Page 101 of As They Are
“You need this day off,” I said. “I’ll get you ice and be right back.”
It felt odd going through Cain and Mollie’s house, but I was able to find what I needed and put it on her ankle. Her eyes were closed again and I was sure she was asleep.
But then she caught my arm as I was about to leave. “Can you stay?” she asked. “Wait, you have the clinic. Sorry. I just hate being alone when I’m sick ... or injured.”
I went over the schedule for the day in my head. My heaviest workload was behind me, and I could easily reschedule my last two appointments over text.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’ll stay.”
“Really?”
I nodded, and she moved over on the bed, patting the space next to her. I took off my shoes and joined her. I thought she might go to sleep, but she laid on her pillow and turned to me.
“I can’t believe I fell off a ladder. I’ve never done that in my life.”
“What happened?”
“Jude was being weird today. He kept trying to talk to me while we were filming. Usually, he’s busy making himself look like he’s working, and nothing bothers me. I kept telling him I was busy, especially since I wanted to work on the windows on the second floor, but then he followed me up the ladder and knocked it over. A tree caught it. Just not me.”
“He’s a fucking idiot.”
“He is,” she replied. “And he’s only doing this when we’re rolling, which makes me think he’s been told to. Plus, there was something about the editing of the first episode. They’re making him look like he misses me.”
“So, the show’s pushing a different narrative.” One that I didn’t like.
“It could be nothing, but with the way he’s acting, I think so. It could be a love triangle thing.”
“A love triangle only works if you give him the time of day. I suppose we’ll have to make sure our fake relationship stays strong.”
“Yeah.” She sighed. “When are you gonna let me help you in return, by the way? I still owe you one.”
“I don’t need anything.” And I didn’t. Any help she could offer would mean opening up more of my life.
“I wanna do something. Especially after you dropped everything to make sure I was okay.”
Shaking my head, I said, “I’m doing this because I want to.”
“Still. It feels wrong to take this much.”
“You’ve had a long day,” I replied softly. “Rest until Mollie gets back.”
Wren’s lips pressed together, but she shuffled closer until her cheek was pressed against my arm. Her eyes slowly closed and her breathing evened out.
I leaned my head against the headboard, trying to process everything she’d said. I was still out of sorts from her being in danger at all, and I hated the idea of Jude wanting anything to do with her. She’d been hurt by him once. She’d said she didn’t want to fake anything else with him.
And she was mine.
No, she wasn’t mine. I was helping her out.
With a sigh, I knew Ihadto get myself back on track. But there was something about her. Whether it was the freckles dotting her skin or the way she smiled at me—it made me lose all of my sense of control.
I had no idea how long we stayed like that. I lost track of time after I closed my eyes too. But the slamming of the front door jolted me back into the present, and I gently moved away from Wren’s still-sleeping form to make sure Cain and Mollie knew what happened.
I met Mollie as she was running up the stairs. But she was in the bathroom with the door shut before I could even say hello.
“Mollie, dammit,” Cain said as he came up the stairs. “I told you, we should—Henry. Hey.”
“I was about to leave,” I said, raising my palms. “Wren fell at the library and I?—”
