Page 47 of Tempt Me-

This woman, I think with a shake of my head.As if she could ever be a problem.

“Shh.”I brush her hair off her face before picking her up and lifting her into my arms.I head through the kitchen, but instead of going toward her room, I turn to go up the stairs.

“Where are we going?”she asks drowsily.

“Somewhere you can rest… and I can keep an eye on you.”

My room, to be exact, but I don’t want to give her something to argue about by telling her.And since her eyes are already closed, I don’t think she’ll object right now.

***

Mia

I wake upslowly.My head hurts because my stomach is empty but I don’t think I am nauseous anymore.But I am warm.Very warm, and I become aware of the hard, hot male body aligned with mine.

Austin.

My heart begins beating too fast in my chest as I realize he lies up against me, his body wrapped around mine, his arm draped around my waist, pulling me close.My body thrums with awareness.

I open my eyes, look around, and realize this isn’t my room.It is his.I swallow hard.I remember feeling sick after a trip to the kitchen and lying down on the sofa.Then he came home, found me, and carried me to his bed.

The sweet man.The sweet, sexy, protective man.He is going to kill me with his kindness and caring while I am supposed to be guarding my heart against his potent appeal.

I wonder if I can roll out from beneath his weight and slip away without waking him.No sooner do I shift than he groans, the sound reverberating through me.

“What time is it?”he asks, not letting go of me.

I blink and glance at the clock on his nightstand.“Four,” I say.I slept the day away.“Umm… why am I in your bed?With your arm around me?”

Instead of releasing me, he hugs me tighter.“You’re in my bed because I wanted to be able to keep an eye on you if you needed anything.And as for the other, I fell asleep and it just happened.”

I notice he doesn’t apologize for it, either.“Thank you.”But this is not a position I need to be in and I push myself to a sitting position, forcing him to release his hold.

He stretches and sits up beside me, running a hand over his messed hair, which, damn him, gives him a hot, just-had-sex kind of appearance.While no doubt I look like death warmed over.

“How are you feeling?”he asks, his tone worried.

I take a minute to catalogue how I feel now that I am upright.A little underlying queasiness.Damn.I hope I really am all better.

“Not perfect but better,” I admit.“But I should go.”

“No, you should let me get you food.You passed out before eating.Did you have anything earlier?”he asks, giving me a knowing glance.

“No.”I bite down on my lower lip.“But I can take care of it myself.”

He shakes his head.“That would be a no.I don’t want to worry about you fainting or getting nauseous again, so sit tight and I’ll be back with toast.”He rolls out of bed.

I am grateful to see he is still dressed and I wear my sweats and a tee shirt.I still desire him too much, want him too badly to have any kind of temptation adding to this situation.

He heads downstairs and I toss myself back against the pillows.“What are you doing?”I asked myself.

I am letting him take care of me… and enjoying knowing that he cares.I am torturing myself with what I can’t have.While he is gone, I go into his bathroom, a nice-sized room with a Jacuzzi tub, a shower with extra spray jets, and a neutral-colored décor.It suits him.

I take care of business and wash my face, brushing my teeth with toothpaste and my finger before rinsing.I feel cleaner, at least, and marginally better.Heading back to bed, I settle in to wait.

He returns a short time later with toast and jelly along with a cup of tea, placing both on the nightstand.

“Thank you.”I pick up the cup and take a sip, finding the tea sugared, just the way I like it.