Shifted Temptations (11 page)

"Liz, you can't do that. Wha
t about your job? Get on that plane," I demanded.

Liz shrugged as if it was no big deal, but her fingers were twisting restlessly in front of her. "I'll talk to
Mr. Wolford again. I might be able to save my job. It’s possible that I could be demoted, but as long as I have work, we'll be okay."

I shook my head, "No, t
his isn't just about a job. You have wanted to travel for as long as I have known you, which is forever," I smiled. "It's your dream, go."

Shoulders straightening, Liz dropped her wringing hands and glared at me with hard blue eyes. "That's the deal
, Sam. You go with Alex, let him take care of you, or I will refuse to get on that plane."

I swallowed hard. There was no changing Liz's mind. She was as straight f
orward as they came and would not have issued the threat lightly.

I glanced up at Alex. I was surprised to see he had backed up against the far wall. I hadn't seen or heard him move. I shook my head. My mind must have been too occupied with Liz to pay
any attention.

His gaze
fixed on the bed; his expression was one of deep thought. He looked like his mind was far away, but I knew he was listening to every word. There was a watchfulness about him, like he was taking in everything, even as he tried hard to look uninterested.

Then something Liz said registered
. She had said Alex would take care of me, but where was Jordan? I thought I had seen him the day before, standing over me, but later when I woke, I dismissed it as just a dream. When Alex walked in, I changed my mind and thought maybe it was not a dream, but where was he?

My heart
squeezed painfully. Jordan was not here, because he did not want to be and he probably didn't want to take care of me either.

This time I saw him move. I looked up as Alex pushed off the wall as if to come clo
ser. His knowing brown eyes set on my face. Could he tell what I was thinking? Could he read me that well?

Trying to pay him no attention,
I turned back to Liz. It was obvious what I had to do and she knew it. Luckily for her there was no smug smile on her face, only determination.

"That i
s so unfair Liz." I sighed, "Alright, I'll go with Alex," I said, my voice sounding resigned.

Liz nodded as if she already knew my answer. I was sure she did. My gaze found Alex's and my eyes widened. His
expression was not full of arrogance, as I had assumed. His eyes were bright with happiness and relief. I caught the glimpse only for a moment before he turned away.

I didn't understand. Why would he be happy to babysit me?
He and Jordan had been clear, letting me know how little I meant to them. Did they feel sorry for me? I stiffened at the thought.

Alex jerked his head in my direction his eyes narrowed. I looked away. I
was not sure why he turned to me so quickly and I had too many other things on my mind to care.

I
had no choice than to stay with Alex and let him help me. I had to harden my heart. I had done pretty well so far. Although it was much easier when I didn’t have to see either of the men I loved on a daily bases. Being in the same space, alone, with at least one of them was going to be difficult.

Liz and Alex left to check on the nurse and get
a wheelchair. I took a deep breath and reassured myself that everything would be okay. I could spend a month with Alex and keep my heart safe.

The baby kicked and I placed
my uninjured hand on my tummy and gently rubbed the small ache. I had all I needed, I reminded myself. I wished I could believe it.

~ 12 ~

Sam

Alex had turned down the sheets and laid me on the bed. He slid my shoes off and I sighed in relief causing Alex to look at me, his head tilted to the side in question.

"Swollen feet,
" I murmured.

He glanced down at my belly once then looked away and I frowned. It seemed he was going
to avoid all baby talk.

He had carried me into a bedroom that looked as sparse as the rest of the apartment. White walls, a bed, dresser and nightstand were it for furniture. The bedding was nice. A dark blue quilt with beige circles lay atop dark brown sheets and a lamp stood on the nightstand. The furniture was a m
atching set made of a good wood. White oak, I thought. Oh, and you could not miss the big flat screen T.V. mounted on the wall directly across from the bed.

Alex put his hands in his pockets and rocked back on his heels. "Are you comfortable in what you're wearing or do you what to change? Are you
cold? I could pull the covers up or turn on the heat."

"No, I'm good."

My comfortable sweats and long sleeved t-shirt I put on at the hospital were the perfect choice for lying around, thank God. Alex would have had to help me change and I was not quite ready for that.

"Okay. Well, I'm going to go get started on dinner, so yo
u want me to get you anything?"

Alex sure was anxious to get away from me it seemed. He was a walking contradiction, one minute insisting I come to stay with him and the next wanting to get away from me. I gave myself a mental eye roll. It's good that he wants to get
away, remember? The farther away the better, right?

"Yes
, do you have anything to read? Or maybe you could show me how the remote works for the television?"

He pointed to the nightstand. Reaching over I opened the drawer
to find it full of books. I picked up the one on top. It was 'What to Expect When You're Expecting.' I looked up at Alex and raised an eyebrow. He rocked back on his heels again clearly nervous for some unknown reason. I almost laughed aloud when his cheeks reddened.

"I found it on your dresser when I was packing up your things."

Oh yeah, I had forgotten he had brought a few of my things over.

"Thanks,
" I said flatly.

I had to rein in the emotions trying to sweep through me. Being carried in Alex’s arms, smelling his sexy, woodsy scent was bad enough, b
ut seeing him blush and looking cute was causing havoc. I wanted to kiss him until his cheeks turned red with something other than embarrassment.

Alex seemed conf
used by how reserved I was acting. He stared at me intensely, as if trying to figure me out, but I ignored him and looked back in the drawer.

I notice
d one of my romance novels and it was my turn to blush. Thankfully, my face was turn away as I looked over the sexy man on the cover. He was half naked and in the process of shifting into a wolf. I loved romance novels, but add a little paranormal and I was hooked. I sighed. Shifters were my favorite. I was definitely going to be reading some of that later, I thought.

Pushing it
aside, I found a worn paperback with a bloody knife on the cover. I knew that one was not mine and I held it up.

"I like murder mysteries," h
e defended, lifting one shoulder.

Closing the
drawer, I couldn’t help but glanced through the opened doorway, again. I had probably done it ten times since Alex brought me in there. I just didn’t want to acknowledge the dreadful habit.

“He’s not here.”

“What?” I looked away from the empty hallway to see Alex giving me a knowing look.

“He’s not here. He went to the store, I think.”

“Oh.”

I cursed my heated cheeks. Was I that obvious? Alex chuckled and turned to leave.

“If you need anything, just call. Dinner should be ready soon.”

“Thank you.”
             

I laid back and looked up at the ceiling.
There was an awkwardness between us, a stiffness, I hoped we would get over. Yet, did I really want to get too comfortable, I asked myself?

Staying here
was not permanent. My injuries would heal within six weeks. Liz would be home in four and I would be stupid to pretend I would be here for any longer than necessary.

W
here was Jordan? Alex said he had gone to the store, but he chose an odd time to go. Did he want to avoid me that badly? I thought the least he could have done was come say hello.

Feeling
like a total paradox and more tired than ever, I grabbed a pillow to prop up my broken ankle. I turned onto my right side as gently as I could, but still groaned at some of the aches and pains. Once situated, it wasn't long before I was dozing off.

~   ~   ~

What felt like days later, my eyes opened. The room was pitched black and I blinked several times, clearing my tired vision. Glancing at the digital clock beside the bed, I was surprised to see it was four o’clock in the morning. I had slept all day and most of the night.

Licking my dry lips, I grimaced at the stale taste in my mouth. I needed to brush my teeth
. Thinking of a clean mouth had me realizing how disgusting I felt and I groaned. A bath would have been heavenly, but I wasn’t sure I could do it myself.

The thought had my heart racing. How was I supposed to g
et to the bathroom? From my experience at the hospital yesterday morning, I knew I couldn’t dress or undress myself yet.

Thinking of the bathroom ha
d my bladder screaming. How I had gone so long without peeing was beyond me. Ever since I had found out I was pregnant, my bathroom breaks had quadrupled.

Ava chose that moment to pound on my bladder and things became serious. Wincing, I sat up slowly and swung my legs off the side of the bed. Shit, w
here in the hell were my crutches?

I leaned forward a little, searching for the switch on the lamp. My good hand seemed to bump everything on the
bedside table except for what I was looking for. I cursed when a book went flying, landing on the floor with a
loud
thump.

“What are
you doing?”

I scream
ed and almost toppled over at the sound of Alex’s voice. I wrapped my arm around my middle and took a deep breath, trying to slow my fluttering pulse. I felt like I was about to have a heart attack. I also felt something else, and I groaned in embarrassment.

The lamp suddenly flicked on, making me blink and squint at t
he sudden brightness. Alex stood in front of me, looking like my best fantasy. He had obviously just woken up. He wore only cotton pajama pants that hung loose and low on his hips. They were also a little crooked, as if he had just pulled them on. Thoughts of him sleeping in the nude filled my head.

My gaze moved over his bare chest. My hands shook, desperate to run my fingers over his broad shoulders, to feel the soft hair brush a
gainst my bare skin. I shivered and my breathing began accelerating again. Alex was not very good at calming a panic attack.

He
knelt down in front of me and began rubbing my arms gently from shoulder to elbow and back again. I took deep calming breaths as I stared down at my hand resting on my stomach.

“Are you alright? I didn’t mean to scare you. I heard you stumbling around in here and thought you might need some help.”

I glanced up. He was looking down at me, his eyebrows pulled together in concern, but it didn’t stop the snicker from escaping my lips. His hair was sticking up in odd spikes across one side of his head. It looked so out of place with his serious expression that it brought a smile to my lips.

“What’s so funny?”

He looked up as I pointed and ran a hand through his messy locks. “Yeah, I just woke up, and the couch isn’t very comfortable” he said sheepishly

“The couch?”

“Well, yeah, the bed was taken.” He grinned.

I had
to look away as butterflies assaulted my stomach.

“Were you trying
to go somewhere?”

“I needed to
go to the bathroom and couldn’t find my crutches.”

I looked over and saw them leaning against the bedside table and shook my head. Of course they were right in front me.

“Here, I’ll help you.” He stood and I pulled away from his arms as he moved to pick me up.

“Well, I...I don’t need...I mean I already...”

I looked down, completely mortified. Alex glanced down as well, seeing my soaked pants.

“Oh.”

“I’m sorry, gosh, this so embarrassing.” I blushed hotly. “Because of the pregnancy, I have to go all the time and I just couldn’t hold it and then you scared me and...”

“
Hey,” he said, lifting my chin.

I looked at his face, relieved
to see he was not laughing. “It’s alright. I read about this. Pregnant women have accidents all the time. Laughing, bumpy roads, being scared...” He smiled at me and my cheeks heated more, “and even when the baby kicks just the right spot can cause it.”