Page 22 of Yours Truly, Fall

I’m screwing this up. I’ve already “tackled” him as he put it, and now I’ve brought him to his knees by wounding him with a hygienic tool. Not how I prefer to bring a man to his knees. “It’s different for everyone, but I haven’t made it easy. I’m sorry for stabbing you with my toothbrush and for not making this easier on you, which is in my actual job description.”

He chuckles but winces. “Stabbing your patients with toothbrushes is in your job description?”

“More the latter part.” I laugh lightly, still feeling like a failure for how this first night has gone. “I know it doesn’t make this any better, but you’re my first as well.” A flash of that first kiss strikes like lightning in my head.

Cocking a brow, he asks, “Oh yeah?”

I roll my eyes, shaking my head with a chuckle. “Don’t even go there.”

He nods, but a roguish grin is still splitting his cheeks. “I’m probably not a good first.” You’re telling me . . . “A few injuries don’t warrant round-the-clock care.”

“Your doctors disagree, and your insurance already approved the services.” Sitting down on the couch with a cushion between us, I release a sigh and then grimace. “I know this isn’t ideal, but I’m the only nurse available in Mountain Laurel Cove. So how about we start over since you’re stuck with me?”

His eyes have fallen back to the glass he set on the table in front of him. “Until?”

I look at him, following the straight of his nose to the edge of his jawline. Scruff covers the Cliffs of Culver leading down his neck to the bandaging that doesn’t cover the entirety of his injury. “Until you’re better.”

Shifting his gaze my way, he releases his own heavy breath, his shoulders falling with it. “Let’s hope that’s sooner for both of us.”

Remembering what happened in the past didn’t sting earlier, but for some reason, that comment does. I push off the arm of the couch and raise my chin. “We can only hope. Now, let’s get you to bed.”

CHAPTER 10

BRANDON

Thoughts cobble together before I open my eyes and my vision sharpens. I clamp them shut again even though it’s still dark outside. A yawn captures my throat, and I slowly open my eyes once again, the full picture of my bedroom coming into focus.

I stare into the corner across the room from me where Autumn has fallen asleep in my reading recliner. That chair has knocked me out a few times with its well-worn cushion and the angle when the leg rest is kicked out just right. I’m sure she fell prey as I have. But why is she there at all when she has a room just down the hall?

Moonlight streams through the cracked-open blinds. Even in the lower light levels, her red hair shines like the last remaining embers of a fire.

Angling onto my good side, I watch how peaceful she sleeps, listening to the soft sound of her breathing. It’s the middle of the night, so I’m not surprised by the calm I feel, even with a stranger hanging out in my bedroom.

Her eyes flash open, and she jerks her head upright. “Are you staring at me?”

Damn, she’s a little firecracker with her ass lit up. “You do realize this is my bedroom, and when I woke up you were stalker-sleeping in here with me.”

She pushes forward, trying to shove the leg rest back down and failing. “I wasn’t stalker-sleeping.”

“Then what were you doing?”

Turning sideways, she puts her weight into lowering the rest. I know it sticks sometimes, but watching her is too entertaining to share that tidbit. She finally crawls off the side, tugging at the bottom of her scrub top to straighten it out. “Your chair is broken.” She starts for the door with heavy steps and a point to prove, and stomping is the only way to do it. “I was checking your breathing since I don’t have monitors to do it. I sat down,” she says, throwing her hand toward the offending chair, “and must have fallen asleep. It’s been a long seventy-two hours.” She looks back in the doorway, and adds, “You’re good, so I’m going to bed.”

She disappears too quickly for a reply. “Nurse?”

Silence extends between us until she finally gives in and replies, “Yes?”

Accomplishing my mission, I selfishly grin in bed. “I’m game if you’d like to stay and stare a while longer.”

The sound of a door closing is the only response I receive. I chuckle and rearrange myself onto my back again. This isn’t my favorite position to sleep in since I’m usually on my side, but there’s no pain lying here staring at the ceiling.

It’s tempting to call Autumn again to tease her, but it’s a quarter past one, and I’m sure she’s in no mood to break the ice between us. She’s on the feistier side, but I don’t mind because she sure is pretty. I’m just confused about how I’ve not seen her before. Even if I hadn’t ever run into her, the guys would have been talking about a knockout down at the hospital. But no one did. Strange. So where has she been hiding my whole life?

After a deep breath, my body sinks into the mattress, and I close my eyes. If I’m lucky, I’ll get a few more hours of rest before sunrise.

“Why are you smiling?” Autumn plants her hand on her hip and levels me with a look. I’ll give it to her. She doesn’t put up with shit from anyone. That look alone could kill a man who crossed her. She still can’t manage to erase the grin from my face, though, because I’m no ordinary man.

I also can’t stop looking at her. She’s got a great face, and she knows how to move her body in ways that only highlight how sexy she is, even if she is currently annoyed by me.