Page 30 of Obsessed Mr. O’Brian

Regina lied to me. She twisted the truth and used my sense of loyalty to manipulate me into believing her tales. Because of her, I spewed nothing but hate-filled words to Millie when she visited me in the hospital afterward, thought nothing but the worst of her at the wedding not soon after, and treated her like a threat when she wanted nothing but the best for my daughter.

I’m an idiot. A despicable, horrible asshole.

It all changes right now.

Millie Grant was my first crush, my savior, and the awakening to my passion, and now she’s my daughter’s nurse, nanny, and guardian angel.

Sure, she killed me and fled, but she’s the only woman I’ll ever want.

Millie Grant is mine.

All mine.

No matter what it takes.

Chapter 11

Millie Grant

I wake at the first sign of restlessness from Lola and surge upward before I remember my battered and bruised body. Pain and stiffness trap me in a half-seated, half-lying position with my legs dangling over the edge of the mattress and all my weight on my uninjured forearm.

Everything hurts. My head throbs, joints ache, and muscles scream in protest. Before I can gather my strength to push myself the rest of the way up, a gigantic body appears in front of me and massive hands cup my upper arms. My scream dies in my throat as I meet Artur’s golden eyes. With his hair mussed and gaze half lidded from sleep, he’s a wet dream in the flesh.

I swallow and struggle to breathe as he studies my face.

“Lie back down. I’ll get you more ice.”

His deep, gravelly voice made impossibly deeper and rougher by sleep, vibrates into my bones and liquifies my insides.

“No, Lola is waking up,” I croak.

“I can manage this morning. You need to take it easy,” he says.

Lola’s cry pierces through the quiet room. With a gentleness that closes my throat and scratches the back of my eyes, Artur guides me to lie down on my side, lifts my legs onto the mattress, and tucks my feet under the blankets before removing his daughter’s slow drip feed with adorable awkwardness.

Unable to handle Lola’s sounds of distress, I reach for the blankets, intending to rise, but she quiets as he finishes, scoops her into his arms, and offers her words of comfort.

Longing squeezes my heart at the precious view as Artur carries Lola around the room, and I fight the urge to sigh in pure domestic bliss.

Sensual hunger joins the pain pulsing through me. In a black T-shirt and grey sweatpants, Artur O’Brian is even sexier than when he’s in a suit. I would have argued it was impossible, but somehow the jerk pulled it off. If it weren’t for Lola and my bruised body, I would totally jump him.

No, that’s not true. His hatred, Regina’s memory, and our harrowing past stand between us. No matter how well he treats me today or how concerned he acted last night, he only wants me here to care for his daughter.

Heat creeps up my neck as I recall how hard he was when he pressed his hips against mine. I nearly melted into a puddle of goo at the delicious, shocking size of him, but the fear of losing control in front of him and proving I’ve always been the problem kept me in check.

Artur fumbles through changing Lola’s diaper to a pull-up before carrying her into the kitchen to wash both their hands. The sight of her cute little fingers relaxed in his masculine hands fills me with wonder. I grit my teeth and lift my arm to push the lock of hair that escaped from my braid out of my face and dread the day ahead. Without the adrenaline, shock, and drop of yesterday, I don’t know how I’ll handle the pain today.

When Artur carries Lola into the kitchen and struggles for a few minutes with his back to me, I take a deep breath and mentally prepare myself for movement.

Feeling guilty for not being useful, I swing my legs over the side of the bed and brace to rise, but Artur’s low growl stops me. The bed dips behind me. I turn in trepidation only to smile as I meet Lola’s eyes.

I note the princess’s morning grumpiness fading away as she registers my presence, but when I twist to face her in my eagerness, agony spears up my waist and branches out between my ribs.

Artur creates a mini throne of pillows around Lola before rushing around and helping me. I ignore the tingling under my skin from his touch as he builds a similar throne for me.

Lola climbs into my lap before I finish settling, and despite the throbbing in my gut, I pull her close and kiss the top of her head.

Artur places her medicine, formula, a sterile set of tubes, and a pair of gloves beside my leg, but instead of disappearing into the bathroom to get ready for what must be a busy day for him, he stalks to the kitchen, starts the coffee machine, and produces fresh bags of ice from the freezer. After positioning the ice between my back and the headboard, he returns to the kitchen.