River Wolf(17)

First things first, she got a burger open for him to eat, then pulled the car over to another spot where they could have some privacy. Luc grunted at her choice, but she ripped open the pain reliever packages. “I don’t remember any allergies on your chart. Can you take acetaminophen?”

“I’m not allergic to anything,” was his only comment.

Tapping the pills onto her palm, she handed him four. “Take those.” She half-watched him while she pushed the driver’s side door open then wrestled with the ice bag. She filled the pack, then slid it over behind his neck.

Air hissed out from Luc’s lips and the yellow in his eyes deepened. Weird response to pain, but the light was off with the clouds. “Not sure whether to thank you or curse you for that.”

“We need that fever down. They didn’t have a decent thermometer in there, but if you don’t look better in thirty minutes, I’ll find us a hospital.”

“No.” Command resonated within the word. “The food, the pills—they’ll help and I can see the physicians at home.”

Her policy of noninvolvement wavered. “Luc…”

“It’s okay,” he soothed her. Why the hell was he comforting her? “I’ll be fine. I promise, I won’t die in your car. You’re too interesting to cut the conversation short, anyway.”

“Stop flirting with me.” The admonishment came out rote, but she refused to let his stubbornness charm her. Over the last few years, she’d learned some brutal lessons. One hard and fast rule was never let the bad boy in and, no matter how helpless and weak he seemed at the moment, Luc was a bad boy.

Wheezing a laugh, he coughed. At the harsh sound, she unscrewed the water bottle and handed it to him. He washed down his pills with half the bottle then took another bite of his burger. Satisfied he was eating, she arranged the food so he had easy access and pulled the fries up where he could reach them. After adding a straw to the shake, she set it in the cup holder closest to his right hand—better for him to grip.

“Do you need a bathroom break?”

“Not getting out of the car,” he said around a mouthful.

“No, I didn’t think you were.” She held up an empty water bottle. “Not much different than a bedpan, and we’ve already had that experience.” Keeping it clinical gave him his dignity and kept her from being embarrassed.

Another slow head shake. “I’m good, sweet cheeks. No need to put either of us through that. Not that I mind your hand on my cock, but I’d rather be in the position to return the favor.”

Shock rippled through her ending in a laugh. The flush racing to her cheeks buried any chance of professionalism. “Okay, you’ll survive.”

“Yes,” he said, grinning slowly. “I will. You need to laugh more. It’s a beautiful sound.”

“The sooner I get rid of you, the better for me.”

“You wound me.” Sarcasm softened his words. “But I’ll grow on you. Don’t worry.” He resumed eating, his deliberate chewing getting him through the first burger and most of the way through the second by the time she stored the ice in a chest in the well behind her seat and got her food ready to eat. She wasn’t really hungry, but she didn’t like cold burgers and she’d eaten enough.

Once they were on the road again, she sipped her shake and kept an eye on Luc. He polished off four of the five burgers she’d purchased. Damn, the man could eat. With singular attention, he ate all the fries, too. When she held out her burger, her patient frowned. “You should eat.”

“I’m not really that hungry, and you’re starving.” Thankfully, he looked a little better. Maybe the combination of meds and food had done the trick. He didn’t argue any further. When he took the burger and began eating through it with the same relentless focus he’d directed to the rest of his meal, she sipped her strawberry shake and relaxed.

“Thank you,” he said after another hour. She’d thought him asleep, but apparently not.

“You’re welcome.” She nodded to the sign as they passed into New Hampshire. “We’re about halfway, and we have another couple of hours at least. How are you feeling?”

“Better.” He shifted in the seat then stopped with a grimace. “The food helped.”

She rested her hand against her own cheek until she acclimated to her temperature before reaching out to brush his face. His skin still seemed too hot to her. “We should change your ice pack.”

“Don’t take anymore breaks, Colby, not unless you need them.” He reclaimed his water bottle and finished it with a long drink. “The sooner we get there, the better it will be for both of us.”