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“If I make you climb these stairs by yourself,” he said as he climbed the first step, taking care not to jostle me too much, “we’ll be here all night and I don’t know about you, but I’m really tired and I would like to go to bed.”
I didn’t argue any further. He was probably right, but more than that, I didn’t mind being pressed against the firm muscles of his chest as he carried me in his arms. I couldn’t stop thinking about Felix’s conversation. He called me Ansel’s girlfriend, and although he was saying it only to get under our skin, I liked the sound of it—Ansel’s girlfriend.It had such a nice ring to it. I couldn’t stop repeating it in my head.Ansel’s girlfriend. Ansel’s girlfriend.I remembered Ansel telling me he’d never had a girlfriend before, not officially. He was a no-strings-attached type of guy, and I had no clue if he ever wanted to change that.
Oh boy. It had been less than five hours since escaping this orc and I was ready to slip him a note that said, “Do you like me? Check yes or no,” like he was my homeroom crush. Maybe I was tired because I definitely wasn’t thinking clearly.
Ansel laid me on the bed like I was made of glass and could break at the slightest movement. I went to push myself up on my elbows, but he held out a hand, giving me a stern look, letting me know I couldn’t move yet. I watched him as he gathered the extra pillows at the end of the bed and laid them on top of each other. When his wall of pillows was sturdy enough to not fall over, he delicately lifted my swollen ankle and placed it on the top of the pillows.
“I’ll be right back, don’t move,” he ordered. He headed back downstairs and returned later, holding a bag of frozen vegetables and a bottle of pain meds. He made a quick trip into the bathroom to grab the first aid kit as well.
“You don’t have to do this,” I said, staring at him down the slope of my body as he started peeling off my sock. “I can take care of it myself.”
“You fixed my stomach wound. I’m just returning the favor.” He didn’t look up as he laid the bag of frozen vegetables over my ankle. I hissed as the cold plastic touched my skin.
“How is that wound, by the way?” I had almost forgotten it was there. I had stopped dressing it for him a few days ago, nor had I seen him change it himself.
He lifted the edge of his shirt, showing me the deep V of muscles that disappeared underneath his waistline. “All healed. See? I told you orcs heal faster than normal.” I blinked, my head feeling hazy from all the extra blood that had rushed to my cheeks and noticed the puckered dark skin where the stab wound had been. If only fae could heal that quickly.
“Woah, what are you doing now?” I pushed myself up to my elbows, my stomach aching as I pushed my body into a crunch position I wasn’t braced for. Ansel ignored me as he lifted the bag off my leg and set it aside. After he removed the sock from my foot, he opened the first aid kit and retrieved a roll of medical tape.
“I’m wrapping your ankle,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone. He unrolled the end of the tape and stretched it across the bottom of my foot.
I instinctively jerked my foot away. Sharp pain shot through my ankle, bringing tears to my eyes.
Ansel stared at me, bewildered. “Skye, are you okay? What’s wrong?”
“I’m ticklish, asshole,”I bit out.
His face relaxed as his lips curled into a bemused smile. “I see that now. Now hold still please.” I would kick him again if my ankle wasn’t already damaged. I concentrated on slowing my breathing as Ansel continued wrapping the bandage around my foot, looping it once more around the arch before he brought it around the ankle. He secured the end and set my foot back down on the pillow. “What’s wrong?” he asked when he was finished. “Did I wrap it too tight?”
I didn’t realize I was contorting my features into a perma-wince. I shook my head as he reached for my wrapped foot, ready to undo his work. “No, it’s not that . . . it’s not the pain, either.”
“I know what it is,” he said, almost a little smug. I raised an eyebrow at him. He motioned to the wrapped foot in front of him. “You’re not used to people taking care of you.”
I scoffed. “What? What an absurd thing to say—” Ansel gave me an incredulous look. “I’m thirty-three years old, of course I’m not used to people taking care of me. I’m an adult.”
“You need to learn to relax and let others take the reins once in a while.” He paused, the corner of his mouth pulling into a wicked grin. “I think it would benefit you in more ways than one.” His words changed into a low, rumbly tone, leaving no room to wonder what area he was referring to. He may be the king of orgasms and maybe there was some truth in learning to relax a little more in the bedroom, but that didn’t mean I needed to loosen control in every other aspect of my life. The future made me so anxious, my life was in such a constant spiral since Carter broke-up with me; the only things that made me feel like I had a grip were things I could actually control, like work.
“That’s rich, coming from you,” I said. “You’re the bossiest person I’ve ever met. And I’ve worked with alotof bossy people.”
“I didn’t say you were bossy,” he corrected. “Just . . . tightly wound.”
I snorted. Had Carter and Ansel exchanged notes while I was out? Because this conversation sounded freakishly familiar . . . It was what Carter had said the last eight years of my life. But Ansel wasn’t Carter. Ansel actually cared about my pleasure—he may be a playboy, but he was leagues above Carter in that respect.
I was too tired to psychoanalyze my character defects tonight. That’s what I paid my therapist for.
“Ansel,” I said, as he placed the frozen bag back on my leg and started putting the supplies back into the first aid kit. “Felix knew a lot about my life. My family is safe from Gregor, right?”
“They’re safe,” he said. He sounded so earnest, but at the same time, I still felt nervous. “Gregor is only interested in you because you’re a direct connection to me. He knows I’m not the type a girl brings home to her family, so they would have nothing to offer him. But I can have Liam check on them tomorrow if you’re concerned.”
I chewed my bottom lip. “Actually, I was wondering if could I call my mom instead? Just to check on her and make sure she’s okay. I promise I’ll be quick.”
Ansel stood up without a word and headed into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. I was beginning to wonder if I had offended him in some way, or maybe he was still feeling raw from what Felix had said about his parents, that the mention of my mom brought up strong emotions—
He returned a moment later, holding my phone in his hand. Had my phone been in there the entire time, and I just hadn’t noticed? He probably hid it somewhere out of sight, like on top of the cabinet where he kept the towels, too high for me to notice.
He extended the phone out to me but pulled away as soon as I reached for it. “You promise not to call the police? Or tell your family where you are?”
“I promise!” Not that I was planning to—I really did mean it when I told Ansel I would stay put—but even if I wanted to, I would never put my family at risk like that.
