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Almost. He mostly felt sorry for himself as he settled next to her and felt the warmth of her body pressed against his arm, even through that thick robe. She reached over and flicked on the small TV that sat on a chest of drawers opposite the bed.
“Think there’s an action film on,” she murmured.
“Watch what you want.” He knew full well she didn’t enjoy action films. He didn’t care if she put on the most romantic chick-flick ever made. He wouldn’t be able to watch it. Not when he had Maddie Green in bed with him.
It only took the delivery guy thirty minutes to bring their dinner. It might as well have been a lifetime. First she had rested her head against his arm, then she’d leaned closer. By the time the doorbell rang, she was nearly wrapped around his waist.
He jumped up to answer the door, promising himself a few minutes of cold air once he’d collected the food. He took the bags from the driver, handed over some money and watched the guy drive off. With several lungfuls of clean, unMaddiefied air, he felt better able to deal with her and her vulnerable state.
Vulnerable. Sawyer had to remember that. And he had to prove to her he was a gentleman. For once in his life, he wanted to be the good guy. He’d hurt her bad, trying to save her from him. If he could go back, he’d do it different but he didn’t know how. He had been right at the time. He wasn’t good enough for her.
He dished out the food, threw away the rubbish and tried to clean up after himself.Look, I’m all domesticated. Perfect husband material.He snorted at himself.
“Do you want to—?”
She cut him off by shuffling into the room, robe pulled tightly around her waist. He motioned to the coffee table. “We eating in here then?”
“Yes. I didn’t want to make a mess in my room.”
Was she recalling the mess he’d made with the sauce? He really must have made an impression. And not a good one. Well, he had time to change her mind. The house would take some time to organise and his next writing deadline was way off. He might not relish the idea of staying in Ballicliff for any longer than necessary but he did like the idea of more time with Maddie. If he came out of this with her for his wife, he definitely wouldn’t be complaining.
She ate most of her dinner and he cleared away the plates. Then they settled down to watch TV. He supposed he could have left her to rest but, selfishly, he wanted to extend his time with her. She wasn’t in her usual talkative mood so he wrapped an arm around her and let her rest against him.
Sawyer pretended it was for her but it wasn’t. Apparently he was a sucker for torture as he wanted her all warm and snugly against him.
As the evening wore on and they laughed at the awful game show they were watching and some of the contestants’ antics, the tension in his body ebbed away. He still wanted her. He didn’t think he ever wouldn’t.
But at some point, he’d begun to enjoy the reality of having this woman curled up next to him. Hell, he was even enjoying watching TV with her. And he never watched TV. Evenings were usually his most productive time for writing and he spent the rest of the day working out, climbing or doing admin.
Maddie burrowed closer and mumbled. He glanced at the clock and realised it was past ten. “I’d better go,” he said softly.
“No,” she mumbled. “Won’t come back.”
He eased her away and saw she’d fallen asleep, or she was at least half-asleep. All the cold and flu medicine must have taken its toll.
“I’ll come back,” he assured her as he scooped her into his hold.
She wasn’t heavy and he was strong enough but her arms flopped about, nearly sending him off balance. It took him several tries to get the positioning right before he managed to lift her and carry her to the bedroom. He didn’t remove her robe—he didn’t trust himself to—before slipping her under the covers. Maddie nuzzled her pillow and sighed.
“Missed you,” she said to her pillow.
His lips tilted. He hoped those words were meant for him. He stepped around the bed and went to draw the curtains shut. Sawyer paused and gazed out at the harbour. Lights glinted from the houses opposite and if he listened carefully he could hear the water sloshing against the stone walls of the harbour. Few people and cars could be seen. It was totally unlike London. Even in the early hours of the morning, people were everywhere.
He drew the curtains and glanced back at Maddie. He knew why she liked Ballicliff. The place was in her blood. But for him...? He couldn’t be sure he could make that adjustment. It was nice for a break but for long term...? He shook his head. He’d have to persuade her that London was a great place for her. Or perhaps another town. Just not Ballicliff. The people here had long memories and even if he managed to prove to Maddie he was different, the townsfolk wouldn’t be so easily swayed.
Sawyer couldn’t help wonder if it wouldn’t matter though. If Maddie believed in him, would he care what everyone else thought?
Chapter Seven
Why did he have to see her like this? Maddie peered into the mirror in the sitting room.He called you cute, remember?He was just being nice, Maddie concluded. There was no way rat’s nest hair and being the colour of a ghost was cute.
Why hadn’t she checked that text had sent? She had terrible signal here and she bet if she looked at her phone she’d see the message would be sitting in her outbox. Either that or she dreamed she’d messaged him. She had been sleeping on and off for most of the day after a terrible night’s sleep so it was possible.
Maddie eased herself down onto the sofa and relaxed against the cushions. Her head felt a little clearer and she suspected it was because of him forcing her to eat. Who’d have thought Sawyer could be so attentive? He’d always looked after in one way or another, but in a boisterous, boyish way—making sure she didn’t get hurt or that no one said anything mean to her. He’d acted her protector for most of her childhood. He’d never taken care of her like that though.
Her body still remembered being pressed against him and she tingled from head to toe. For a man so big and kind of rough-looking, he sure knew how to be tender.
Glancing at the clock, she forced herself up from the sofa and traipsed into the kitchen area to make a coffee. Nikki had offered to open up the shop but Saturday was their busiest day and after several days off, she needed to catch up on paperwork and make sure everything was running smoothly.
