This time, the thermometer read 101.5.
"I think I can stand," she said.
"Let me help at least." He offered his hands, and together, they pulled her to her feet.
"If you'll hold up the towel, I'll slip out of these wet things."
He gave a nod, looking away as he held up the towel to give her some semblance of privacy. Wet clothing slapped against the tub, once, twice. And he tried like hell not to think about the fact that she was utterly, totally naked two feet away from him. An arm's reach away. Because he was finding it damn hard not to want to take her into his arms.
She wrapped the towel around herself.
And then she listed to the side.
Slider caught her in his arms after all, and then he lifted her into a carry against his chest. "I'm putting you in my bed tonight so I can keep an eye on you."
"Okay," she said.
After that, he put her in one of his shirts and a pair of his boxers and tried like hell not to like the look of her in his clothes as much as he did. And then his bed became the center of activity for the rest of the night. Ben brought Cora drinks and Popsicles on a tray, and she invited them to stay and play a game of cards to keep her company. And Slider had the weirdest, most unexpected thought.
Family.
They felt like a family.
He liked Cora. He did. Obviously, he couldn't deny that anymore.
But he should not be thinking of her as family.
She was his employee, an employee who now lived in his house. That was boundary-pushing enough. And he was still a man with significant faith, trust, and abandonment issues when it came to relationships with anyone but his kids. And, Jesus, his kids loved Cora far too much for Slider to risk doing anything that might mess up their relationship with her.
So he and Cora could be friends, sure.
But family, that was something he was better off defining by those who shared his blood.
Maybe that was no guarantee, either. Because his parents sure as shit hadn't done right by him. But Slider knew how he felt about his boys-and always would. So blood ties were the best chance he had to create something true, real, and lasting.
Just once.
Chapter 10
By the time the boys were in bed, Cora was slipping in and out of consciousness. She seemed so tired that she couldn't keep her eyes open and when she spoke, it came out in a slur. But her temperature was down to 100.9 as of the last time they'd taken it, so at least they had this thing moving in the right direction.
Which meant he could get ready to hit the hay, too, especially since he'd finally found someone to cover the rest of his shift. Usually, Slider slept naked, but tonight he pulled on an undershirt and a pair of sweatpants.
"Leave a light on, please?" she mumbled against her pillow.
"Yeah. Okay," he said. "Need anything else?"
She didn't answer, which left Slider standing at the edge of his bed and debating. Sleeping with her seemed all kinds of problematic, given how much she got to him. And she did, he had to admit that much. But he didn't think she should be alone. Maybe he should just sleep on the floor . . .
"You getting in?" she asked, trying to peer over her shoulder but not quite strong enough to do it.
He sighed. It was fine. They'd slept in the same bed together before. They could do it again. He crawled into the empty side.
Cora made a little whining sound that immediately had him propping himself up on an elbow. "No, not behind me. Can't take you behind me." She dragged herself to turn over, finally coming to lie on her side facing him.
"What?" he said, his gut churning at her words. He hadn't given her request to leave the lights on a second thought. But hell if it didn't look different with her saying she couldn't tolerate him at her back. And, oh, Jesus, the way she'd freaked out that night in the family room . . .
"That's better," she whispered.
"I'm worried about you, Cora," he said, not meaning just the fever she'd come down with tonight. That was only his most immediate concern. "I think we have to take you to urgent care if you're not better in the morning."
"Just need to sleep . . ."
And then she was out. But Slider was wide awake, again, worrying about Cora Campbell. And wondering exactly what she'd been through before she'd arrived in Maryland. Whatever it was, Slider's gut told him it wasn't good.
A suspicion that escalated the protectiveness he already felt toward her by a factor of about a thousand. At least.
At some point, he finally dropped off to sleep, and eventually he found himself in the middle of the most fucking amazing dream. Cora, sliding into his bed in the middle of the night. Climbing on top of him, covering him with her feminine curves. Grinding against him and making him moan.
Coming with his name on her lips.
"Slider," she moaned.
His eyes blinked open, and he found his dream coming true. Except then his brain came back online enough for him to realize that he was a goddamn pervert and Cora was pressing up against him not in an effort to seduce him, but to try to get warm. She shivered against him. Her fever had spiked again.
"Wake up, Cora," he said, reaching for the medicine he'd left on the nightstand. "I need you to take some more of this to bring the fever down."
"Cold," she whispered, bleary, green eyes blazing.
"I know." He dropped two pills onto her tongue. "Drink."
"Sorry I woke you. Didn't realize . . ." She pushed herself away.
Slider hauled her right back against him. "Whatever you need, sweetheart, okay? Just want you to feel better."
She was back to sleep in an instant. And, oddly, so was he.
And that was the way they woke up. Right away, Slider knew something was off. The house felt oddly empty, but the light coming through his blinds made it feel late. He turned to the nightstand and found a note propped up against the lamp in his ten-year-old's hand.
You guys were out cold so I got us ready for school. No worries.
-Sam
Damn. Aw, damn. At some point, Sam, and maybe Ben too, had come in here . . . and found Slider and Cora totally entwined. As they still were.
Cora lay with her head on Slider's shoulder, her arm across his chest, her thigh across his. And his arm was around her shoulders, holding her to him, his face pressed to her forehead. Sure, the blankets had covered most of that, but no doubt his kids had seen enough to raise an eyebrow of curiosity.
But at least Cora's fever didn't seem as bad this morning. No more than a hundred, if Slider had to guess. But he wasn't waking her up to find out, and holding her like this wasn't something he was going to be able to do again. So he let himself enjoy the feel of her while he could, relaxed against the pillow again, and drifted off with her in his arms.
Cora didn't want to wake up. She was warm and comfortable, and that seemed miraculous after being freezing and achy all night long. But finally, her eyelids blinked open against her will, and then she really didn't want to move.
Because she was lying on Slider, touching him from face to toes, in his bed. And he was holding her, too.
In that moment, Cora wished more than anything that they were like this because they were together, rather than just because he'd taken pity on her for being sick. She'd always had some fondness for Slider, even in his most withdrawn version, but the past couple weeks, she'd felt like she was finally getting to know him. She'd seen more of his sweetness toward his sons. She'd witnessed his vulnerable side when Ben got hurt and when he'd admitted he needed her help. And she'd certainly found him to be thoughtful in preparing such a wonderful welcome for her coming to live at his house.
He'd given her a few glimpses of his sense of humor-and proved he could sling some highly effective sarcasm. She still couldn't decide whether to chuckle or groan at his calling her out for using humor as a defense mechanism. It had been as annoyingly observant as it had been accurate. And she kinda wanted to get T-shirts made that read Talkative Slider and Humor as a Diversionary Tactic Cora. Or maybe dolls. Perhaps she'd add to the line, Tall, Dark, and Scary Dare; Can Do Anything To and On a Bike Maverick; and Cute but Seriously Annoying Phoenix. She could make a million. Annnd this train of thought proved she still probably had a fever . . .
Cora sighed. If all that wasn't enough, that wasn't even taking into consideration the way Slider had taken care of her last night. Or the way he was holding her now.
And that was when she realized she liked Slider Evans. Liked liked him. And she had no idea what the hell she was going to do about that.