Page 21 of Keep You Close

She slid hers around me, arms going upward for more leverage without putting pressure on my screaming ribs.

“Okay, on three,” I said, trying to tighten my core against the coming pain.

“Three,” she said, then pulled with everything she had.

And fuck if she didn’t get me back far enough to get my leg up under me to help push up, take some of the pressure off of her.

It wasn’t easy for her, for sure. She grunted and hissed through it. And by the time she lowered me onto the chair, she was panting for breath.

And my pervy fucking ass had to force my gaze up from her chest.

“See? No sweat,” she said, though she was totally fucking sweating in her hairline. “But for the record, it would have been a lot easier to just, you know, help you off of the couch.”

“Noted,” I agreed, taking slow, deep breaths before trying to scoot myself.

“Oh, for God’s sake. I can push you,” she said, rolling her eyes at me before moving behind the chair, and pushing me into the bathroom. “Do you need me to—“

“I swear to fuck if I ever need you to help me in the bathroom, just take me out back and shoot me,” I said, shaking my head at her.

“Hey,” she started. “Bodies get hurt and they sometimes start to fail. And it’s not exactly dignified, but it happens to all of us eventually. So there’s no reason to be embarrassed about it.”

That was a surprisingly deep comment for five in the morning. But she was right.

“I got this,” I assured her.

The bathroom was snug, with the counter easy to grab if I needed some extra support.

“Okay. But I’m not going back to bed until you’re on the couch, so if you change your mind, call me.”

With that, she walked out, closing the door, and I could hear her letting out the dog as I finished up in the bathroom, taking a minute to brush my teeth with a spare brush she had in the drawer. Then pulling off the braces on my fingers, and using some tape I had in the drawer instead. They’d do just about as good a job but wouldn’t be so bulky.

Finished, I looked at myself, seeing how pale I looked from the pain.

It was a nonstop shooting pain from my leg, ribs, shoulder, and neck now. And I was suddenly thankful that Shane Mallick would get me an appointment at his doctor, because I was going to need more pain pills sooner rather than later.

I hoped it would ease up in a few days.

The reality was, though, that I had no idea.

I’d never been hurt this badly before.

If the pain in just one of the areas—ribs, shoulder, fingers, or neck—would get better, I could deal with the leg and other pains better.

“Gonna need a sign of life in there,” AJ called from the hallway, making my lips curve up as I reached for the door, pulling it open. “Oh, good,” she said, and I was suddenly ridiculously disappointed that she’d put on pants. “What’d you do to your fingers?” she asked, giving the braces on the counter a meaningful look.

“They’ll be fine with the tape,” I assured her. “I’ve hurt my fingers plenty in the past. You can trust me on this one.”

“I’m doubtful given that you thought you could get up by yourself, but okay,” she said, coming in to slide the chair behind me again, then holding it still, so I could get on it. “I kind of want to make zooming noises,” she said as she started pushing me down the hall toward the couch.

“You really know how to make a man feel good about himself,” I teased, but wanted to suck it right back in when I saw the look on her face.

Like she was, I don’t know, scared?

The hell was that about?

“Joking, AJ, joking,” I said, giving her a smile. “Why don’t you leave me here?” I suggested. “That way I will already be up. Go back to sleep.”

“Oh, I’m up now,” she said, waving me off. “I usually get up around six anyway. So… how about I make breakfast?”

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