Page 55 of Shark’s Rise

He dipped his head to nuzzle his lips against mine. “Come on.” And then tugged on my fingertips. “We both need some more sleep.”

Our big, comfortable bed looked too inviting to resist. I climbed in, and he packed extra pillows around my body before pulling the covers up to my chin. When he finished, he slid his fingers up to the side of my face. Our gazes met. In the gray light of early dawn, his eyes were shadows of cobalt and slate. The etched planes of his handsome face were mellowed and mesmerizing.

“We’ll work this out, Red. I promise. We’ll come up with a plan that we both agree on.”

I turned my head and pressed my lips to his broad palm. “I know. I do. Thank you for wanting to meet me halfway on this.”

“We’ll call your doctor too,” he said. “I’m sure she has some good advice about smart working hours for you right now.”

Exhaustion crashed over me, worse than the anvil. Still I managed to mumble back to him, “He.”

“He…what?”

“I said ‘he.’ My doctor is a man.” My words were thick with sleep, and so were my eyes. I barely comprehended the sight of Bas as he froze in place, his limbs newly stiff and his gaze five shades darker.

“Well,” he growled. “I guess we’ll be looking for a new doctor, then, too.”

When I woke up, the sun was streaming in the high windows above the lower-level ones in our bedroom. The bed beside me was empty. But as I searched my nightstand for my phone, preparing to rain hellfire texts on Bas if he’d gone off to the city without me, Dori popped her head in the doorway.

“Hey there,” she murmured. “I’m so happy you slept so well. And someone else”—she gave a dramatic eye roll—“is going to be too.”

I sat up a little straighter, shifting one of my pillows to cushion my head. “Oh, dear,” I giggled out. “He’s gotten to you already, hmmm?”

The woman heeded my hand motion to come and sit next to me on the bed. Her steps were as careful as the tone she used for her reply. “He’s a very, umm…intense man, yes?”

“You are very diplomatic, Dori.” I flashed a sardonic smile.

“Well, it’s clear that the man cares for you,” she defended. “Very deeply.”

“You know, he’s a little like a cared-for pit bull.” I widened my grin. “Very scary when you walk by but a big lover inside.” I canted my head. “Now if I could just housebreak him a little better…” We shared a long bout of giggles over that until she unexpectedly sobered.

“He and I talked a little this morning,” she conveyed. “And he told me how you were sick again this morning. I could tell he felt responsible for whatever happened.”

I pulled in a long breath. Tried a tentative smile once again. “You…could?”

“Definitely.” Her declaration was forthright, and my chest reacted with a surge of comforting warmth. “I told him about a few blogs I’ve been reading, so hopefully, he will direct some of his intensity toward them.”

“Oh, Dori…Dori, Dori, Dori.” I patted her thigh while chanting the chide. “That’s like asking a leopard to change its spots. And strangely, it’s part of what I love about him. Now the overwhelming need to control me…that I could definitely do without.”

“I had a boyfriend like that once,” she said thoughtfully.

“Yeah? How did you handle it?”

“Well, notice I said ‘had,’ right?” She winked and then changed the subject. “Something to drink? Tea?”

“That sounds great, but I can go downstairs and get it.”

“Why don’t we try this? Just see what you think. While we’re here at the house, you stay resting. Either here, or on a sofa, or wherever.” She waved her hand around, indicating she literally meant any spot in the house. “But when you’re here, you let me do things for you. As in, everything.”

I scrunched my face up, already hating the plan, but she put her hands up in defense.

“Just hear me out and give it a try for a few days? Or does stubbornness come along with the Shark name?”

“Oh, we aren’t married. Plus, I don’t know if I’ll change my name.”

Shit. Where did that thought come from?

“Good luck with that…” She rolled her eyes playfully, but it was interesting how well she had already caught on to Sebastian’s temperament—though most of the time, the man did wear it like a neon billboard.