Page 72 of Guilty as Sin
She woke because the bed was empty, the warmth at her back gone. It was light in the room. And shehurt.
She tried to sit up, and gasped. Beside the bed, Tobiasdidsit up. And Jace came out of the bathroom. Fast.
“All right?” he asked. He was wearing jeans, and that was all. Part of her went,Ouch,and part of her went,Arms.
“Oh.” She struggled to sit, and he came over and helped her. “It’s morning.”
“Yeah. You should sleep some more, though. I’m about to go over to your place and take care of your animals. How are you feeling?”
“Oh, you know.” She tried to make it airy. She couldn’t. “A few things.”
“Like what?”
He was still standing over her, and she said, “Could you sit down? You’re too… tall.”
“Ah. Hurting your neck.” He sat on the edge of the bed. “Want a tablet?”
She sighed. “Yeah. I do. One more. Don’t remind me tonight that I said that. I could need another one.”
“First day, worst day.” He touched the side of her face. Gently. “Bruising’s come out. I’m guessing your shoulder’s looking pretty bad, too, and feeling that way.” He reached for another bottle and opened the childproof cap. “Couple ibuprofen probably wouldn’t come amiss, either.”
“Actually,” she said, taking the pills from him and swallowing them with the help of the glass of water he handed her, “it’s my face, mostly. And my leg. I must have twisted it falling. I need to stretch it, but, man.” She sighed again. “Yeah. Oh, well. I’m alive.”
If he thought that was whiny, he sure didn’t show it. “Mm,” he said. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll go do the animals, give those meds a chance to work. Then I’ll come back and work on the leg for you.”
“Yeah,” she muttered. “That’s going to help.”
He looked startled. “Pardon?”
“Oh.” She put a hand to her head, which was throbbing like there was a vise around it. “Sorry. Fuzzy. I mean… you asked how I’m feeling? Way out of my comfort zone.”
“Ah. Because you told me the truth. Because you cried.”
His eyes, which could be so hard, weren’t that way now. Neither was the hand on her face, and her mouth had gone dry. “Yeah,” she said. “I don’t do that. Cry, I mean.”
“Could be you did it because you knew I’d get it. And you were right. If Tobias could talk, he’d tell you how many times he’s brought me out of a flashback. Reckon he could be a service dog if he cared about that. Luckily, he’s the humble sort.”
She tried to smile, but it hurt. “Well, see, that’s the other part. You look too good without your shirt on. You’re too… appealing to me, and you keep getting better. Last night…” The tears were there behind her eyes again. Stupid tears. “Anyway. You do. And I’m not Lily.”
“You’re not… Lily. Yes. I think we’ve established that.”
“You don’t get it. Those aren’t my clothes. I don’t wear that much makeup. My hair… well, I’m sure it looks pretty bad right now, but normally, it looks worse. You saw Lily’s hair. This isgoodfor my hair. And we won’t even go into my clothes.”
“Which is why I came in to talk to you that day when I never had before. Because you’re not Lily. And I thought you were identical. Why would hair matter anyway?”
“We’re identical, and we’re not. And Lily’s great. She’s kinder than I am, sweeter than I am. And she’s definitely more feminine than I am. By a mile. Also, she didn’t lie to you.”
“And yet I like you better. Even though you lied to me. Could be I understand wanting to protect your sister, and I reckon there’s no accounting for taste, because I like your hair. I like your face, too.” He ran his hand lightly over her uninjured cheek, smiled into her eyes, and everything in her melted. “Normally, anyway. I like your pretty body, and I love to watch you work out. I like you in lingerie, yeah, and if you want to borrow some more of that from your sister, I promise to know which twin I’ve got. I’m not choosy about the makeup, though, or the clothes. I’ll take you naked. I even liked you in that stupid apron.”
She started to laugh, then stopped. “Ow. I know. It was the least frilly one I could find, and she didn’t have any work pants.”
“Made your arse look brilliant, though. That pink bow…” He sighed. “And those leggings. It’s what I said. All of it works for me. And we haven’t even talked about my brother. Could beIdon’t want you to meethim.And I know I should be keeping this on a more elevated plane, what with your injuries and all, and our crime wave. You’ve distracted me, it seems.”
“No,” she said,“you’redistractingme.I know what you’re doing. Making me feel better. It’s working. And I’ve seen your brother on screen a million times. I know which oneyouare, and I know which one I like. But my animals.”
“Yeah.” He stood up, went to his dresser and got out another black T-shirt, and pulled it over his head, and she watched him do it. Arms, chest, abs, tattoo. The man really did have it all. “I’ll go by the gym as well, get them to open your locker, so you have your keys and your phone. Do you know which one?”
“One-fifty-five.”
