“No, the coffee helps me stay awake so I can keep up with my schedule, but then when it’s time to sleep my nerves get worse and worse, until I’m completely exhausted and I still can’t sleep.”
Her bottom lip is trembling. She’s moving into full-on panic mode, and I feel bad for getting her riled up. Who knows—maybe she does have some serious insomnia issues.
“All right, slow down.” I turn my palms out, keeping my voice calm, but she’s still shaking her head.
“It’s just that I haven’t slept in a couple of days now.”
“A couple ofdays?”
“Yeah, because we had to travel to New York the night before yesterday for the show, and then after the show I hopped straight into the taxi and came here.”
“You took ataxifrom New York?”
What the fuck?
“Yes. So I know I need to sleep, but I’m already getting that feeling where it seems like it might not happen, and if I can’t get the things I need, then Iknowit’ll never happen.”
She brings her arms in tight against her body, balling her hands up into fists. She’s still wearing that ridiculous eye patch, and her one visible eye is squeezed shut.
A tear rolls down her cheek, and it tugs at my heart.
“Hey… It’s OK.” I rest a hand on her thigh before I realize what I’m doing, and she spins toward me, startled.
I raise my hands in apology. “Sorry. My mistake.”
Fuck.
Why did I do that? Was she reminding me of Lexie, maybe? Whatever it was, it was a serious misstep.
“It’s fine.” She waves her palm to dismiss it, then she flips her eye patch up to dab at her tears. The elastic band has left little pink lines crossing her cheek and her forehead. When she opens both eyes, the effect is startling.
She’s gorgeous.
Those green eyes have little gold flecks in them, and her lashes are long and dark. Even with that silly fake birthmark, the pancake makeup, and the frizzy blonde wig framing her face, she’s stunning.
How did I not notice before? Was the eye patch distracting me?
She turns those big green eyes on me, and my heart pounds against my ribs.
I blink to refocus. “OK, I get it. You need some things. We’ll go into town and see what’s there.”
Her shoulders relax a little, and she nods. “Thanks.”
But when she looks away, I let my eyes drift down the neckline of the dress she has on. The tops of her breasts are creamy and smooth.
Fuck. My pants are suddenly tight in the crotch.
I need to get a hold of myself. I’m responsible for her safety, and I can’t do my job if I’m distracted.
Thankfully, she repositions the eye patch and tugs the hair of the wig back around her face. Then she pulls her jacket tight around her, and I’m able to steady myself enough to spin the car around and head to the department store.
When we step inside the place, her head swivels from side to side like she can’t believe her eyes. “I never knew they had all this stuff in Cupid City.”
“It’s a midsize river city, not the North Pole.”
She frowns.
I follow her around as she carefully picks out each of her essential items. We find the earplugs, a sleep mask, and noise-canceling headphones that don’t have the exact attachment method she was hoping for, but she’s willing to give them a try.
