Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 141428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 141428 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 707(@200wpm)___ 566(@250wpm)___ 471(@300wpm)
“That could be a full-time job,” she muttered, making him grin again.
Seriously.
She was completely addicted to those smiles of his. It was like her life hadn’t been complete until he’d smiled.
He cut up some pancake and held it up to her. “What about the syrup and butter?”
“You don’t need that stuff. Full of sugar and fat.”
“But that’s the best part!” she protested. “What’s the point of eating something without sugar and fat?”
“Baby, it’s not good for you. It will rot your teeth and spike your blood sugar.”
“Hayes, you are not taking away my sugar and fat. That’s what I live for!”
Urgh.
What the fuck was he doing?
Shaking his head at himself, he picked up the small tub of maple syrup and poured it over the pancakes. “Say when.”
“Well, that was easy,” she commented. “That’s enough. Thanks.”
“What was easy?” he asked.
“Getting you to put syrup on my pancakes,” she told him as he added butter and started cutting them up.
“Yeah, well, you deserve pancakes with butter and syrup. And God knows you’ve lost weight you couldn’t afford to lose. Should be feeding you whatever you want to eat, not complaining because it’s bad for you.” Then he shot her a look and pointed the fork at her. “Not that you can eat this all the time. No vitamins or nutrients in this.”
She was staring at her lap, her shoulders slumped.
Fuck it.
How did he completely fuck this up every time he opened his mouth?
Well, to be honest, he’d never been good at social interactions. When he hadn’t been working, he’d been happy to be with just May.
That wasn’t helping him now.
What had he said that upset her? Was it about having lost weight?
Shit.
Reaching out, he gently grasped hold of her chin. “You are and will always be incredibly beautiful. No matter if you lose weight or your hair is crazy, whether you’re in a hospital bed or one of those fancy dresses. Always beautiful.”
She stared at him through glossy eyes.
“No crying, though,” he grumbled.
“You can’t order someone not to cry,” she informed him.
He held up a piece of pancake for her to take. Satisfaction filled him as she ate it.
“Sure I can. Just did.”
“Well, just because you ordered me not to cry doesn’t mean I won’t cry.”
“Are you crying?” he asked before picking up another piece of sausage to feed her.
“No. But maybe that’s because I don’t want to cry.”
Uh-huh. Sure it was.
“I can feed myself, you know.”
Well, that was debatable since she only had one hand.
“I mean, as long as you cut it up for me first, which is kind of embarrassing.”
“Why is it embarrassing?” he asked.
“I’m being fed like a child.”
“So? I like taking care of you like this. If you’d let me, I’d feed you by hand for every meal.”
31
Devi lay back against the bed with a groan. “No more. Full.”
And he hadn’t even eaten yet. She should have insisted that he eat before it grew cold. But her mind had still been stuck on his words.
If you’d let me, I’d feed you by hand for every meal.
Darn it. She wanted that so much. She could see it, taste it.
“Are you sure? You didn’t eat much,” he said with a frown.
“That was heaps for me,” she told him. “Honestly. You eat.”
He eyed her suspiciously, but started eating without argument. As he was finishing up, the nurse walked in.
“Oh, I see you found some better food,” she said with a smile. “The doctor will be doing his rounds soon and then I wondered if you wanted a shower.”
“I’ll take care of that,” Hayes said as he tidied up all the packaging.
The nurse gave him a surprised look. “Oh, well, it would likely be best if I helped.”
“Why?” he demanded.
“I can show Devi what to do so she can shower on her own in the future.”
“I’m her fiancé. I’m here to help her. She doesn’t need to do it herself. Now or in the future.”
Fiancé?
“Well, it still helps for the patient to know how to do things for themselves,” the nurse said stiffly.
“Devi doesn’t need to know. She has me and I’m not going anywhere. I’ll get her into the shower after the doctor has been in,” he said.
The nurse’s face grew stiff and she tensely took Devi’s vitals before leaving.
“Why are you saying you’re my fiancé?” Devi asked when she was out of the room.
“Told them that so that they would give me information about your care.”
Oh, that made sense.
She couldn’t help but imagine what it would feel like if it was true. A deep longing filled her even though she knew that would never happen.
“And because I intend to take care of you.”
“But you won’t always be here.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” he asked. “We’ve been released from our job by Sondra. I have nowhere else to currently be.”
“No, I mean, when you return home,” she said. “I’ll be here alone. Although I don’t know how long I’ll be in the hospital for.”