“No.I’m not on until ten tomorrow.”
She watched him heat water for two cups of tea.When he asked if she wanted honey, she murmured an assent.Her pain receded, then intensified in waves.She breathed through it, eyes closed.As the chamomile steeped, he joined her at the table.
“Thank you,” she said.
“Of course.”
“You don’t have to stay up with me.”
“You look pale.”
She offered a tense smile.It felt like a grimace and made her think about the grinning skull he’d uncovered earlier today.She placed a hand over her abdomen and waited for the pain to fade.
“I had a girlfriend in college who got cramps every month,” he said.“She said massages helped.”
Meredith took a shallow breath.“Foot massages?”
“Neck massages, mostly.Do you want me to try it?”
She wasn’t in any position to argue.The pain meds would kick in soon, and the tea offered comfort, but she was desperate for relief right now.He took her nonresponse as a yes and rose from his chair.She lifted her limp hair off her neck and tied it in a messy bun atop her head.He rested his palms on her bare shoulders and pressed his thumbs into the tender flesh at her nape.His touch was firm, but gentle.He kneaded in circular motions.She felt an immediate release of tension, an easing of muscles she hadn’t known were sore.Pleasure unraveled in spools, making her skin tingle with warmth.When he reached a sensitive spot on her shoulder, she gasped out loud.
He stilled.“Does it hurt?”
“No.It’s good.”
He kept going, his fingers working magic along her spine.His hands were big and strong, the span wide across her slender back.The pain in her abdomen lessoned with every sweep of his thumbs.He worked out some kinks in her shoulder blades and continued south.Her head fell forward in surrender.For the next ten minutes, she reveled in the glory of his touch.His hands slipped under her tank top, which ratcheted up the intimacy several notches.It was easier for him to massage bare skin than clothed, and it felt incredible.Sensual awareness shivered through her body.His fingertips rested on her rib cage, very close to the undersides of her breasts.Her nipples tightened into stiff points.
Meredith couldn’t identify the strongest sensation she was experiencing.Pain, relief, and pleasure all mixed together, along with something even more basic—the joy of human contact.She hadn’t been embraced, or touched with kindness, or taken care of by anyone in so long.Tears leaked from the corners of her eyes, embarrassing her.She blinked the moisture away and stilled his hands.
When she hazarded a glance upward, she saw that he’d noticed her body’s reaction to his touch.He was staring at her breasts, and the jut of her nipples against the thin tank top.He backed away from her abruptly.Instead of returning to his seat, he strode toward the sink.Ducking his head, he splashed his face with water, then drank straight from the tap.She suspected he was struggling to control his own arousal.
Meredith hunched over her teacup, which had cooled enough to drink.He joined her a moment later.
“Better?”he asked.
“Yes.Much.Thank you.”
After drinking half her tea, she summoned up the nerve to look at him.He met her gaze boldly, unfazed by whatever had passed between them.Tears, periods, desire—he took it all in stride.
“Tell me about your girlfriend,” she said, on impulse.
“My college girlfriend?”
“The one who called yesterday.”
“She’s not my girlfriend.”
“Who is she?”
“Just a friend.She was married to a buddy of mine.”
Meredith took another sip of tea.“They split up?”
“No.He died two and a half years ago, in Afghanistan.”
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“So am I.”
