Orange juice. Her blood sugar. She hadn’t made that mistake in a long time.
Wade supported Shelby’s shoulders. She wanted to help, but when she tried to lift her head by herself, it flopped against Wade’s chest. When Ava returned he braced the back of Shelby’s neck with his long, strong fingers, and Ava put the small bottle to Shelby’s mouth.
Her lips seemed to move in slow motion, like she’d been given a shot of Novocain and they didn’t work right. Some of the tepid liquid went into her mouth, but some of it dribbled down the sides of her cheeks, along her neck, and onto her dress. Ava tried again with a little more success. On the third try, Shelby got a good swallow. Then a few more. The juice worked its magic, and energy slowly began to flow through her body and a little into her brain.
“I can take her now,” Ava whispered.
“Ihave her.” The fierceness in Wade’s soft voice sent a little thrill through Shelby that she had no strength to resist. Ava gave him a sharp look, but he didn’t back off.
Shelby leaned her head against his shoulder, snuggling into him. She liked having him hold her close. The soothing beat of his heart against her back made her feel balanced for the first time in a long time.
Ava met Shelby’s gaze and grinned. “All right.” Ava rose and set down the bottle with the last of the juice. “I’ll get you two a blanket.” She left.
“Perfect night for a bonfire,” one of the workers said. “The lull before the storm.”
“Is there any wood?” another asked.
“There’s a pile of scrap wood up by the office,” Shelby said, softly.
Wade repeated her words and a couple of the guys jogged up to the building. “How much of that are you wearing?” Tilting his head to the side, Wade dabbed the paper napkin on her chin and neck. “You’ll need to do the rest.” He slid the napkin into her hand.
Shelby gave the neckline of her dress a couple of weak swipes. She dropped it when the napkin got too heavy. The guys returned with the wood and some paper, and went to work to start the bonfire. When she shivered a little, Wade wrapped his arms around her.
One of the golf carts pulled up, and people who’d been sitting around the fire jumped up and hurried over. They started pulling food and drinks from it; they must have raided the cafeteria. Ava appeared with a large blanket, which she draped around Shelby and Wade.
“Don’t forget the cheese stick,” Ava said. “I’ll get some food.”
“I’m sitting right here,” Shelby mumbled.
“I know that.” Wade ripped off the plastic covering and handed her the cheese. “You need to save your energy.”
Ava returned a few minutes later with two plates. “The hot dog’s got protein and fat, and the bun’s got carbs.” She handed one plate to Shelby and the other to Wade. “I’ll bring back some more juice.”
“You don’t have to wait on me,” Shelby said.
“That’s why I don’t mind doing it.” Ava gave her a little salute and left them alone again.
Shelby slouched against him and let her thoughts wander. Wade made such a nice cushion now with his lovely, strong muscles. He wasn’t bony anymore at all. She inhaled and almost hummed when she picked out the bouquet that was uniquely his, in spite of the residual smell of salt. She almost curled into him but remembered the plate of food resting on her knee. Time to sit up. With a sigh, she tried. She hardly got her head up. It didn’t work, and she giggled.
“Need some help?” Wade asked, his breath warm and soft on her ear.
Without thinking, she tilted her head to the side, like she used to. He pressed his lips to her neck. At his gentle touch, tender memories sneaked out of the niches where she’d hidden them so long ago, creating more cracks in her wall. More memories—laughing, fighting, playing, loving—they lit up her atrophied emotional nerves. For the first time in years, Shelby felt alive. A sob shook her body.
“Shel, shh.” Wade brushed the hair from her face. “You just need to drink this.” He reached for the bottle with the rest of the juice.
By the time she’d gotten down the last of it, she had the horrifying hiccups she’d only experienced a couple of times in her life. Mortified, she tried to shift away. Wade merely pulled her up on his lap. He wrapped the blanket around them again, effectively shielding them from the others this time.
“Eat this.” He picked up the hot dog from her plate.
“I’m so embarrassed to have cried,” she said around the food.
“It’s nothing we can’t pass off as a hypoglycemic episode,” Wade said. “Chew.”
Shelby did and then took another bite of the hot dog he held. Chewing it, she leaned her head against his chest, and he wrapped her in his arms. At that moment, more than anything, she wanted him around her. All the time. Not just for this stupid job. Her eyes misted again.
“Do you remember,” Wade said, his voice low, “how my dad lost all that money when I was a kid?”
“A Ponzi scheme or something.” Here it came. Instinctively, Shelby braced herself, struggling to fix the holes in the wall.
