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Rhett set the bag on the desk and rummaged through it, pulling out a twist-top Gatorade and a package of straws. “It’s not cold. You want ice?”
“Yes,” I said quietly.
He took the ice bucket and grabbed a room key from the TV stand. “I’ll be right back.”
And he was. Rhett poured Gatorade into a cup with ice and handed it to me so I could sip slowly from the straw. He plumped my pillows and helped me sit up a little.
“When you hover above me like that, I can’t concentrate.”
He grabbed the desk chair and swiveled it toward me, then sat and folded his hands over his chest. “You feeling any better?”
“You cursed me, didn’t you?”
He looked taken aback.
I pressed the matter. “How else would I start throwing up right when I was supposed to learn how to dance?”
Rhett smiled. “Adalyn thinks it was a burger that did you in.”
“Hmm. I’m not convinced.” I sipped my drink again and was immediately taken back to being a kid and having my mom stay home to watch over me. My eyes welled with obnoxious tears, and I tried to blink them away.
Rhett sat up, alert, hand poised on the armrest. “You need a bucket?”
“No. I’m not sick. I’m sad.”
He looked perplexed.
“I don’t feel good.” Must I explain that? “I’m a grown woman, but I still want my mom.”
He relaxed a little. “I can make that happen.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I can.”
“That’s okay. She’s on a long layover, and she deserves this break.”
He looked uncertain.
“If you want to help, you can come here,” I said quietly.
Rhett watched me for a moment. Then he rose slowly from the chair and walked around to the other side of the bed, kicked off his shoes, and climbed onto the mattress to lie beside me. He was above the duvet, so it pulled a little, but I didn’t care. His arms went around me and pulled me closer to him, and I rested my head against his chest, reveling in the warmth and the steadiness of his heartbeat.
“Want me to sing to you?” he asked.
“Will you?”
“No. That was a joke. I can’t sing to save my life. But I could play a song if it’ll soothe you.”
“Talk to me instead. I want to hear about the lake house and your sister’s birthday. Did she get a cake?” My stomach revolted at the thought. “Actually, don’t answer that last part.”
He drew in a slow breath, filling his lungs. My head rose with the motion, then lowered again. “The lake was beautiful. We took the boat out with wakeboards for a while. Hallie loves movies as much as I do, so Adalyn found us a house with a great theater room. We got to watch a few of her favorite films. It was really low-key. Just the two of us. The dock attached to the house had a second story that was shaded and peaceful, and I really liked sitting up there and watching the sunset last night.”
“Sounds marvelous.”
“Much better than eating a bad burger and spending two days in bed.”
“Eek! Don’t mention that food item ever again.”
