by Sam Crescent
They had wanted her to go, but she declined.
She found it a little suspicious that they were going to another conference in London and especially as they’d been talking a lot about it.
Lucia had intended to go and visit Jack, but he’d also been away to his parents’ place for Thanksgiving and Marie went to see her grandparents, so she was in fact alone, which wasn’t a problem. She’d rather be alone at home than have to sit in a foreign country alone while her parents attended multiple conferences. They had offered to take her, and even tried to get her to go, but she’d not been interested.
Sitting on the sofa, she felt lethargic, and her stomach seemed to be twisting and turning. It was quiet, and she had the television on watching some old black and white movie.
Her cell phone rang, and she smiled, then winced as her stomach gave another turn.
“Hello,” she said.
“Hey, beautiful. I thought I’d check in.”
Jack’s voice made her close her eyes and lie back on the sofa. “How are you?” she asked.
“Oh, you know, fine. My folks have a bunch of people here. It’s boring as fuck. It doesn’t help that they’ve made sure there are plenty of available women here as well.”
Jealousy struck her hard. “Oh.”
“Don’t get like that. I’m not interested in them. Remember who you belong to.”
“I remember. Do you?” she asked, rubbing her stomach. The sick feeling wasn’t going away, and she closed her eyes, feeling dizzy as well. She let out a breath, trying to help the sick feeling.
Nothing seemed to be helping. In fact, everything was only getting worse.
“I remember who I belong to, Lucia. Are you okay? You’re doing some serious panting.”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
She was going to be sick.
Rolling over, she got to her feet, ignoring the dizzy feeling.
They didn’t have a bathroom downstairs, so she quickly ran into her own. Dropping her cell phone on the floor, she grabbed the toilet, and threw up everything that she’d eaten. Over and over, she vomited, aware that Jack could hear her.
She kept trying to stop, but her body had other ideas. Resting her head against the toilet, she reached for her cell phone.
“I’m going to have to go.”
“Lucia, who is there?”
“What?”
“Your parents are away, aren’t they?”
“Yes.”
“Marie?”
“Away with her family. They went to go and see her grandmother in Texas, I think she said, or something like that. I don’t even know.”
“Shit. You’re there all alone.”
“I’m fine. It’s just a sickness bug. I really have to go.”
She hung up her cell, leaning over the toilet to throw up again.
Her body was so cold, and yet she knew it was hot at the same time.
Flushing the toilet, she did her best to clean up the mess. Running herself a bath, she went through the motions, making sure she took care of herself.
Climbing out of the bath, she wrapped a towel around herself. She felt another dizzy spell, which turned her stomach. Collapsing on the floor, she pressed her cheek to the ground, suddenly too hot to be in anything.
For the first time all day, she was comfortable.
There was no reason to move.
She was perfectly content here on the bathroom floor.
She’d get up in a minute.
Closing her eyes, her body slumped, and sleep claimed her.
****
Lucia wasn’t answering the door, and Jack was pissed. He’d gotten on the fastest plane, paying a ridiculous amount to get on the last-minute flight. His parents weren’t impressed that he’d walked out on them during Thanksgiving, but he really didn’t give a fuck. Lucia was sick, and there wasn’t anyone to take care of her.
He rushed around to the side of the building and began to climb. Her window was partially open, and as he got to her room, he didn’t see any sign of her, but there was light coming from the bathroom.
Lifting up the window, he noticed how cold it was.
Closing the window, he made his way toward the bathroom where he saw Lucia, shaking on the floor. Her face was pressed to the linoleum.
“Shit, Lucia.”
She was sleeping, and he placed a hand to her cheek, which was burning up. The towel only partially covered her, and he grabbed a robe, wrapping it around her. Lifting her up in his arms, he carried her to her bed.
He pushed the blankets up, and kicking off his shoes, he climbed between the sheets with her.
She gave a little moan. Using his body heat to warm her, he ran his hands up and down her body.
“Jack?” Her voice was croaky.
“I’m here, Lucia. I’m here.”
“You’re not.”
He chuckled. “I’m here, lovely. I’m going to take care of you.”
Listening to her vomit last night, he’d never felt so helpless in all of his life. She was alone, and he was determined to take care of her by any means possible.
There had been no hesitation. He’d grabbed his stuff and gotten to the airport immediately.
She sighed. “I missed you.”
She fell to sleep, and he stayed with her another few minutes before wrapping her up in the blanket.
Tucking some of her hair back, he watched her sleep, making sure she was okay.
Next, he sprang into action.
Cleaning up her bathroom, he saw a few spatters of vomit on the floor, which he took care of. Once her bathroom was sparkling, he took her clothes and found his way around her parents’ home. The washing machine was full, so he moved that to the dryer, then put another load of wash in.
After that, he stood in the kitchen.
He found all the makings for his old nanny’s chicken soup. She’d sworn by it as a cure for all ills from hangovers to sickness.
Pulling out all the ingredients, he checked the time, and quickly looked in on Lucia again. She was still fast asleep.
He walked back downstairs and began making the soup. He roasted up the chicken after sprinkling some salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning on it. While that was cooking away, he prepared all the vegetables, carrots, celery, leeks, onions, potatoes, rosemary. Once all those were done, he began to assemble it all.
When the chicken came out of the oven, he let it rest on the stove, going to check on her again.
When he saw she was still asleep, he finished the last of the soup, using the pan drippings to add to the soup without the grease. He poured the excess off, then chopped up the chicken. Once everything was together in the stock pot bubbling away, he changed a load of wash, and couldn’t help but smile to himself. This felt very domesticated.
Helping a sick woman was last on his priorities, but he’d come to see that Lucia wasn’t just any woman.
She meant a great deal to him.
After five hours’ worth of sleep, he decided it was time to wake her up. He didn’t know how long it was since she last ate.
Spooning out some of the precious soup, he made her a medicinal drink and carried them up on a tray he found. Placing them on her desk, he sat on the edge of her bed, and began to stroke her hair back from her face.
“Morning, sleeping beauty,” he said.
It was far from morning.
Slowly, she began to come around.
She opened her eyes and frowned. “Jack?”
“At least I can rule out concussion.”
She sat up, frowning as she looked around the room. “You’re at your parents’.”
“I was. I decided to cut that trip short. I’m here.” He took her hand, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.
“Wait? You came all the way here?”
“You don’t think I’d listen to you vomit and hearing how sick you are, leave you? Ignore you?”
“I … I don’t know. I don’t know what to think.”
“I’ve been ac
cused of many things in my time, Lucia Deen, but heartless isn’t one of them.” He’d never been put in a position where he had to care about anyone but himself.
“But … your family?”
“They understand.”
“You told them?”
“No, I didn’t tell them about us. I think my dad would have a fit if he knew right now.” He winked at her.
“I’m so confused.” She ran a hand down her face.
“That’s fine. You can ask any question you want, but I have soup.” He got up, picking up the bowl, and came back to sit on the bed, holding the bowl. “I’m going to feed you now.”
“I can feed myself, Jack.”
“I imagine you can. From what I know about you, Lucia, you’re capable of taking care of yourself. Right now, you don’t have to. I’m here to take care of you, and I will. Don’t even think to argue with me.” He dipped the spoon into the liquid.
She opened her mouth, and he heard her little moan. “Oh, wow, that is good.”
“It really is. It’s a top secret, not-so-secret recipe that one of my nannies shared with me eons ago.”
He fed her a few more spoonsful, and he caught the smile on her lips.
Lucia liked being taken care of, and he loved taking care of her.
When she’d eaten half of the bowl, she held her hand up.
Whatever color she had, was gone.
Completely butt naked, she ran to the bathroom and threw everything up. Wrapping her hair around his fist, he rubbed her back, wincing at the vomiting sounds. She was so poorly.
“It’s okay. I’m here.”
When she finished, he helped her to brush her teeth, and then put her back to bed.
“I’m so sorry,” Lucia said. “The soup was lovely.”
“Don’t you worry. I’ve got plenty more, and clearly it’s too early for some awesome food.” He tucked her back up in bed, sitting on the edge.
“Thank you,” she said.
“What for?”
“For coming to check on me, for taking care of me. It’s … really nice.”
He leaned forward and kissed her head. “It’s worth it. You’re worth it.”
“But what about your Thanksgiving?”
“I don’t mind. I’d rather spend it with you, knowing you’re getting better. Now, rest.”
He left her alone to rest, carrying the tray downstairs to the kitchen.
Gripping the edge of the counter, he closed his eyes, trying to focus, trying not to think of all the reasons why he’d boarded that plane, why he’d come back here. He’d gone to his parents’, trying to get his thoughts back in check, to put his life back into perspective, but there was no fucking way in the world that was going to happen with how he felt about Lucia.
She wasn’t just some girl from the school where he taught.
This was so much more than that.
He wasn’t using her.
Nor was it the taste of the forbidden.
When he was with her … everything felt clear.
He had a purpose, and it was taking care of her.
Look at where she was now. Alone on Thanksgiving. Collapsed, and she could have died.
Fucking died!
Just the thought made him to want kill her parents.
He got it. He did. Their work came first, and their work would always come first, but he didn’t accept that.
Lucia was an amazing young woman, strong, funny, passionate, loyal, everything he could ever want, wrapped in one curvy as fuck package.
He’d been running away. Not forever but to be around two people who he loved and hated with an equal measure. When he was around his parents, it was like he completely zoned out, and it allowed him to think.
After everything he’d experienced with Lucia, and especially Halloween, he’d been desperate to clear his head, to do something that would help him.
His feelings for her were not disappearing or wilting in any way. They were fucking growing.
Listening to her vomit on the phone, knowing she was all alone, had completely destroyed him inside. There’s no way he could just hang up and ignore her. That kind of shit wasn’t in his DNA. It could be in her parents to just leave their very capable daughter alone, but that wasn’t in his.
“You got to get your shit together, Jack.” There was no out for him, not with Lucia.
She meant too much, and he’d been running from that.
She was a senior in high school. Their time was limited.
He wasn’t a fool.
He knew it more than anything else.
They were on borrowed time.
She’d be making decisions about college, about how to move on with her life, and he’d have to live with that. To watch her graduate, move on, and to end this.
What alternative was there?
He’d have to let her go.
That’s what a good man would do.
The gentleman.
He’d let her go.
There’s no way it would be easy. He wasn’t a fool. This would be one of the hardest fucking decisions of his life, to watch her walk away.
Could he do it?
The telephone rang in the background, and he hoped it didn’t wake Lucia up. He’d not seen an extension for one in her bedroom, and as he moved toward it to answer, he hesitated. Lucia wasn’t supposed to have a boy over, let alone a man.
When he was poised above the damn thing it finally clicked off, and he listened to the message.
“Hey, honey, how are you doing? London is awesome. We miss you, and we hope you’re having a lot of fun. Love you, honey, take care. We’ll catch you later.”
The message ended, and he clenched his hand into a fist.
This wasn’t what he was interested in listening to.
Stepping away from the machine, he finished cleaning away all of his stuff, and focused on keeping his shit together right now. Lucia needed him, not some man who didn’t know what he wanted.
Putting away all the dishes and keeping the soup on a really gentle simmer, he glanced around her home, changing loads of wash, closing doors and windows, taking care of the house.
When he couldn’t put it off any longer, he made his way upstairs and found Lucia coming out of the bathroom. She’d pulled on a nightshirt, and she smiled at him.
“At least I know I didn’t hallucinate,” she said.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
“Like I’ve been run over by a bus and they’ve gone back and forth over my head repeatedly.”
He winced. “Ouch.”
“Yes.”
She eased back into the bed. Rather than sit on the bed, he pulled up a chair and lowered himself in it beside her.
“You came all the way back from your parents’?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“I heard you vomit on the phone.”
“Oh.”
“I guess a lot of things are a little fuzzy to you.”
“Yeah, I don’t … you fed me soup?”
“I fed you soup, and I cleaned up the bathroom.”
“Ew, I’m so sorry.”
He chuckled. “You don’t have to be sorry. Your parents called as well. They left a message.” He liked taking care of her. Her parents didn’t deserve her, not one bit. She was precious, and he wanted to give her everything her heart desired.
“You didn’t answer it?”
“Of course not. I don’t think they’d be all that happy with their daughter having a man in the home.”
“Ah, you’re right.” She chuckled. “I just can’t believe that you came here when you could have been with your parents.”
“I hate to break this to you, Lucia. My parents are not the best people.”
“They’re not?”
“Well, they’re not bad people. They want to see me settle down, and I only went there to try to clear my head.”
“Is that because of us? What we have?”
“Yes.”
She nodded.
He didn’t elaborate further, and she didn’t ask for more.
“How long had you been sick before I arrived?”
“I was literally sick on the phone. I’d started to feel a little lightheaded, and then before I knew what was happening, I knew I was going to be sick.” She reached out, and he took her hand, locking their fingers together like he’d done so many times. This, to him, felt right. This wasn’t wrong.
He wanted to take care of her.
He craved her touch at every single turn and knew without a shadow of a doubt that he couldn’t lose her. She was perfect.
“Thank you so much for taking care of me.”
“I’m not going.”
“What?”
“You’re still sick. I’m staying here to make sure you feel better, much better.”
She smiled.
“I wasn’t sending you away, Jack. I like you here. I don’t want you to go. I want you to stay.”
He knew all about that, but he couldn’t say anything else.
Smiling, he didn’t beg her to stay, to give him a chance after graduation. He kept his mouth shut.
Chapter Thirteen
Lucia stared at Jack in the mirror, watching as he brushed her hair. It seemed like a simple thing, brushing hair, but watching him do it felt intimate. His fingers ran through the long brown strands, and he was so focused on his job that a little crease had appeared between his brows.
“What’s wrong?” she asked, unable to contain her chuckle.
“Nothing, trying not to hurt you.”
“I’ve thought about cutting my hair a couple of times.”
“Don’t you dare. I happen to love your hair just the way it is.”
Every time he said the word “love” she got this little fluttering inside her chest that she found harder to ignore. They were not directed her. He’d not come out and said that he loved her, not that she expected him to.
Still, she often found herself fantasizing about what would happen if it ever did just spill out as a confession.
Not that it would.