Page 13 of Light Me Up

I groan. I really didn't mean to say that out loud.

I might have taken a muscle relaxer.

"Pretty like a girl," I mumble. "With your soft hair and long eyelashes and puffy lips. You're even hairless like a girl."

"Did my dick taste like a girl?" he asks, amused rather than offended by my rambling.

I narrow my eyes at him and ignore his question, which seems to amuse him even more.

"Right, so painkillers are on board, I'm assuming?"

"A muscle relaxer," I say, gesturing to the pill bottle on the dresser. They're left over from pulling my back out while hanging Christmas lights this past year, not that I'm about to admit that to him right now. "I don't like taking them because they make me loopy."

Ian chuckles, "I see that. Well, is it okay if I take a look?" He gestures to my leg, and I gesture dismissively.

I suppose I should be thankful that he's here helping me, and maybe I would be if I didn't feel like this is highlighting just how much older I am than this young, beautiful, sexy thing. I glare at my own crotch, willing it to behave. It's the only part of me that seems to think it's in its twenties.

Ian sits on the edge of the bed and unwraps my thigh. He asks some questions, and feels around the muscles, remaining entirely professional the whole time. Meanwhile, I'm struggling to focus on anything outside of his hands on me.

I'm pathetic.

"Pretty sure it's just a pulled muscle, but you should definitely take it easy for a couple of days. I'll be right back." He runsdownstairs and returns with several ice packs. "Icing a pulled muscle is better than heat for the first couple days because it reduces swelling."

I curse when he touches me with the frigid ice pack, especially after my skin was nice and warm from my heating pad. Instead of wrapping it around my leg, he holds it to the back of my thigh himself.

"We'll keep ice on it for fifteen to twenty minutes, depending on how long these ice packs hold out. Then I'll throw them in the freezer for a while, and we'll repeat every few hours. In between, we'll wrap it up tight and elevate. You'll be right as rain in a few days."

"Thanks, doc," I say sarcastically, although I give him a nod to let him know I'm truly appreciative.

He gives me a saucy grin, holding the ice pack to the back of my thigh while running his fingers up the inside of my leg with his free hand. I fight not to clench my thighs in response to the light tickle of his touch.

"You know, if you want to play doctor…"

"You sure you two are going to be okay?" Michael asks me.

"I'm a big boy, Michael. I'd be fine on my own. It's your dumbass friend that insists on coddling me like an invalid," I say, gesturing to my mostly healed leg that is currently wrapped tightly in a compression sleeve.

He quirks a grin. "Yeah, well, we can't have you falling and breaking a hip next."

"Har har."

"Should I hide all the knives, scissors, and whatever other sharp objects we have in the house?"

"I could maim him with blunt objects just as well," I quip. "Seriously, it's all good. He's helped me a lot the last few days, and I really appreciate his expertise."

"I told you he'd grow on you."

If you only knew.

"Quit worrying about me. Go enjoy your weekend."

Michael makes a face. "It's not too early to be going out of town and meeting her parents, is it?"

"To be fair, her sister is getting married and you're just her date. The rest is all happenstance. But to answer your question, no, I don't think so. You're clearly enamored with her, and from what Ian tells me, you two have been dancing around each other for two years. Not that you ever deemed to tell your old man about it," I say in mock offence.

"Alright, I'm sorry. It was one of those things, ya know? I didn't want to admit to myself that I had feelings for her, because I didn't know she liked me that way and it would have sucked to get rejected."

"I get it."

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