“I don’t know,” I told him. He exhaled a shaky breath when I brushed a strand of damp hair off his brow. “I thought you were asleep,” I said. “But then I heard you…whimper.”
“Whimper?Please, I don’twhimper,” Nate huffed.
“Oh, then it must’ve been the cat.”
“You have a cat?” He glanced around the living room.
Adorable.
“Nope.”
And gods, that grin…Why is it doing things to me?
“It sounded like you were hurting,” I added softly. “Are you okay?”
I nudged the glass of water to his lips and used my other hand to support his head. “Drink. That’s it, Nate.”
His eyes held onto mine when he did as I told him.
Good boy.
I kept my hand under his head as I lowered it back on the pillow and trailed my fingers through the dark, silky strands as I lowered it back on the pillow, wanting to keep stroking his silky hair to comfort him.
“How do you feel?”
“I feel like shit. I fucking molested you earlier.” Nate threw his arm over his eyes and groaned.
Is that what he thinks happened?
“Nate, please look at me.” I pulled his arm away. “You didn’t—Gods! I wanted it, okay?”
My voice was barely a whisper. “Your nose would look a lot less perfect if I didn’t.” I ran my fingertip along the knife edge. Nate trembled under my touch and groaned when I ghosted over his symmetrical lips.
He licked them, and I snatched my hand away.
“Do you need anything?” I asked, pushing up to my feet.
This is dangerous, Vee.
“I think I have a few painkillers that should work on humans, too?”
“Nah, I think I’ll be okay. It’s just…“ He hesitated. “Can you stay with me for a while?”
He snuggled his face into the pillow.
“Of course I’ll stay,” I whispered and sank back to my knees. “I’ll stay for as long as you like.”
I ran my hand through his hair, scraping my claws softly over his scalp and loving the way he shivered. His little sigh made my stomach do funny things. I wrapped him up in a fluffy blanket and stroked his hair until he was fast asleep.
Chapter Eleven
Nate
I’d barely slept at all when I jolted awake. My body shot up into a sitting position, but I flopped back on the pillow with a groan.
“Oh, fuck.”
My headthrobbed from all the beer, and my body was all damp, as if I’d had a fever that broke overnight.
