“You’re right. I’m sorry for being nosy. Of course, I am chopping your tomatoes. I figure that makes me special.”
“You are.” Her gaze fell, and she gripped the counter’s edge.
He stopped chopping. His chest rattle picked up again, big time. “Elaine? What did Josh say?”
“He told me not to worry. It’s probably nothing.”
Which sounded like everything. He put a finger to her chin and made her look at him. “Tell me.”
“It was just that he said my heart rate is a little…erratic.”
Connor knew he should stay calm, but for some reason, he felt like taking the knife and stabbing the hell out of the tomatoes. “Okay.”
“He called it an arrhythmia. It means my heartbeat is irregular. Humans can get them, but shape shifters don’t. Our hearts aren’t susceptible to them.”
He tried to swallow, but his throat had never been so dry. “So what does that mean? What’s he going to do about it?”
“There’s not much he can do. He said it’s not unusual for shifters in my position to suffer heart problems. For those who’ve died as a result of their mates dying, heart problems seem to be what finishes them off.”
Jesus. Fuck. Goddamn. He whipped out every curse word he knew but didn’t dare utter them aloud.This can’t be happening. “What did he suggest?”
“Relaxation. Trying not to get stressed. Keeping to a regular sleep pattern. Eating well, drinking well. You know the drill. He said many cases of arrhythmia are harmless, but some can be dangerous. He taught me how to check my pulse to monitor the rate, and he’s booked a follow-up for me.”
“Okay, that’s good. He’s keeping an eye on you.” So would Connor. He was so glad he hadn’t made arrangements to take the test in Toronto. There was no way in hell he’d leave her now.
A fucking arrhythmia. Even the word sounded ominous.
She laid a soft hand on his arm. “I don’t want you to worry.”
Too late. “I won’t.”
She pointed at his face. “So you say but your face is red and your eyebrows are bunching up in the middle.”
“Let’s not bring my eyebrows into this. Look, the last thing you need right now is to concern yourself with me. Okay?” He gripped her by the arms but then loosened his hold in case he was hurting her. All of a sudden, she seemed ten times more delicate. “It’s time to give you what you need.”
A soft pink danced across her cheeks. “I don’t think that’s possible.”
“Then let’s just concentrate on helping you stay relaxed for now. I want you to lean on me, Elaine, okay? I have strong shoulders. I can take it.”
Her gaze drifted toward his shoulders and back up to his face. “Don’t tempt me. I don’t want to overstay my welcome with you, Connor.”
“That’s not possible.” He put his hands on her arms and turned her around, marching her toward the chair. “Sit down and let me take care of you.”
She sat. “But…”
He made a zipping motion across his lips. “Don’t argue with me on this one. You won’t win.”
“I seem to recall something else Lloyd told me about you. He said you were stubborn.”
“Yeah, well, Lloyd was no different, and if he was here, he’d be doing the same thing.” He parked himself behind her and began to rub her shoulders.
“Oh. What are you doing?”
“Giving you a back rub. We have a few minutes before the kids descend for dinner. Besides, your shoulders feel like chunks of marble.”
She opened her mouth to speak, but when he dug his thumbs into a knot next to her spine, she closed her eyes and sighed.
Her body felt nice under his hands. The more he massaged her, the more pliable it became. When some of the boulder-sized knots began to release under his fingers, he almost cheered.
