Page 27 of Fighting For You
“Go take care of her, and do what you can to take care of yourself, okay? If you go down, too, you call me and we’ll figure out how to get you both out. In the meantime, I’ll keep the girls updated through Jo so they know what’s going on and can rally when she’s back home.”
In truth, I felt fine so far, and based on the internet searches I’d done, I wouldn’t be likely to get sick for another few days unless I’d already been exposed via someone else. The nervous energy stemmed from the mention of giving Jess a bath, but it wouldn’t come to that. Her temp would drop and it’d be fine.
Worst case, there were ways the team could get to us—everything from bringing a truck with chains up or even a helicopter from the hospital… but it wouldn’t get that bad. I wouldn’t let it.
“Thanks,” I mumbled, and hung up, rushing to the room when I heard another moan.
She’d stripped off her shirt and pants, her legs now splayed out on top of the bed, and her cheeks were flushed. My breath rushed out at the miles of exposed skin before I drop-kicked my brain and moved to her side.
“I feel so bad,” she whispered, not even bothering to open her eyes.
I scanned her forehead—damn.One oh three again. “Hey, we gotta get you cooled down.”
“Yeah, I know. That’s why I’m nearly naked in your bed.”
Words I wouldn’t admit to having imagined come from her lips, but now that they had, I mentally punched the idiotic part of my mind that started giggling about it and grabbed the water. “Sit up a bit and take a drink.”
“My head hurts.”
I checked my watch. “You can take more medicine in an hour, but right now, you need to drink. It’ll help your head, too.”
She opened one eye and glared at me, then her other fluttered open. “I’m sorry.”
“Hush.”
Gripping her upper arm, I eased her into a sitting position and held the cup to her lips. She looked at me with brows pinched like she didn’t understand, her eyes bloodshot and dry.
My heart squeezed. I slid a hand behind her head to support it. “Tip back a little, Pop. You can do it.”
She eyed me as I eased her head back while tilting the drink, grateful when her lips moved and she actually swallowed the liquid.
“Good girl. Now we’re going to?—”
“I may be delirious with a fever, but if you ever good girl me again, Beast, we’re going to have issues.”
I cleared my throat, not allowing myself to laugh at her show of strength. “Apologies, Pop. I’m just glad you’re cooperating. You and I both know you don’t take orders well, and especially not from me.”
Her eyes were barely open now, but she somehow managed to glare at me. “You don’t take orders well from me either.”
Might depend on the context.
I slapped the thought down and held the water to her mouth again. She complied and sighed when I rested her back against the pillow. I brought two cool washcloths and set one on her forehead, the other on her chest.
“That feels good and also awful.”
I huffed a laugh. “Sorry, but Doc says you need to cool off or I have to give you a lukewarm bath.”
Her eyes jumped open. “You will give me a bath over my dead body.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to stay a smile. “I will do what I need to do to make sure I don’t have your dead body on my hands at any point. I’m pretty sure your friends would end up in jail for murder—at least Elise and Dove would. Those two would go feral. And Winnie and Nikki would help hide my body while Jo wrote out the alternate history for the cover up. Poor Catherine would have to go into hiding so she wouldn’t have to lie to anyone about what happened. So that’s why we’re doing wash cloths first. Bring down your temp and we’ll be just fine.”
A smile flickered across her face before she sighed, long and aggrieved, but then launched into a coughing fit. When she finished, she reached for the water of her own accord, then startled. “Do you know where my phone is?”
“Haven’t seen it. Did you have it when you got here?” It hadn’t occurred to me she might’ve dropped it when she fell.
“I don’t know if I brought it in. Maybe it’s in my car?”
“I’ll get it for you. You stay here and cool down. Don’t get under the blankets again. When I get back, if it’s not dropping, it’s bath time.”
