I came out of the bathroom holding my shirt together with one hand to find a smug-looking Ian right by the door waiting for me.
“Do you need help, honey?”
“Don’t even think about looking down my shirt or pants,” I warned.
He grabbed my shirt, pulled me to him, and began buttoning my shirt while his dancing eyes stared directly into my own. Not once did he look down.
“Don’t enjoy this too much,” I growled.
He pulled me a little closer to him. “Maybe you don’t know how this works for guys, but we typically enjoyunbuttoning.”
“Did you really just say that to me, Mr. Greyson?”
“No more Mr. Greyson, Kelli,” he pleaded.
He had two buttons left when he stopped. “Is that sufficient?”
I nodded, and without a word, he buttoned my jeans for me. “Thank you,” I whispered.
“My pleasure.” He led me to the bed and helped me sit down. There he bent down and put on my shoes for me like I was four years old. He stood. “I’ll let your nurse know you’re ready to go, and I’ll pull the car around.”
“Thanks.”
He leaned down and kissed the top of my head. “I’ll see you in a minute.”
Yeah. This was going to be an interesting night.
Janelle was there within a couple of minutes. She wheeled me out into the warm evening air. I loved that it was staying lighter later. It was around six, but there was still plenty of sun. Ian waited by the passenger side with the door already opened. He had some black sporty-looking car. I couldn’t tell off hand what the make was, but it looked expensive.
Janelle helped me up, and Ian took it from there, helping me into his car. He even buckled me in. I was beginning to feel like a toddler.
“You ready to go?” he asked.
Not even a little.
I SAT ON MY COUCH watching Ian be Ian. He did all the Ian things, like ordering my favorites from Alicia’s and having them delivered. I didn’t even know that was an option, but Ian had worked it out with Jose. Then he made sure I was as comfortable as I could be on the couch, propping pillows around me. He also filled my prescriptions for me.
Ian brought me my dinner and some pain meds. The doctor said I could take a higher dose up front, and I planned to. This way I would fall asleep fast and my sleepover with Ian would be over before I knew it.
Dinner was mostly a silent affair, but the looks and body language were loud. Ian shifted several times on the opposite side of the couch from me. We kept glancing at each other with vacant expressions. Sometimes his was more like puzzled. He probably thought I was a freak of nature; someone they could make a documentary about. It could be called,Virgin Tales.
There was so much that needed to be said, but I didn’t know where to begin and my head was a little fuzzy. I also had a feeling Ian wasn’t ready to deal with it either. I’m sure he had a plan and a timetable, but somehow the accident changed all that.
By the time I was done picking at my smothered burritos, I was feeling more than loopy. Unfortunately, I had no desire to sleep in jeans and my arm and hand were still under the influence of anesthesia. Ian was going to have to help me undress.
“I’m tired. I need to change into some more comfortable clothes.” I cringed.
To his credit he only half smiled. “Would you like my help?”
I bit my lip. “I don’t think I have a choice.”
He slid across the couch and took my plate before setting it on my coffee table. “You’ll always have a choice with me.”
He had said the same thing to me before. Never once when we were dating had he tried to take advantage of me. I probably pushed the line more than him, but he always made sure we never crossed it. “What choices are you offering me?” I rubbed my head with my working hand. The medication was really kicking in.
He stood and pulled me up. “You’re tired and we’ve both had a long day. Let’s talk later.”
That was probably a good idea. It was probably good, too, that I wasn’t fully cognizant when he started unbuttoning my shirt. His eyes never drifted down, even though I was doing my best to keep it from falling wide open. Being so close to him, though, had me wanting to get lost in his eyes and fall into his arms. Maybe it was the drugs, but this urge came over me and my lips fell on his.
