A Younger Man (31 page)

After Zane hugged Noah and saw for himself that he was okay, he would throttle the man. Telling Zane to just go and enjoy some free time while Noah was alone and sick—as if Noah would ever leave Zane to get better on his own—was ridiculous.

Or—Zane pulled to a stop beside a blue Camry—maybe Noah had wrangled Seth to take care of him for the day. Zane had seen Seth come and go more than once in the familiar car. Zane chuckled. Seth was probably more than ready to take a break from playing nursemaid. From what Noah had shared about his oldest son, the kid spent most of his free time with his girlfriend and had more than likely been pulled away from her to take care of his father. Seth would definitely be more than happy to have Zane take over the job of caring for Noah. The man was probably not a terribly good patient.

After grabbing a couple bags of food from the passenger seat—one filled with food from the diner and the other from the grocery store—Zane trudged up the steps to the porch. He knocked and then called out, “Seth? It’s Zane.”

The door swung open, but Noah’s six-foot-one, hazel-eyed son did not stand on the other side. A statuesque, stunning brunette woman did, and she looked right at home.
In Noah’s cabin.

“Hi. Seth isn’t here.” The woman smiled, and God, it made her even prettier. “I’m Janice. Can I help you?”

Janice.
Noah’s ex-wife.

Damn.

She was perfect.

Chapter 15

Janice. This is Janice. Noah’s ex.

It was entirely possible that even though Noah was the guy in bed sick, Zane might throw up right where he stood.

Zane didn’t know why, but for some reason he hadn’t expected Noah’s ex to be so … so … so … incredibly attractive, and to have such inviting, pretty green eyes. And while she only stood on the other side of the door, something in her stance conveyed complete command, as if she owned the place.

“I’m sorry.” Janice touched Zane’s elbow. “Are you okay?”

“What? Yes.” What the hell was wrong with him? Zane snapped himself out of his trance. “Sorry. I’m Zane.” While still holding the grocery bags, he tried to stick out his hand to her. “I work with Noah. We’re—” Heat suddenly filled Zane’s entire being, and he clamped his mouth shut. Everything he and Noah had become to one another from that early morning when they’d kissed right in this open doorway filled Zane and warmed his core. He didn’t know what Noah had told anyone about them, though, so Zane only said, “I live across the lake. Noah and I know each other. We’re friends. I know he’s sick. I’m here to help out.”

Her brow crinkling, Janice squeezed Zane’s arm. “That’s very generous of you, but Noah is resting right now. I have everything under control. I don’t want to put more people at risk of catching what he has than necessary.”

The woman took a step back, her hand on the door, and white-hot fire erupted in Zane.
No way are you shutting me out, lady.

Just in case she was thinking about slamming the door in his face, Zane put his foot over the threshold and pressed his shoulder into the thick wood. “Thank you,” he forced the same steady control into his voice as he’d had to employ when proving to a judge he was capable of raising his siblings, “but I never get sick. I’ve taken care of my brother and sister all my life and never once caught anything they brought home from school.” With a firm grip on the two paper bags in his arms, Zane didn’t force himself into Janice’s face, but he did claim as much ground in the entry as she’d established when answering the door. “If you don’t mind, I’ll take my chances and see Noah for myself.”

Janice eased away from the entrance. “Oh, well, okay.” As Zane passed her, she pointed toward the living area. “He’s right there on the couch. I thought it best to make him comfortable down here, that way we don’t have to deal with the stairs.”

“That’s a good idea.” The moment Zane saw Noah, half covered and sleeping heavily on the couch, he dropped his bags in a chair and rushed to the man’s side. Folding to his knees, Zane put the back of his hand to Noah’s forehead; an above average warmth sank into his fingers, but not crazy hot, considering that Noah’s normal body temperature was probably a degree or two above the average male. Breathing easier already, Zane looked over his shoulder to where Janice stood. “Give me a list of all the medicines you’ve given him, and what time you administered them. I’ll take over from here.”

“Noah is the one who called me.” Janice’s matter-of-fact reply pierced Zane in the gut. “I’m not comfortable leaving him with someone I don’t know.”

Zane’s hackles rose. He wanted to snap, but he forced himself to turn back to Noah and focus on him. “Then you’ll have to work around me,” he murmured, while straightening Noah’s blanket to cover his bare chest, “because I am not leaving him either.”

“Ahhhh.” Janice drew out the soft exclamation. “My apologies. I didn’t realize you were him.”

Zane snapped his head around and narrowed his focus on the too-lovely Janice. “Him who?”

Janice perched herself on the edge of the couch, right near Noah’s feet. “You’re the only ‘him’ Noah has ever mentioned who has made him flustered when pressed about it.” Janice looked at Zane with a twinkle in her eyes that made Zane feel put on display. “You’re the guy who is borrowing his car. My kids have mentioned you, but I guess I’m tired or something because I didn’t put the information together when you said your name. You’re
the
Zane.”

“I’m not
the
anything. I’m just Zane.” The fine hairs on the back of Zane’s neck tickled; it felt as if this woman were sizing him up for her former husband. Compared to how put-together and surely accomplished she was, she must think Zane a step down for Noah. Zane’s face burned, but he kept his head up, facing her.

Nodding as if to herself, Janice added, “I don’t think I connected the dots right away because you’re much younger than I thought you’d be.”

Zane held in the growl that wanted to escape. “I’m not as young as I look. I’ll be twenty-five in a week. And even if I wasn’t,” he put his hand over Noah’s, threading their fingers together, “I know how to take care of someone who is sick. I’m stronger and more capable than you would think to look at me.” This woman had no idea how many years Zane had cared for his ailing stepfather, and the backbone that work had given him. “I would never let anything happen to Noah. You don’t have to stay.”

Eyeing Zane for another long minute, a stretch of time that somehow felt like forever, Janice suddenly slapped her hands against her thighs and pushed to her feet. “Well all right then. I’ll leave him in your capable hands.” She spun, looking left and right, and then walked to the open kitchen to grab a purse and keys off the table. As she put the purse over her shoulder and headed toward the door, she added, “Seth will be up in a while to spend the night with him.”

Breathing easier now, Zane nodded. “Thank you.”

At the door, open once again, Janice stabbed her pointer finger at the couch. “When he wakes up, I promise you he’s going to try to tell you that he’s fine. He’ll want to go to work tomorrow. Don’t let him.”

Still at the couch, Zane kept Noah’s hand in his. “He’s not going anywhere until he gets my okay.”

Janice’s gaze softened, and her voice did too. “I guess you’re getting to know him a bit too.”

Zane’s throat closed up a little as he responded, “More and more every day.”

“I already had a list of everything written down for when Seth arrived. It’s there on the table. Call if you need anything.” Janice waved and then slipped sunglasses over her eyes. “I’m on the speed dial. Easy to find.”

“Thank you. We’ll be all right.”

“Bye.”

Once the front door closed, Zane dropped to sit on the edge of the coffee table, his heart constricting as he looked upon Noah. Tension pulled at the man’s brow, and he held his stomach, showing discomfort and pain, even while unconscious. Zane brushed damp tendrils of hair from Noah’s forehead and then leaned in to brush his lips against the overly warm, furrowed skin. “Why didn’t you call me to help you?” Zane’s voice wavered, giving away his uncertainty and fear. He didn’t understand why Noah would turn to Janice instead of him.

Still deep in sleep, though, Noah didn’t respond. Maybe that was for the best. Zane might not like the answer. Pressing one more kiss, this time to the sick man’s lax hand, only then did Zane get up and grab his bags. He had work to do.

* * * *

Less than an hour later Zane heard Noah stirring. He ran to Noah’s side just in time to see Noah blink heavily, a number of times, before he focused enough to look at Zane.

Noah pushed to sit up but then stopped and grabbed his head. “Shit, I’m dizzy. I need food.” His voice was even scratchier than usual, so Zane handed him the apple juice he’d brought from the kitchen. After taking a sip, Noah lost most of the cloudiness in his eyes and he set his stare on Zane again. “I thought I heard you.” A wispy smile lifted his pale lips. “But I figured it was just a nice dream.”

Noah’s sweet words did not make Zane melt the way they would have done twenty-four hours ago. “Nope. Flesh and blood.” His body still familiar with this kind of task, Zane slid in on the couch next to Noah, put his arm around the man’s waist, and helped him to his feet. “I got your text, and I came as soon as I got off work.” As Zane spoke, he worked Noah’s arm around his shoulder. “Up we go.” He hoisted Noah to his feet and took the brunt of holding up his much larger body. “You said you’re feeling hungry?”

“Yeah.” Noah grimaced with every shuffling step he took. After Zane got him settled in a chair at the table, Noah took hold of Zane’s hand, stalling him in place. “You shouldn’t have come. You’ll get sick, and you have Duncan and Hailey to think about, and your job…”

This time, the growl inside Zane slipped out. “And I have a crazy immune system that can fight off pretty much anything.” Grabbing a tuft of Noah’s mussed hair, Zane tilted the man’s head back, and muttered, “If you’d given me a call this morning when you realized you were sick I would have told you that.”

Noah flushed deep red, and Zane knew it wasn’t from his fever. “I didn’t want to bother you.”

Sighing, Zane let go of Noah’s hair and moved across the kitchen to the fridge. “I want to be bothered, Noah. I know I don’t have much experience,” Zane retrieved the chicken soup and popped it in the microwave, “but I kind of thought helping each other out was one of the perks of this thing we’re doing together.”

“You’re right.” Softness filled the spaces within Noah’s gravelly tone. He even got up and pressed a kiss to the back of Zane’s neck. “I apologize for not calling you first. Now,” he stayed at Zane’s side, but leaned heavily on the counter for support, “I haven’t eaten in nearly twenty-four hours. Can I get some real food?” He eyed what remained of the light chicken soup with a twist to his lips.

“You’re not getting anything else.” Eyeing Noah with a firm glare right back, Zane put granite in his tone. “You need to test yourself with something like soup or Jell-O first.”

A bearlike rumble worked its way through the unkempt big man. “I need something with calories so I can get some energy back.”

Zane pushed his slighter frame into Noah’s space. “The soup and Jell-O first.”

After a long-drawn-out minute, Noah finally muttered, “Fine.”

Shooting Zane one last scathing look, Noah shuffled his grumbling self to the fridge and took out a couple of individual-size Jell-O packs. With his size, he ate both small servings within a one-minute time frame. He was clearly gearing up to complain again when Zane retrieved the heated chicken soup from the microwave, poured it into a mug, and shut him up.

The second Zane handed him the soup, Noah took a sip. Then apparently realizing the liquid wasn’t scalding hot, he forewent the spoon entirely and gulped it down like a glass of water.

“Slow down.” Zane tried to tug the mug out of Noah’s hand.

Noah handed the emptied mug to Zane. “Sorry, but I’m starving.” As Noah grabbed a banana from a bowl in the center of the table, he asked, “Can I get some more?” then consumed half the banana in one bite.

Immediately an audible roiling from Noah’s gut filled the kitchen. The man went chalk-white, and he covered his mouth as he started to gag. No time to get Noah to the bathroom, Zane grabbed a big bowl he’d intended to use for food prep and shoved it in front of Noah, just in the nick of time. Everything Noah had eaten came right back up, and he vomited into the earthenware bowl. When he had nothing more to give, dry heaves still racked his body. His stomach contracted visibly, clearly reminding Noah it wasn’t ready for food.

Zane rubbed Noah’s lower back, knowing that such spasms often ripped the whole way through a body’s middle. Eventually the jerking reflex within Noah came to a stop and he slumped against the table, spent.

“Here,” Zane eased the bowl away from Noah’s head, “let me get rid of this.” Putting the bowl in one of the sink’s two deep basins, Zane then grabbed a cloth, wet it down, and wiped the table clean. “I’ll get you your toothbrush in a sec,” he shared. “You can brush your teeth here in the kitchen and then I’ll help you back to the couch.”

His pallor very much still on the gray side, Noah pushed himself to his feet. Just as he started to topple, Zane rushed over and took the brunt of Noah’s weight.

“What do you want to do?” Zane asked.

His tone terse, Noah said, “I want to go to the bathroom, take a piss, wash my face and hands, and brush my teeth.”

“Okay, let’s get you there then.” Clutching Noah around the waist, Zane took a small step and got the sick man moving.

When they reached the bathroom, Zane let go of Noah at the door. Noah tried to close it, but Zane put his hand out against the wood and pushed it back against the wall. “Leave it open, in case you fall.”

“Christ. Fucking Christ.” Noah uttered a few more expletives on his way to the toilet, and then kept going as the splash of liquid hitting liquid let Zane know Noah was urinating. “This is embarrassing. Fucking mortifying.”

“Noah,” rolling his eyes, Zane tapped the back of his head against the door frame, frustration filling him, “I had my face in your crotch two days ago. I licked your balls like they were frosted doughnut holes and sucked your cock like I was trying to pull the cream out of a Twinkie.” Once the toilet flushed and the water from the sink started to flow, Zane rolled his head and found Noah scrubbing his face with a wet cloth. “I hardly think seeing you puke should be a big deal between us.”