Tempting Meredith (24 page)

Chapter Twenty-Four

Meredith struggled to keep her foot light on the accelerator. She didn’t need the highway patrol delaying her. Didn’t need to end up in the hospital with Charlie.

Blaine had said Charlie was going to be okay—concussion, bruised ribs. They might even be home by the time she arrived. But she wouldn’t be convinced until she saw his smile, heard his voice, touched him.

He’d also tried to convince her she didn’t need to drive out. But if he hadn’t wanted her there, he shouldn’t have called. It was that simple. She couldn’t sit around at work, twiddling her thumbs, when Charlie was hurt, when he needed her. Someone had to take care of him when the hospital released him. Blaine would be too busy with guests, not to mention campaigning.

Her radio cut out, and her car announced, “Call from Blaine.”

She answered, “Is he okay?”

“Yeah. The doctor just signed his release papers. We’re heading home. Where are you?”

“Just passed the turnoff to the ranch.” She steered the car off the side of the road and prepared to make a U-turn.

“Meet us at the lodge. We’ll put him in my room. Make sure it’s ready for him.” He paused, and it sounded like he was juggling the phone. “Talk to him a minute, will you?”

“It’ll be a hardship, but yeah, I’ll keep him entertained.”

The next voice she heard was Charlie’s. “Hey. I’m sorry about this. I’m afraid it’s gonna put a crimp in our weekend.”

She wanted to berate him, ask him what had happened and why he hadn’t been more careful, but he sounded tired. “As long as you’re okay. You
are
okay. Right?”

“The doctors wouldn’t let me go if I weren’t.”

She didn’t want to worry him by quoting statistics to the contrary. Doctors were human, and humans made mistakes. “Okay.” She wanted to say
I
love you
, but the words stuck in her throat. “See you in a few.”

At the lodge, the dogs greeted her, yipping and barking. She was as happy to see them as they were excited to see her. She took time to give them some love, scratching behind their ears, smoothing her hand down their backs. It soothed her a bit, made her feel more normal.

They quieted and trotted away when she opened the front door. The lodge was eerily silent. She said hello to Grant in the kitchen and told him Blaine and Charlie were on their way home. Then she prepared Blaine’s room, folding back the sheets and blankets, fluffing pillows, making sure there was a clear path from the door to the bed and from the bed to the bathroom. She placed a pitcher of ice water and a glass on the bedside table and racked her brain for something else to do but couldn’t think of anything. She grabbed her cell from her purse and hurried to the front porch, where she sat on the top step and waited.

She checked her watch. They should be here any minute, but there were no signs of Blaine’s truck. No distant hum of the engine. No plumes of dust. Where were they? She paced along the gravel in front of the house then clomped back and forth across the deck of the porch. She sat on the bench, on the top step, on the bottom step. She paced some more. She wished the dogs would come back and keep her company. She considered calling Nikki but hesitated to confide in her sister. Nikki had enough on her plate.

Finally, Blaine’s truck crept toward the lodge. She jumped up then waited. Was something wrong with the truck? Why was he creeping along? She could
walk
faster. When the truck was adjacent to the steps, she opened Charlie’s door before the truck stopped rolling. She inspected every centimeter of visible skin. The injuries seemed to be all on the right side of his body. Scrapes and bruises on his cheek, a scratch on the side of his nose and dried blood in his beard. Abrasions on one arm. A cut on the back of that hand. One side of his mouth was swollen.

She choked down a gasp, not wanting Charlie to know how bad it looked. “What took you so long?”

“Didn’t want to bounce him around any more than necessary,” Blaine said.

Charlie started to climb out of the cab. “He drives like—” he panted, “—an old lady. I thought we’d never...get home.”

Oh God, he even sounded bad. She hurried to help him, slipping under the arm that wasn’t scraped up.

“Hang on.” Blaine shouldered his way in from behind her. “Let me get him. He’ll crush you.”

She waited for Blaine to help him out then carefully propped her shoulder under his other arm, mindful of his ribs. They made their way slowly up the stairs.

“You wanna rest on the porch before we navigate the house?” Blaine asked.

“No,” Charlie said, his voice raw.

“We can stop in the living room if you want.”

Charlie’s chuckle was weak. “Yeah, that’d be good for business.”

“Fuck business.”

“Just help me—” he took a couple of shallow breaths, “—to the bedroom. I’m fine.”

Their progress was slow, but they finally eased him down on the edge of the bed. Meredith kneeled to remove his tennis shoes then helped him lean back against the pillows.

He sighed and closed his eyes. “God, it’s good to be home.”

“Can I get you something?” Meredith asked. “Water? Are you hungry?” The scrapes and bruises were bad enough, but it worried her even more that he was so pale.

“I just want to rest a minute.”

She spoke to Blaine. “Did the doctor give you care instructions?”

“Yeah. They’re in the truck with the meds.”

“I’ll get them,” she said, starting for the door.

“I’ll go. You stay here. I need to move the truck, anyway.” He leaned over Charlie and brushed his lips against the side of his mouth that wasn’t bruised and swollen. “I’ve been wanting to do that since yesterday, but I couldn’t because—” He frowned. “We need to figure out the public part of this.”

Meredith couldn’t agree more, but now wasn’t the time, not while Charlie was weak and vulnerable. He needed to stay calm and rest.

When Blaine left, she looked for something to do. But there wasn’t anything. She sat on the edge of one of the chairs under the window and observed him—the rise and fall of his chest, the color of his skin, the tightness around his mouth. When his lids fluttered open, she jumped up, ready to help with whatever he needed.

“Don’t stare at me,” he said. “It’s freaky.”

She wrapped her arms around her waist and hugged herself. “Okay.” But she continued to scrutinize him.

He sighed and closed his eyes again. “Come lay down beside me.”

She eased into the opposite side of the bed, careful not to jostle him. She wanted to cuddle against him, kiss the scratch on his nose or the side of his mouth that wasn’t damaged. Instead she sat stiffly on her side of the bed.

“I can help you out of your clothes,” she said, desperate to
do
something.

His eyes opened, and one side of his mouth lifted in a wry smile. “Not tonight, dear. I have a headache.”

“I didn’t mean—”

The other side of his mouth lifted and a breathy chuckle escaped. “I’m teasing you. What’re you...doing all the way over there? Come here.”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“Breathing hurts. My head hurts.” He paused, catching his breath. “You touching me? Best painkiller ever.”

Cautiously, she slid across the bed until their shoulders touched, then their hips and thighs.

A sigh escaped him. “See? Better already.”

She snorted, not believing him for a minute. But some of the tension eased from her body. “What happened? You’re always so safety conscious.”

His smile dimmed. “It was stupid. I wasn’t paying attention. I hit a rut just right, lost control. ‘’’Course, it’s kinda hard to control an ATV when the wheels aren’t on the ground.”

“You’re lucky you weren’t killed,” she said, choking on the last word.

“Yeah.” He closed his eyes and patted the sheets with his hand until he found hers. He squeezed. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For being here.”

His words floated into her chest and cupped her heart in pillowy warmth. The familiar urge to fight against that softness, that comfort, rose within her, but it wasn’t as desperate, wasn’t as strong. In fact, the fight felt like something she was supposed to do, not something she had any enthusiasm for. It was such a simple thing, but one she didn’t have much experience with. She wasn’t the easiest person to love or even like. Her family was required to love her despite her flaws. But men tended to bolt before the first date. And if they were brave enough to hang around for that rare event, her prickly attitude almost guaranteed they wouldn’t be back for seconds. But Charlie didn’t just want seconds, he wanted thirds and fourths and fifths. He wanted her around.

* * *

Charlie flipped off the TV. Meredith was typing on her laptop in the sitting area of Blaine’s bedroom. He hated to interrupt her, but after two days of convalescing, he was bored.

“What’re you working on?” he asked.

She lifted her head and smiled slightly, but her unfocused gaze told him she wasn’t really here with him. He waited for her to transition from whatever she was working on to him. Her eyes were so expressive he knew the moment it happened.

“Do you need something?” She set the laptop on the ottoman where her feet had rested seconds earlier.

“Yeah, let’s go sit out on the porch.”

“Are you sure?”

“We could take a walk,” he said.

“Let’s wait for Blaine.”

God, he hated being an invalid, hated having his strength questioned, hated not being able to make love to her or him. His cock twitched in agreement with that last. “I don’t need Blaine.”

“Of course you don’t, but he should be here, just in case.”

Her patronizing tone irritated him. He swung his legs over the side of the bed. Gingerly he stood. Everything worked. The ribs still hurt a little, but there wasn’t any dizziness. He started for the door, focusing on each step so he didn’t fall. Meredith was beside him before he reached it. Her breasts jiggled under the oversized T-shirt. No bra. Damn, the temptation was killing him.

“You’re too stubborn for your own good,” she said before turning the doorknob.

Pot calling the kettle black
. He walked through the door, feeling as if he’d been set free. He tried to ignore Meredith’s hovering, her breasts. He was glad she cared, but he was ready to be in control again.

They settled in chairs on the back porch. He listened to the symphony of the country. The rising and falling buzz of insects, overlaid with the trill of birds, occasionally punctuated by a dog’s bark carried on the breeze soughing through the trees.

“Can I get you some water?” she asked.

“No thanks.” She’d forced so much water down him that he’d spent most of the last two days standing over the toilet. Who would have guessed she had a thing for hydration? “What were you working on?”

“Nothing.” She bit her lip and glanced down.

He was about to tell her what a lousy liar she was when the screen door slapped open. Blaine was carrying Meredith’s laptop. “Hey, your computer’s beeping. I think the battery’s dying.”

She jumped up and snatched it from him. “Thanks. I’ll go plug it in.”

The door slammed behind her.

“That was abrupt,” Blaine said.

“I think she and I are suffering from cabin fever.”

“You up to a walk?”

“Hell yeah.”

“Great. As soon as Meredith gets back, we’ll head out.”

Charlie checked the door before lowering his voice. “You think she’ll let me go?”

Blaine chuckled. “Nurse Meredith missed her calling. It’s kinda cute.”

“Easy for you to say. You haven’t been stuck with her twenty-four-seven.”

“You’re complaining, you lucky SOB?” Blaine shook his head. “You say the word, and I’ll take her off your hands for the rest of her stay.”

“No,” Charlie blurted. That wasn’t what he wanted. Meredith wasn’t the problem. She’d totally rearranged her life to help him out. Put her work on hold, extended her stay at the ranch for “as long as it takes.” He appreciated it. He really did. And for more than just the help. She was falling for him. And not just him but Blaine, too. He’d watched her the past two days. Hell, all he’d had to occupy his time was sleep, TV and Meredith. Of the three activities, Meredith was the most interesting. She hadn’t said the words, but her actions spoke volumes. He just wished he could enjoy it more.

“I didn’t think so.” Blaine grinned. “I
do
think you might need a small diversion.”

Charlie’s cock perked up at Blaine’s sexy smile, because he was pretty sure that diversion didn’t involve a walk. “I
have
been wanting to try something with her, but you’d have to do most of the work.”

“I wouldn’t call it work.”

“I still want a walk.”

Blaine nodded. “After dinner?”

“Yeah.”

“Just don’t overdo before then. I don’t want you falling asleep before we get started.”

The last two days he’d slept enough for a lifetime. He might be sore. His muscles might be rusty since he hadn’t used ’em the last couple of days, but he couldn’t imagine more pleasurable physical therapy than rolling around the bed with Blaine and Meredith. “Not gonna happen,” Charlie said.

Three hours later, when Charlie led Blaine and Meredith into the bedroom, he was convinced Meredith needed this. Something was bothering her. Something beyond his injuries. She hadn’t said much at dinner, hadn’t seemed to even follow the conversation. She’d been somewhere else. He’d tried to figure out what it was. Maybe work? But it didn’t
feel
like work. It was something deeper, more personal.

Meredith stood in front of him and flicked open the top snap of the western shirt he’d put on this morning because it hurt too much to lift his arms for a T-shirt. It bugged him that her efforts were so efficient and businesslike. Not an ounce of sexy. He placed his hand over hers, stopping her.

“Blaine can do that.” He nodded toward the bed. “Relax.”

She wandered to the bed, toed off her shoes and picked up the TV remote before plopping at the foot and crossing her bare legs. Her hair spilled over her shoulders. She hadn’t worn makeup the last two days, and she looked younger, like a teenager, not a college professor. The picture was complete when she pointed the remote at the TV.