“Geez, another person I forgot about. What’s the news for him?”
Mitch stroked her fingers and she melted a little inside. “He’s got a broken pelvis and broken fibula in his left leg. He’ll be laidup for a little while, but that’s okay, the Roadhouse needs to be rebuilt.”
“Oh no, that’s terrible. He must be devastated that he’s lost his livelihood. At least he’s got his wife who will be there to help him recover.” How many other people had lost their livelihood from the tornado? She wanted to ask Mitch more questions, but another yawn hit her and her eyes drifted shut. Trying to open them again would take too much effort right at that second. Warm lips brushed her forehead and she felt her lips stretch into a small smile. She liked the gentle touch.
“I’ll be back later, Boston. Have a good sleep.”
“Mmhmm.” Nadia snuggled down as much as she could in a hospital bed restricted by an IV and bandaging across her chest. Being called Boston was growing on her.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Nadia unlockedthe door to the house she shared with Cerise, conscious of Mitch’s hulking figure behind her. As he’d promised, Mitch had entered her room just as Jerry, one of the neurologist on staff, cleared her for discharge. She’d been awake for a couple of hours by then, and had eaten a sandwich and had some juice, all of which she had no issue keeping down. Thank goodness for that, throwing up was her least favorite thing to do.
Now here she stood and she didn’t have a clue what to do next. Should she invite him in? It would be the right thing to do considering all he’d done for her since she’d thrown up in front him. Would he even want to come in?
Mitch stood behind her and it did nothing to detract from the heady scent of his citrusy aftershave. The smell reminded her of just peeled oranges.
She loved oranges.
All she had to do was turn the knob and open it. Instead she rested her head on the hardwood.
Immediately a warm hand landed on her lower back. “Boston, are you feeling okay? Do I need to take you back to the hospital?”
Nadia shook her head, annoyed at herself for the way she was acting. She was a grown woman, not to mention a kick-ass ER doctor and yet indecision about asking Mitch in was almost crippling her. Talk about being over dramatic.
Taking a deep breath she lifted her head from where it rested and turned so that her back rested against the door and her front was almost pressed against Mitch’s chest. She inhaled deeply and looked up at him. He was gazing down, his blue eyes intense, but clear. Oh so very clear that she could almost see into his soul.
Her tongue darted out to moisten her dry lips. His eyes tracked the slide of her tongue and he moved a little closer to her. Nadia’s gaze drifted to his lips and she remembered the feel of them against her own. The kiss they’d shared last night seemed more intense than the one she’d laid on him all those months ago. How could that be when both had been shared while he’d been lost in his head?
What would it be like to kiss him when he was aware of her and their surroundings? “Umm do you want to come in?”
Mitch rested his hand against her cheek, gently brushing his thumb under her chin. Her skin jumped to life and a flash of desire arrowed through her, firing her blood. “Yes, that would be nice.”
Fumbling behind her, she twisted the knob to open the door. Losing her back support she started to fall toward the ground. In a flash Mitch had scooped her close to his chest and hustled them inside. The door slammed shut but she didn’t move away from him. She didn’t want to. Mitch’s arms surrounded her and everything clicked into place inside of her.
Giving into her earlier thought about kissing him while he wasn’t under the influence of a panic attack, she went up on tiptoe and pressed her lips against his. He groaned, the sound reverberating around the small hallway.
Her purse and keys clattered to the ground as she wrapped her arms around his neck, her whole body singing from the tenuous connection. Being with Mitch was more like being home than any other man she’d kissed or had relationships with.
How could she be feeling this way about a man she barely knew? A man, until the previous evening, she had only seen once before. Was it leftover emotions from surviving the largest tornado Hunt had ever seen? She knew they’d forged a connection when they’d worked together to help Buck, Cerise and the others, but had thought it was a professional one. Which they certainly had, but they’d forged a personal connection so unique she didn’t know how to process it all.
Nadia had never believed in love at first sight. Lust at first sight for sure. But the forever kind of love—no. To her, love should grow over time, like planting a seed. The more you watered and cared for it the more the feeling of love took root and then spread to the surface to be all encompassing.
Yet what she was feeling now, being held in Mitch’s arms. His lips caressing hers was like the magic bean feeling. Overnight the stalk had grown until it was out of sight and she didn’t think she could climb it.
Not yet anyway.
Placing her hands on Mitch’s firm chest she gently pushed. Immediately his arms loosened their grip around her and she was able to take a couple of steps back. Put some breathing space between them.
They looked at each other for endless moments. What should she say? Should she apologize for initiating the kiss? No, there was no need for that. A quick glimpse down to his crotch she could see the outline of how much he’d been enjoying the kiss. And she’d been enjoying it too, her nipples were still hard, pushing against the lace of her bra.
“Do you want a drink?” she blurted out.
“Sure.” His voice gruff. Would he sound like that first thing in the morning? She quickly banished that thought, no matter how tempting it was to imagine waking up beside him.
Nadia bent down to grab her purse, and a wave of dizziness washed over her. She swayed and reached out a hand to try and steady herself. Her fingers were grabbed by Mitch’s strong ones and in a slick movement he scooped her up—again.
“You’ve got to stop almost fainting on me, Boston.” Mitch walked down the short hallway until he found the living room, which wasn’t hard, it was the only open door. The house wasn’t huge either. “Do you want me to call the medical center?”
