Page 59 of How to Train Your Billionaire

She sits down next to us with a heavy sigh. “I feel like I’m going to die.”

The sound of the doorbell ringing cuts through the conversation, and I stand up, stretching my sore muscles. “IV’s here.”

Frankie’s face falls a little, and she shoots Charles a look. “Did he just say IV?”

I nod, walking toward the door. “Trust me, you’ll thank me later.”

I return with the nurse, who’s already setting up the equipment—a silver pole where various bags of saline filled with vitamins and minerals hang, as well as latex gloves and packets of IV needles. As soon as Frankie sees the needles, her face goes pale, and I’m taken aback. “What’s wrong?”

She forces a smile. “I’m fine, just ... not great with needles.” Her voice is barely above a whisper, and I’m surprised at how vulnerable she looks.

I raise an eyebrow, walking over to her. “You’re serious?”

She nods, avoiding my gaze. “Yeah, I’ve never been good with them. I pass out every time.”

I stare at her for a moment, not sure what to say. Compassion for others isn’t exactly my strong suit. But for her, I feel more than I probably should. “First, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.” My tone is gentle but firm.

“That’s possibly the sexiest sentence a man’s ever said to me,” she murmurs, eyes meeting mine.

I kneel beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder. “Well, I’m serious. You don’t have to do this, the choice is entirely yours, but if you want to try it, I promise it will make you feel better.”

She hesitates, biting her lip. “You’ve done it?”

“A couple times. Either when I was sick and recovering from the flu, and a couple of times after bachelor parties and things like that. You’ll feel great in an hour. But I’m serious, only do it ifyouwant to.”

She thinks it over and finally nods. “Okay, I’ll do it. But don’t ... don’t laugh at me when I pass out.”

“I won’t,” I promise, even though I can’t help the slight grin pulling at my lips. “I’ve got you.”

The nurse starts setting up, and Frankie’s face turns an even paler shade. I sit down beside her, just trying to be there without adding to her nerves. When the needle finally goes in, she inhales sharply, and I feel her tense against me. Then, her eyes flutter shut and—just like that—she’s out cold, slumping to the side.

I catch her before she can hit the armrest, my heart racing a little.

“Hey, Frankie?” I say softly, worried. “Come on, wake up.”

The nurse steps back, nodding. “She’ll be fine, just give her a minute.”

I continue holding her steady, my fingers brushing the back of her neck as I keep her head from tilting. I don’t even realize I’m holding my breath until she stirs again, slowly blinking her eyes open.

“I told you I’d pass out,” she mumbles, barely able to keep her eyes open.

“You did,” I say, my voice quiet. “But you’re okay now. See?”

She smiles weakly. “I owe you one.”

I chuckle softly, reaching for a soda from the table and then offering it to her. “It’s nothing. Just trying to keep you alive over here.”

She weakly takes a sip, her fingers brushing against mine. “You’re way better at this than I expected.”

“Well, I do what I can,” I reply, feeling oddly protective of her in that moment.

I can’t help but notice how close we are. How ... easy this feels. It’s a side of me I’m not used to, but it’s hard to ignore when she looks at me like that. A little more vulnerable, a little more ... real. And for once, I’m not in any rush to back away.

As predicted, a few hours later both Francesca and I are feeling better. She spent the day with Charles, mostly sunbathing, and I made myself scarce. We’ve just returned from an early dinner in town with Charles—they wanted to be back in time forJeopardy!While the two of them disappeared to the main salon, I venture to my suite to call Maddie. It’s early afternoon in New York, and she should be getting out of school. Since I didn’t expect to stay here—it’s already been several days longer than I told her—I figure I should update her on my whereabouts.

I sink onto the end of my bed and FaceTime her.

Maddie answers with a wave and a smile.