Page 2 of Kept for Christmas

I don’t know why I thought this would be so much different. Why are men never what you think they’ll be?

I blow out a heavy breath of frustration and turn the corner into the hallway. I’ve only been on bed rest for a week, but I don’t know how I’ll last another. Besides, I only feel a little dizzy. This is nothing like it was right after the accident.

Who goes driving in a snowstorm, anyway? I should’ve turned around. I could’ve easily made it back home before the whiteout started. Instead, I put work in front of my safety. The worst part is, the people at work didn’t send a bouquet of flowers or a get-well card. There wasn’t even a phone call.

My stomach turns and the room goes dark as I hold the edge of the wall. I think this would be easier if I weren’t trying to choke tears back.

I feel so dumb. I mean, who’s this desperate for love? Apparently, me.

“You proved your point. You're strong.” The recliner footrest clicks down, and I hear his heavy weight moving toward me. “Come on. Sit back down.”

“No! I’m going home. It’s been a week, and I’m sleeping fine. I haven’t had any major headaches. I’m good. Thank you for the… hospitality.” I don’t know why I ever convinced myself that I could seduce this man. I have a concussion. I can barely walk right now. That, and I haven’t actually seduced anyone… ever.

In general, I repel men. I have since the day I was born. My own parents didn’t even want anything to do with me.

Why am I going there right now? More tears choke their way onto my face.

Dear God, make it stop. I don’t cry.I do not cry!

“You’re not going home!” Nick lands his big rough hand on my arm. “Sit down.”

All week, I’ve been desperate for him to touch me, but for some reason, right now, his touch sends me into a downwardspiral. I snap my gaze toward him and narrow my eyes, suddenly seeing crisp and clear. “Get the hell out of my way. I’m going home.”

“And how are you going to get there, princess?”

“I don’t know. I’ll find someone.” The truth is, if I had someone, I wouldn’t be here. “Look, it’s fine. I’m not your responsibility and that’s cool. So, let me go.”

I hate myself so much right now.

“Yeah, I’m not letting you go.” He grips my waist and pulls me close to his massive frame. Why does this man have to smell so good? Cedar and pine. Maybe something more, something deeper, like his natural musk. I don’t know, but it’s all mixed in to make this gorgeous scent that, despite his shit attitude, I want to lose myself in.

I’m sure my therapist would have a field day with this.

His hand tucks under the back of my thighs and he leans me into his arms, lifting me from the ground like a small child. He shouldn’t be able to do that. I’m definitely not the size of a small child. I’m a thick, well-fed, mountain girl.

A thick, independent, mountain girl who should hate being lifted and carried anywhere by a man. Instead, I love it. I love it so much that the last thing I feel before I blackout is my clit throbbing.

Chapter Two

Nick

The doctor stands in the hallway with a downturned expression, his palm over his gray beard, scrubbing as though he’s trying to come up with a reasonable conclusion to the sudden backslide with Emma’s condition. “Stress can cause problems as the blood vessels contract. Has she been under any stress recently? A bad day, a lot more activity, a tense argument?”

I suck in a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Well, I was my usual pain in the ass self. I think that might have triggered it. She was convinced she was going to leave. I was trying to stop her.”

I’ve lived in Rugged Mountain my entire life, and I’ve known Dr. Thorpe as long as I’ve been alive. Hell, I think the man even cared for my parents at one point. I’m guessing all the ranch work he does on the side keeps him spry.

“It’s really important you help her relax, Nick. She needs two solid weeks of peace and quiet. If you can’t help her, she’s better off back at the hospital up in the Springs.”

“What kind of peace and quiet? Like no movement at all? Can she ride in the plow?”

“Yeah, she’d be fine to go for a ride. Just keep her calm, and don’t stress her out. You’ll need to relax her.”

Relaxing her only brings one thing to mind. One thing I’ve been trying to keep myself from thinking. One thing I shouldn’t be considering when it comes to someone so young. One thing that makes me a sick fuck.

“Got it.” I look away in the hopes that the doctor misses my darkness, though I can feel it dripping down my face like sweat. “So, when should I call you back?”

“If she doesn’t wake in the next few hours, give me a call back and we’ll go from there. All we can do right now is give her rest. Give her that and she’ll get better faster. I’m sure you want to go back to your normal life.”

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