In His Kiss - Ava Alise Page 0,72
my head in. Jordan is bundled under a large blanket with a half-eaten bowl of soup and a cup of water sitting on his nightstand.
“Hmm?” He grunts as he rolls over to face me. “Hey, baby.” He looks so pitiful and I have to resist the urge to hug him. Pouting, I walk over to his dresser, take his soup bowl, then set one of the brown bags in its place.
“What do you have there?” He squints.
“Just stuff. It’s your ‘feel better’ bag,” I say. My mother would always make me a feel better bag when I was sick. Depending on the illness, it could have anything in it from hard candy to Nutri-Grain bars. The bag crinkles as I reach inside, pulling out a small bottle of hand sanitizer, a pack of crackers, a ginger ale, and a container of bone broth.
“You’re so sweet,” he says, his voice sounding weak. “Haven’t been able to hold anything down.”
“I know, that’s why I bought the broth. Maybe chicken and noodles are a little too heavy for you right now.”
He nods, his eyes falling closed for a second before he opens them again.
Smiling, I reach into the bag once more, pull out a DVD and turn it in his direction. His head flop to the side as he squints, reading the title. The Little Mermaid.
“Hell no,” he croaks. “Not even on my death bed.”
“Come on, the music always made me feel better when I was sick.” I grin.
“Burn it,” he says before lifting a shaky hand and pointing at his desk. A sealed manila envelope lays flat on his keyboard.
“There's the envelope. Give it to Satchi and tell him I’ll be back as soon as I can kick this.”
I move over to the computer and grab the envelope.
“Got it,” I say as I walk back over. I pause over his bed not knowing what to do. I still want to reach down and hug him, but I know I can’t, so I stand there looking down at him as he blinks. His arm falls heavily at his side.
“That dress,” he says, a small smile on his lips. “You know how much I love you in it.” His hand slides off the bed as he wraps it around the back of my knee, sliding it weakly up my thigh.
I smile. “I was hoping you’d notice.”
“I notice everything about you, baby.”
His hand continues to move up my bare skin until he reaches my ass and the strap of my thong.
“Fuck,” he hisses. “See now you’re just being mean.” I laugh, stepping away, causing his hand to drop again.
“You just get better. Drink your water, try the crackers and the broth, and see how you feel. I’ll be back in a few hours.”
“Did I tell you how much I love my girlfriend?” he says.
“I love you too.” I giggle, grabbing the bag I left on the dresser before stepping out of the room.
Roman’s door is wide open. He lays sprawled on his bed wearing a hoodie and sweatpants.
“Hey, Zee,” he says, looking directly at me.
“I brought you soup,” I say, handing him the bag. “Crackers, and some sanitizer.”
“You’re the best.” He sits up in his bed and reaches for the bag.
“It still a little warm. Do you need anything? I’ll be back in a few hours with Jordan’s laptop.”
“No, I think I’m finally on the other end of this bullshit. Starting to feel a little better.”
“Good,” I say. “Well, I'll see ya in bit.”
Cradling the folder and Jordan’s dirty soup bowl, I walk to the kitchen and wash it out before heading out the house.
Fifteen minutes later, I pull into the parking lot of the science building. I hated seeing Jordan so ill. But if he has the same thing Roman has he should be feeling better in the next day or two. Roe got sick two days before Jordan did so hopefully Jordan has seen the worst of it at this point. I look across the parking lot at the building as vapors from the hot sun causes the air to look wavy. Groaning, I turn my car off and get out. I can’t wait for fall. My feet move quickly across the hot asphalt and I climb the stairs to enter the building. I’m almost inside when, of all people, Lucas appears behind the glass doors.
“Xia?” he says, opening the door.
“Hey.” I smile. “How are you?” The door glides closed behind him as we stand under the awning. Would it be rude if