Page 64 of Forever After All

Linc was always efficient and helpful, but having him focus his efforts on her only made the warm and fuzzy feelings grow. Still, she couldn’t gather the nerve to tell him to quit. She liked having him around, even if it meant she’d owe him one in the future.

When she made it to the kitchen after a touch-and-go experience in the bathroom, her limbs and eyelids were heavy.

Linc turned around with a steaming bowl of soup in his hands and set it in front of her. “Dinner is served. I slaved over it. Feel free to compliment my efforts.”

His joke livened her tired body, but her mind was still fogging up. The warm vapors from the chicken broth had her mouth watering. “It smells delicious. Much better than the tasteless stuff they gave me at the hospital.”

Linc reached for his hat and hesitated when he realized it wasn’t there. He gave her a little grin. “Habit.”

It was a habit she’d picked up too, though she sometimes favored a ball cap instead of a cowboy hat. If it was hot enough that she needed her hair pulled up into a ponytail, she found herself wishing ball caps were approved in the ranch uniform.

Linc bowed his head and propped his elbows on both sides of his bowl of soup. “Thank You, Lord, for always providing the things we need. Thank You for this food, and thank You for Jess’s healing. I pray You would give her body the strength she needs. Amen.”

It took extra effort to open her eyes when they wanted so badly to stay closed, but the savory smell of the soup had her stomach growling. The first mouthful hit the spot, heating her insides into blissful contentment.

“I don’t want to feed your ego, but this is the best soup I’ve ever had,” Jess said after a few bites.

“I know. I really outdid myself,” Linc said with a wink.

Her head rolled to one side, then the other as she finished the soup. “Okay, I can’t keep my head up any longer.”

Linc stood. “Are you finished?”

“Yeah.” The exhaustion was pulling on her hard enough that she didn’t want to fight it anymore.

Linc was by her side in seconds. “Let’s get you to the bed.”

“Couch. I like it better.”

Linc kept his steadying hands on her shoulders as he guided her to the living room. If she had an ounce of energy, she’d tell him to quit coddling her, but right now, she preferred his hands on her. Knowing he was here gave her that extra dose of comfort that pushed her over the edge into sleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Little clinks drifted from the kitchen, slowly dragging her out of sleep. After opening and closing her eyes a dozen times, she tried to sit up. Her side stabbed in pain, but she pushed through it. Better get used to that nagging discomfort that would be with her for a while.

Rubbing the weariness from her eyes, she stood and waited a few seconds to make sure the dizziness was gone. More clinking in the kitchen drew her toward it.

She stepped quietly into the room to find Linc with his head in her dishwasher. A handful of tools were scattered on the floor at his side.

“What are you doing?”

Linc grunted and backed out of the dishwasher. “It wasn’t working, so I fixed it. I’m just cleaning up.”

Jess looked at the clock on the microwave. “Have I been asleep for four hours?” It couldn’t have been that long. It was the middle of the day.

Well, now it was evening. She’d slept the day away.

“Yep. Feeling okay?” he asked as he gathered his tools.

Jess rubbed her fingertips over the back of her head. “I think so.”

“Brett came by and brought the part I needed. He said to tell you to call him if you need anything.”

Her brow furrowed. “Did he come in?”

“Only for a little bit.”

“And I didn’t wake up?”

Linc rose to his feet. “Nope. You were out cold.”

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