Enemy Down - Cathryn Fox Page 0,26
boot aside, and she exhales.
“That feels so much better.”
“Good, now lay back, and let’s get some pillows under it.”
She shimmies back on my king-sized bed, positioning herself in the middle, and I prop one pillow behind her and grab the others to get her leg up. I carefully cup her long, strong calf and lift, sliding the pillows under. She releases her hair from the ponytail and it fans out as her eyes fall shut.
“That feels so good,” she murmurs, and my cock stands up to take notice. I’d do almost anything to hear her say those exact words while I was moving inside her. I scrub my face as my stupid brain takes a moment to visualize it.
“Christian.”
My head jerks up. “Yeah.”
“You look like you’re in agony too. Do you need to elevate something?” As soon as the words leave her mouth, a pink flush crawling into her cheeks. “I mean…it’s just…does something hurt?” She lifts her arms and lets them fall, hitting the bed with a thump. “You had a game the other day, did you get hurt, is something swollen?” A garbled sound of agony comes out of her throat, as she covers her face with one hand, and I stand there and grin at her, enjoying her babbling way too much. “None of this is coming out right.” My heart pinches, I move around the bed, and take her palm from her face. She blinks up at me. “I’m going to shut up now.”
“It’s okay,” I tease, to ease her worries and cut her some slack. “I know what you mean and I’m fine. I wasn’t hurt in the game.” I don’t tell her nothing is swollen; that would be a big fucking lie. “How about you rest, and I’ll get some ice.”
She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly as I hand over the remote. “You’re right. I need this ankle to be better before Thanksgiving.”
“Why is that?”
She looks at the remote and for a second I think she’s not going to tell me but then she says, “I don’t want my mother to know.”
I stare at her, recall the things Kaitlyn said to me back at the hospital when I asked if we should call someone. She straight up said no.
“Would this upset her?” I ask, and sit on the bed as she runs her fingers over the buttons on the remote.
“One, she’s a mom and nurse’s assistant, so she’d be putting me to bed and fussing all over me.” She glances at me, and the corners of her mouth twitch. “Kind of like you’re doing.”
“And you don’t like that, I get it. What’s number two?”
Confusion moves over her face for a second, then she blinks and answers with, “I don’t want her to worry about me.”
“It’s what mothers do, but you mean financially, don’t you?”
She curls into herself. “Yeah, I’m an adult. I need to be responsible for myself and find my own way to pay my hospital bill.”
I nudge her chin. “I have faith in you. You found a way to pay your tuition, didn’t you?”
“I honestly still can’t believe that I allowed Kaitlyn to talk me into going to the auction, or that I’m with you right now.”
“With the right motivation, a person will do just about anything. I had an English teacher say that to me once when we were reading an assigned novel. It really stuck with me.”
“And now I’m stuck with you because I had the right motivation.”
“It’s not so bad though, right?” I question.
She gives a humorless laugh. “You’re right not so bad. I could have gone back home with my tail between my legs.”
“That’s not your style.” I push from the bed, rather pleased with myself. “I’ll be right back with that ice. Don’t go anywhere.”
Air leaves her lungs as she huffs. “It’s not like I can escape, Christian. Not with this ankle.”
It’s really insane how much I love hearing my name on her lips. I reach out and lightly trace my finger down her warm calf, stopping when I reach the support sock she wears under her boot.
“Even if it wasn’t broken,” I begin. “I wouldn’t let you escape, and if you tried, I might just tie you to the bed.”
What the fuck am I saying?
I don’t know, but from the way a quiver just traveled the length of her body, from the top of her head to the tips of her toes, I’m not sure she’s so opposed to the idea.
Get it