“For Mardi Gras?”
“No, now. That’s not for a while, right?” I nodded. “They’re just going to check out the music scene and eat in the amazing restaurants. I’ve always wanted to go there.”
“You will when you’ve healed.” I couldn’t help leaning over and aiming a kiss at her forehead. The window provided enough light for that, though I ended up kissing her hair as much as her smooth skin. Something needed to be done about this situation, but for right now, all I wanted to do was to make her smile. “The wait will give you time to build up your tolerance for spicy foods.”
She let out a breath that might’ve been a partial laugh. “Is that what you’ve been doing? Training my palate?”
“Maybe. Do you think you can try sleeping now?”
“Maybe.” But she didn’t sound very confident.
“I have an idea, something we can try that might help… but you’d have to trust me.”
“Yes.”
That gave me pause. “Yes, we should try?”
“Yes, I trust you. And also, yes, I’d like to try.”
“All right, stay there.”
She chuckled softly. “I never realized how often people said that until I got in a situation where I didn’t have much choice.”
“Good point.” I got out of bed and circled around to her side. “Can you scoot toward the middle?”
She did so with small, careful movements, and I adjusted her pillows until they were under her head. Then I reached over her to grab mine. “Let me know if I hurt you, okay?”
“Okay.”
I climbed in next to her as gently as I could. “Roll forward onto your side, cher.”
She did so, even as she protested. “I told you, the cast throws off my balance and I end up rolling forward or backwards.”
“What you need is a seatbelt.” I settled on my side and scooted forward until her back was pressed up against my chest. “Or it might be more accurate to call me a big spoon.”
Her body relaxed against mine and I snaked my arm around her waist. Now I could better smell the fresh scent of her hair. It made me think of open fields and citrus orchards.
“This is nice,” she said, finally starting to sound sleepy.
“Do you feel secure? Like you’re not going to roll away?” She really couldn’t, not with me right behind her and my arm around her waist, but I wanted to make sure.
“Yeah, I do. The cast is still heavy on my other leg, but it’s better than before.”
I thought for a moment and then grabbed an extra pillow. “Put this between your legs.”
As she did that, her ass pressed back against me, and it took real effort to focus on her comfort instead of the blood rushing to my cock.
“That’s perfect,” she said, fatigue in her voice. “I feel all snug… as a bug… in a rug filled with puppies.”
Alyssa wasn’t making all that much sense, but that was a good sign. She needed the rest. As I held her, her breathing slowed and her muscles relaxed.
My own muscles were nothing of the sort. One of my arms was pinned between us, so I eased it up and inched it under her pillow so that I could stretch it out. The other remained around her waist. One result of that was that her sweet ass was pressed up against my groin, so like I said, my body definitely wasn’t relaxed. But that was a small price to pay for being able to help her get the rest she needed.
Finally, about twenty minutes later, I buried my nose in her soft hair and began to drift off. The last thought I was conscious of was how damn good she felt in my arms.
19
Alyssa
“You look better,” Sierra said the next morning when we video chatted. Raphael had left my room a few hours ago, but not before giving me a long hug and thanking me for inviting him to stay. As if I’d been doing a favor for him instead of the other way around.
“I got some new dresses. And thanks for that lingerie.” I didn’t tell her that I’d nearly corrupted a minor by opening it in front of her.
“The dress is pretty, but it’s not that.” Sierra peered into the screen, looking as beautiful as ever, but something was different about her. I couldn’t figure out what, though. “You’ve got some color in your cheeks. Were you just outside?”
Uh-oh. “No, I guess I’m just flushed from the warmth. It doesn’t get very cold here, you know.” Hopefully she wouldn’t call my bluff.
“No, that’s not it.”
Dammit.
“You look all cheerful, and excited, and—oh my god!”
“What?” I said, trying to look curious.
“Something’s happened, hasn’t it, between you and one of the guys. Which one was it?”
“No, of course not.” Unfortunately, my acting skills weren’t on par with Sierra’s, and she didn’t believe me.