Page 22 of Toxic

“Alright. Anything I should do?”

“Just some medication to bring the fever down and rest. And lots of liquids.”

“Thanks,” I told her, and guided Billie toward the elevator again.

“Can’t we wait until they get here?” she asked, pulling her mask down and shoving it into her pocket. Her eyes were now red rimmed and she was even more pale than she’d been on the drive.

“Nope,” I replied. “Don’t worry, Smoke will text me when they get here.”

“Why are they both coming?” she asked, not complaining when I wrapped my arm around her. She was starting to shiver.

“Just in case whoever did this to him comes looking for him,” I replied without thinking. When she lost even more color in her face, I swore. “No.It’s fine.No oneis coming here,” I backtracked.

“But they could,” she whispered. “I didn’t even think of that.”

I had. Which was why Static was currently parked in the parking lot nearby. Just in case Billie called needing anything, he’d be there. I wasn’t going to let her sit here by herself for hours on end. Not since I figured out that this could be a serious threat.

Riptide had sat in the parking lot last night. He’d used the time to start looking into Fission Solutions. Until we figured out what the fuck was up with this company, Billie and her grandfather wouldn’t be alone. Smoke was going to call Static and tell him he could take off since he’d be there with Danica.

Opening the truck door, I helped Billie get inside. “Smoke won’t let anything happen to your grandfather,” I told her. She nodded, shivering on the seat. Reaching into the back, I pulled out my jacket and draped it over her. This had hit her fast. I had a feeling she was going to be a lot like my pops. He almost never got sick, but when he did it took him down hard. Always had.

I cranked the heat, ignoring that I was going to sweat my ass off, as soon as I started the engine and took it easy driving back to the ranch. She was asleep before we even hit the highway.

When I pulled into the ranch, I saw Butcher had gotten started on painting. I didn’t shut the truck door as I walked up to him, not wanting to wake Billie.

“Took you a while.” He looked over at the truck and frowned. “What happened?”

“She’s running a fever. I’m going to try to get her cooled down and into bed.”

“Need anything from me?”

“No. This is good. I’ll get some of the guys out here tomorrow to help. It’ll go a lot faster that way.”

“Sounds good,” he said. “Get away from the paint, Dog,” he barked as I turned my back.

I couldn’t help the grin. Eris’s tongue was glued to the side of the house, lapping up the fresh paint. She was sticking close toButcher. Keeping an eye out as if he might run off with the fine china if she let him roam freely. I pulled Billie into my arms and smiled when she cuddled against me.

“You’re so warm,” she said, her eyes still closed.

Frowning, I put my hand over her forehead. She was the one who was warm. Too damn warm. I brought her into her bedroom and sat her on the bed while I disappeared into her bathroom to find something to help with the fever. I came back with the pills and the glass of water.

She’d already burrowed under her blankets. The mound on the bed was shaking as her body shivered its way through the fever.

“Sit up,” I told her, forcing her to comply. I wanted to be able to let her sleep, but we needed to take care of this first. I sat on the bed and urged her upward. “Take these.”

She was docile and followed orders. That was my first clue about how shitty she was feeling. She didn’t complain as I took my coat off her and started stripping her down. There was a moment of feeble struggle, but she gave up pretty quickly. I went over to her dresser and pulled her warmest looking pajama bottoms and a t-shirt. She was sitting on the bed, watching me with those huge gorgeous eyes. Damn. She had a way of disarming a man. I was willing to do whatever fucking needed doing just to make her feel a little better. No ask was too big.

I ignored the fact that she was sitting in just a pair of panties and a bra and put her pajamas on her. I deserved a goddamn medal for that, though. Because she had a body that deserved to be worshiped. Tucking her in, I made sure she had water on the nightstand before I left her to sleep.

My phone rang as I stepped out of the house. I put it on speaker. “Hello?” I didn’t recognize the number on the screen. Whoever was on the other line started on her rant so fast my head spun.

“If you hurt her, Toxic, I’m going to come back and chop your balls off while you sleep!”

I blinked, staring down at the phone. Butcher edged a bit closer and gave me a curious look. I just shrugged at him, not speaking because the woman still was. Her voice was shrill and angry. I was also pretty sure she wasn’t breathing in between sentences. No way she could be.

“Billie is super sweet and doesn’t have a lot of experience with guys. The jerk she did have a relationship with ended up hurting her deeply, so if you do that I’m going to hurt you! Don’t be out there chasing other women if you’re going to pursue her. And you will be pursuing her because I know you and you can’t help yourself. So no nonsense! Got it?”

“Uh-”

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