LLucy’s Revenge(Divine Creek Ranch 15)(5)

Patrick squatted down beside her and rolled his best friend over. “Damn, he’s burning up.” With a grunt, Patrick pulled Beck into an upright sitting position and then rose to his feet, lifting Beck with him, and started walking him to the passenger side of the truck. “I’ll load him up and take him home with me.”

Lucy pulled the truck door open for him, shivering as the rain soaked her to the skin. “No. My house is just a few doors down. We need to get that fever under control and he needs to get out of those wet clothes.”

After shoving Beck over on the bench seat, Patrick turned to her, squinting through the rain and panting from the exertion. “Luce, he’s going to be a bear when he wakes up. You know how he is.” He pointed to the half-empty bottle of Jack Daniel’s whiskey lying on the ground. “And he’s been drinking on his way here.”

Lucy grabbed the bottle and poured the contents out on the soaked ground and put the bottle on the floorboard to dispose of at home. Patrick helped her back into the truck. “Yeah, and I’ll have a few choice words for him if he starts cussing at me again. Asshole,” she added in a mutter as she put her hand to his forehead. She’d never seen him drink more than a couple of beers on a night out and couldn’t imagine the hurt that had sent him into a bottle of whiskey.

Patrick climbed back into the driver’s seat, teeth chattering, and cursed at his soaked condition.

At her house, she ran ahead of him with keys in hand and let them into her house. The whiskey bottle made a loud clatter when she pitched it in the kitchen trash can. “Bring him to the bathroom.”

Patrick followed her down the hall with Beck dragging along beside him. She marveled that he was strong enough to carry Beck’s soaked dead weight but he managed well. While the tub filled with tepid water, she helped Patrick pull off Beck’s sodden, muddy work boots and then focused on the buttons of his shirt. The wet button holes were uncooperative but distracting as she paid attention to them instead of the fact that they were disrobing a man she wanted in a way that was nearly desperate, despite his bearish behavior of late. Patrick worked at getting Beck’s blue jeans off, struggling with his dead weight. Her cat, Waldo, meowed and rubbed his face against Beck’s jeans, making the process even more difficult.

“Luce, he’s liable to come to when I get him in the tub and be pissed as hell. Let me take over here. I’ll not have him giving you another earful.” His tone was no nonsense but it was obvious he was equally concerned for Beck as he was for her.

Uncertain—and grateful—because she really couldn’t take another ego bruising tonight, she nodded. After lighting the old-fashioned gas heater in the bathroom, she reached in the linen closet for two towels. “I’ll put these in the dryer to warm them up for him. Let me know if you need anything else.”

Patrick nodded and put a hand out to stop her. His callused hand was reassuring as he caressed her forearm “Luce, it’s going to be okay.”

She turned to him, trying to avoid looking at Beck, slumped against his shoulder. He seemed so vulnerable—fragile—and she knew he’d hate for her to see him like that.

“I hope so.”

The other reason she avoided looking at him was that despite his unkempt, drunken state, she still found him incredibly attractive.

When he told a joke, his kissable lips quirked at an angle and his green eyes twinkled mischievously. She often fantasized about what his hair would feel like sliding through her fingers, the same as she did with Patrick. She’d definitely given in to the Divine mindset. Whether Beck would was very much up for debate though.

Beck’s head fell back as Patrick shifted him and somehow the way his throat was revealed made him seem even more vulnerable. Longing to stroke him there, she wondered for the hundredth time what he’d look like with the beard shaved off and his hair cut. “You know I’m not just referring to him being sick. It’s going to be okay, Luce. You need to get out of those wet clothes.”

She nodded and turned to the door again as she murmured, “We’ll see, I guess. When he can talk, I need answers before he puts all those walls back up.” She made eye contact with Patrick before she pulled the door closed. “That would be nice from both of you, actually.”

Patrick looked away and nodded as he shifted Beck toward the tub. Through the closed door she heard voices murmuring and realized that Beck must’ve awakened. They argued for a minute and Lucy smiled as Beck cursed. She heard a splash followed by more cussing, this time from Patrick. She was grateful that he’d sent her out.