She thinks I should let you lie in this bed with me! Ha, how crazy?”

Okay, it’s not so crazy she has to laugh so hard tears flow out of her eyes!

I pull the blanket up and tuck her in snugly. “Okay, it’s not that funny, Alyssa.”

Wiping her eyes with the back of her hand, she stifles the laughter. While captivating, it’s a bit annoying she can find so much humor in us being engaged.

“It’s just the thought of you and me together like that. Well, come on. You’re so classy and well-mannered and drop-dead gorgeous. And I’m, well, I’m none of those things,” she says, and it breaks my heart she doesn’t realize how wonderful she is.

She is all of those things and more.

My fingers trail along her delicate collar bone. I’d like to trail kisses there instead, but I settle for this. Her reaction is clear as the heart monitor beeps faster. I do affect her, even with a good dose of morphine in her system.

“You are beyond gorgeous, Alyssa. Never have my eyes laid upon a woman as perfect as you are.”

A dreamy look comes over her. “You sound like the romance novel I read the other day. The hero who saved the damsel in distress. You sound like him. You’re my hero, aren’t you?”

I lean close to her, my lips touch her ear, and I say, “I’d like to be. If you would let me. All you have to do is ask and I’ll be yours.”

The sound of her steady breathing makes me look at her. Her eyes are closed and she’s fast asleep.

I wonder if she heard me.

CHAPTER 11

ALYSSA

Weight upon my stomach beckons me to find out what’s causing the pressure. Dark brown waves highlighted with strands of gold fill my eyes. A squeeze of my hand finds it in the one’s whose head lies on me.

His name? What was his name?

Damn this bump on my head. It hurts and leaves me stupid. What time can it be? When can I leave this place?

Why is he still here?

Oh yeah, how could I’ve forgotten? He’s staying with us for a week. He’s my parents’ friends’ son. And he’s lying on my stomach for reasons I can’t understand.

Why didn’t he go home and sleep?