Broken (Broken #1) (38 page)

“
You’re a
pig,” I comment and kick the blanket off me.

“
No morning
kiss?” He taps his chin with his finger.

My mouth falls open, “You’re
clearly still delirious. Take your medicine.” I throw the boxes at
him and gather up the damp and dry towels that I folded and placed
on the floor last night.

“
I’m only
playing,” he starts to cough and falls back onto the
bed.

“
Where do you
keep the bed sheets for this room?”

“
In there,”
he points to the door behind me, his eyes narrow, “Why?”

“
So I can
change these and wash them, they’re damp and soaking in your own
illness won’t help you get any better.”

“
Thank you,”
he rolls onto his front and pulls the blanket over his
head.

“
Aren’t you
going to have a warm bath or something?” I tap my foot impatiently
and place the towels by the door.

“
No.”

“
Why?”

“
It hasn’t
gone to sleep yet,” he mutters so I can barely hear him.

My lips pinch together but it’s
not enough, a giggle bubbles up from my chest and spills forth. I
rip the blanket from his body, revealing his tight black boxers
that fit his frame oh so well.

“
It’s
cold.”

Ignoring him I set to work
stripping the sheet from the blanket. He grumbles to himself and
pulls his body into a sitting position on the side of the bed. “I’m
going to have a shower.” On shaking legs he stands, his back to me.
I take this moment to strip the sheet from the bed, rather than
stare at his back.

Stop it, Gwen. Stop it!

Then he turns. “Holy…” I cover
my eyes and turn, ignore his laugh as he walks towards the door
which I now know is the bathroom.

“
I did warn
you.”

I peek between my eyes when I
hear the door close, he’s still there. Tented boxers and all.
Christ he’s big… I mean… look away damn it! “Get out,” I squeal and
turn around.

I can’t see it but I know it’s
there, a smug smile is definitely on his face. Arsehole. What’s he
playing at?

I quickly remake his bed and
grab the towels and sheets before exiting his room.

As soon as I have them in the
washing machine I make soup. He needs it and I enjoy soup so it’s
all good. Although it’ll probably take a while. I’m sure he’ll be
okay for the next hour or so.

Should I check on him? What if
he fell in the shower?

No. I’ll leave him to rest
before bothering him again.

The chicken simmers in the pot
of water, almost ready to eat, as the bread warms and rises in the
oven, filling the house with a delicious scent that makes your
mouth water. Jeanine arrived not long after I began cooking, I
didn’t realise how early it was. She took over the soup for a
moment whilst I had a shower and got dressed. No need to walk
around in my pyjamas all day, smelling of Nathan’s sweat.

Not that his sweat stinks or
anything, just that… well… it’s Nathan.

I serve the soup into two bowls
as the bread cools and place them both on a tray with two glasses
of water and a bottle of cough medicine for the man upstairs.
Jeanine cleans around me as I cut the bread and place the slices on
the tray. I also grab a table cloth and go on my merry way.

My cheeks heat as soon as I
step into the room, he’s half asleep on his front, looking pale and
weak. “Nathan?” I whisper into the silence and place the tray on
the small table beside him.

“
Yeah?” He
sits up and glances at the silver tray. “Soup? What am I, a
child?”

“
I’m still
debating,” I mutter and fluff the pillows behind his back, which he
frowns at.

“
I can do
that myself.”

Sigh. “You shouldn’t be doing
much of anything.”

“
Which I
wouldn’t be if you’d leave me alone.”

Touché. “Okay grumpy, just eat
and I’ll leave you alone.”

I open the table cloth and fan
it out over the bedding, Nathan smoothes it down with his hands.
Climbing in beside him, I reach over and carefully pick up the tray
before placing it on his lap. I take my own bowl and immediately
soak a corner of the bread in it.

Nathan grimaces as he swallows
the first bite, “I wish I could taste it.”

“
It’s
fabulous,” I brag with a smile. “And full of protein and
vitamins.”

“
Is there any
left?”

“
Yes,
plenty.”

He nods, “Freeze some, so I can
try it when my tongue isn’t as thick as a foot and as dry as
sand.”

“
Sure,” it
really does taste good. “Is there anything you need me to do whilst
you’re out of commission?”

He thinks on it for a moment,
swallowing the food in his mouth so his long, corded neck bobs;
causing my eyes to zoom in on that area. My mouth has just gone
dry. “No, but thank you for offering, Guinevere.”

“
I’m sorry
for coming into your room without your permission,” I blurt, curse
my conscience. “I got really worried when I hadn’t seen you all
day.”

He shakes his head and waves me
off, before sliding the tray onto my lap. “Thank you for the food,
I’m full.”

“
Okay.” I
stare down at his almost full bowl and frown. Nathan can eat like a
starving horse. He’ll lose weight if he goes through another day
like this. He’s already lean and obviously toned but any more off
him and you’ll be able to see his ribs. “I’ll just take these away
and leave you to rest.”

He nods, his eyes watching me
as I gather up the table cloth, careful to keep the crumbs inside,
and pick up the tray. I switch out the light with my elbow and use
my belly to balance the tray with one hand as I shut the door
behind me.

Now what can I do?

I don’t want to leave the house
just in case. Oh shit, I should have made sure he had his phone and
that it was fully charged. I doubt I’ll be able to hear him yelling
from all the way up there. Although I’d probably hear something if
I were in my room.

That’s what I’ll do. I’ll do
another jigsaw puzzle on my bedroom floor, there are a few in the
closet in the room next to mine. I grab one at random and waddle
back into my room, I tip the pieces on the floor after sitting on a
pillow.

This is going to be a dull few
hours until dinner time.

“
More soup?”
Nathan sounds awful. We situate ourselves on the bed like we did
earlier at lunch. “Vegetable?”

“
Leek and
potato.”

We eat in amiable silence for a
while, I’m pleased when he finishes the last of it with his bread.
I remove the tray and table cloth and leave the room silently.

Nathan texts for me to go
upstairs not long after I retire to my room and get ready for bed.
I don’t hesitate to race to him like a lioness to her cub. Probably
a weird comparison.

“
What’s
wrong?” I’m out of breath just a little and the baby doesn’t
appreciate the jostling around. If its insistent kicking of my
internal organs are anything to go by, I’d say he’s pretty darn
pissed at being disturbed.

I see his hand in the dark,
covered in black leather and it pats the bed beside him where the
blanket is pulled back, almost doubled over on his side.

My mind tells me not to sit so
I don’t, I look down at him, only a few inches from the bed.
“What?”

“
Sit,” he
mumbles, his eyes closed.

“
Why?”

His eyes open, the light brown
almost glowing in the dark. “Sit.”

“
Kay,” I sit.
I don’t feel comfortable because for some reason I feel way too
comfortable. Part of me is clenching inside, whispering things to
my brain. Telling me to fill it with a forbidden tool.

I’m a slut.

His arm snags me around the
waist, forcing me back into the pillow. My body tenses, “What are
you doing, Nathan?”

“
Using you as
my radiator,” he lies and I know he’s lying because he’s making no
attempt to hide the fact that he’s hard.

“
We shouldn’t
be doing this,” It’s wrong, so wrong.

“
I know,” he
doesn’t sound like he cares though. “I like having you with me like
this.”

“
Nathan…” I
warn.

He continues, ignorant of my
tone. “Just while I’m ill. Just tonight. I won’t have the courage
to ask you again.”

“
This is a
bad idea.” I sigh but find myself relaxing into him. “But it’s nice
too.”

“
Yeah,” he
nuzzles the back of my neck, causing me to tense.
“Relax.”

“
Your thing
is between my legs, Nathan.” I try to frown but it doesn’t come,
especially when I feel him twitch. A fit of nervous giggles bubbles
up from within. Nathan’s body starts shaking with mine, his
laughter is silent. “Stop it, it’s not funny.”

“
My head
hurts,” he moans and seems to bury his face in my hair.

“
Have you had
any painkillers yet?”

“
Yes
Mum.”

I shudder, “Calling me that,
right at this point in time, makes this even seedier.”

“
Yes
ma’am.”

“
Go to sleep
Nathan,” I snort and place my hand on the pillow by my head and let
out a long breath. “Nathan?” I call quietly into the darkness, my
head swimming with thoughts.

He doesn’t respond, the only
sound that can be heard from him is his soft breathing.

A line has been crossed. A line
that should never have been crossed.

I sit at my vanity table
freshly showered and preparing for the day, the mascara brush is
held tightly between my fingers as I pull it along my long lashes.
Green eyes stare back at me in the mirror. Troubled eyes with a
million secrets and emotions hiding behind the clear irises.

I place the wand down on the
desk and chew on my lip as I gather my thoughts.

This morning I snuck out of bed
before Nathan awoke, it’s now only seven fifteen and I doubt he’ll
be up any time soon. I feel the need to flee before he wakes. At
least I have a plan on how to handle this situation. Albeit not a
very good one.

My hopes are dashed when my
bedroom door swings open and he strolls in, looking freshly
showered and ready for the day. “We need to talk.”

“
Yeah,” I
agree because we really do need to talk. Even though I don’t want
to address anything that has happened between us lately.

His long legs carry him to me
in three quick strides, his hand reaches for the desk drawer. I
watch him pull out the envelope that has been the cause of my
nightmares as of late. “You haven’t brought this up, but I can see
you’ve read it.”

My eyes meet his in the mirror,
my mouth falls open. I have no words to explain why I’ve not said
anything. Other than the fact I just don’t want to. That and he’s
been poorly.

“
I can only
assume this means you’re thinking about it?” His sentence is a
question, I notice his nerves. Nathan is nervous. He lets out a
laugh, “Or by the looks of your panicked eyes and trembling hands
I’d say you already have an answer. And I’m guessing it’s not the
answer I want to hear.”

My mouth closes, then opens and
then closes again. I let out a sigh and let my head fall forward,
my hair follows, creating a curtain between me and the room.

“
You won’t
even consider it?” My eyes are once again drawn to him when I hear
the sadness to his tone.

Honestly? “I can’t.”

He stands silent, his stare
unwavering, “Very well.”

“
Nathan,” I
reach out, twisting on the bench so I can grab his wrist. “It’s not
you.”

“
No,” he
snarls and tugs his wrist free. “It’s Caleb.”

What the hell is that supposed
to mean? “I love Caleb. I’m his fiancée Nathan.” I follow him out
of my room and practically chase him down the stairs and into the
living room. He stops at the window, his hands gripping the frame
as he stares through the rain splattered glass.

“
It’s time
for you to move on Guinevere.” I daren’t open my mouth for fear of
crying or verbally attacking him. “I’m sorry he’s gone, truly I am
but you need to let go.”

“
I don’t want
to talk about this,” I say to the floor, wishing I could curl my
legs to my chest. Stupid fat belly.

“
You need to
talk about it sooner or later.”

I shake my head slowly, closing
my eyes for a moment, “Yes and when I do, it won’t be with
you.”

“
What’s that
supposed to mean?” He sounds genuinely affronted. “He was my
brother, if you should talk to anyone it should be me.”

“
You have no
tact,” I look him dead in the eye. “You have no tact and no
compassion. I’m his fiancée, this is my decision. When I’m ready to
let go, I’ll let go.”

“
Therein lies
your problem,” why is he speaking to me like this? “You
said,
I’m
his
fiancée. You
were
his fiancée. Past tense.”

“
Christ,
you’re a dick,” I snarl and instantly realise my
mistake.

He’s away from the window and
in seconds he’s in front of me. I cower under his harsh glare and
scramble away from him. Darting for the hall, I don’t even make it
through the archway as an arm wraps around my waist directly above
my stomach. It doesn’t hurt and he’s not rough but it’s strong
enough to stop me in my tracks.