Jeanne Louise had pulled on the T-shirt Paul had bought her then, a little dismayed to find he’d bought a small. It was tight, hugging her breasts like a second skin and barely reaching the top of her panties. She’d peered at herself in the mirror before leaving the bathroom and shook her head, but then had shrugged fatalistically. There was more of her covered like this than there would be if she were wearing a bathing suit.
On that thought, Jeanne Louise had dragged the new jeans out of the Walmart bag, stuffed her dirty clothes in and carried the bag and new jeans with her as she left the bathroom. She set the bag and jeans by the foot of Livy’s bed and moved up to begin pulling back the blanket and sheets on her side.
“Jesus.”
Jeanne Louise paused at that gasp and glanced to Paul. His eyes were wide and warm as they slid over her body. She felt like he was eating her alive from across the room. Forcing herself to keep moving, she finished pulling back the covers and climbed into the bed. By the time she had pulled the sheet and blankets back up he was at the bedside.
“You don’t have to sleep with Livy. I was going to,” Paul whispered, his gaze moving over the blankets she’d just pulled up as if he could still see her in his mind’s eye. “She kicks in her sleep.”
“It’s fine,” Jeanne Louise whispered back, turning onto her side. “It’s a big bed. We’ll be good.”
Paul hesitated, but in the end had no choice but to leave her to it. He turned off the lights in the room, leaving just the bathroom light to illuminate his way.
“Cripes,” Paul muttered leaning against the door after he closed it. He’d obviously bought Jeanne Louise the wrong size T-shirt. Or the perfect size depending on how you looked at it, he thought wryly. And he’d definitely been looking. The sight of her had taken his breath away when he’d turned and seen her walking up the side of the bed. And truthfully, he’d been hoping she’d suggest they share the other bed when he’d said Livy kicked in her sleep, and had been disappointed that she hadn’t.
Giving his head a shake, Paul pushed himself away from the door and moved to turn on the shower. It would be a cold shower for him tonight. And then probably little to no sleep. He suspected he’d be lying awake all night, his body electrified by the knowledge that Jeanne Louise Argeneau lay half naked not two feet away in the next bed.
“Damn,” he breathed, and began to strip off his clothes.
“Good morning, folks.”
Jeanne Louise glanced briefly to the motel owner and murmured an absent “good morning,” but her concentration was mostly on Livy as the girl ate her breakfast. The child had woken up fussy and difficult. She had a headache again. A low-grade one this time, thank goodness, but a headache just the same. Jeanne Louise was having to mask the dull ache and make the girl eat and enjoy her meal. It left her with little caring for what the motel owner wanted.
Fortunately, Paul was able to pick up the slack and greeted the man warmly. The two had met when Paul had stopped in the office to pay for their room on the way to the attached diner for breakfast.
“I called Jack, a friend of mine who owns some cottages on the beach. Mentioned you were looking to rent one,” the man announced cheerfully. “Turns out Jack had a cancellation this week. Someone who had rented it from today to next Saturday. They only called this morning to cancel too, the dirty buggers, which is good news for you. He’s willing to take cash and rent it to you.”
Jeanne Louise smiled and nodded as Paul rose to shake the man’s hand and thank him. The two men spoke about this and that, but she didn’t pay much attention. Her concentration was still mostly on Livy until the motel owner left and Paul sat back down, saying, “If we can’t go to the cottage until noon, we should probably find somewhere to buy more clothes. And maybe some groceries and such.”
“Yes,” she murmured.
Paul was silent for a moment and she could feel his eyes traveling over her face. He then asked quietly, “Is it bad?”
Jeanne Louise knew he was asking about the headache she was blocking Livy from feeling. She supposed it meant she was starting to show the wear and tear of doing so. Sighing, she admitted, “It was low grade when she woke up, but it’s getting worse.”
“Charlie says the best place to shop for swimsuits and such is London. It’s about an hour away. She can sleep on the way,” Paul said quietly.
Jeanne Louise nodded, knowing Charlie was the motel owner. She’d got his name when she’d dipped into his thoughts to convince him to let her rent the room and not pay until morning.
“All done, Livy honey?” Paul asked suddenly, drawing her attention to the fact that the girl was done eating.
“Yes, Daddy.” Livy beamed a smile. “Can we go to the beach now?”
“Soon, muffin. But first we have to go buy bathing suits,” Paul responded, pulling out enough money to pay for their breakfast and then rising to walk around and pick up Livy.
“I can walk, Daddy,” the girl complained when he scooped her up.
“Yes, I know. But soon you’ll be too big for me to carry so I may as well do it as much as I can now,” he answered easily, and then glanced to Jeanne Louise and added, “Besides, soon you’ll be sleeping.”
“No, I won’t. I’m not tired at all. I—” The sentence ended abruptly as Jeanne Louise ushered the girl off to sleep with a thought.
Sighing as she broke free of the child’s mind, Jeanne Louise rubbed her head and stood up. She felt guilty for making the child sleep yet again, but surely sleep was better than suffering the agony she would be in if she were awake?
“Don’t let me forget to pick up sunscreen,” Paul said as they headed for the exit.
“Sunscreen,” Jeanne Louise murmured.
“And mosquito repellent,” Paul added.