The Casual Rule (23 page)

He’s sitting on the couch with his head tilted back and eyes closed. I sink down to the floor and take his right foot in my hand.

“You don’t need to do this,” he says, opening one eye.

“Yes I do. Be a good patient and sit back.”

“You’re very bossy. I like it,” he says suggestively.

I roll my eyes up to the ceiling. Men are an interesting breed. He’s dying in pain and coming on to me.

“Relax,” I order.

“I like your shirt,” he says, staring at my cleavage.
That opened both eyes.

“I thought you might.”

He arches a sly brow. “Take it off,” he commands, jutting out his chin toward my shirt.

“This is what you’re thinking about? My top off?” I ask, letting out a heavy sigh.

“Don’t you want a happy patient?” He tilts his head with a mischievous smirk.

“I want a patient that can walk.”

“Then take off your top.”

“Nurse Julia says relax. I have ointment to apply.”

“I’d rather Naughty Nurse Julia help me relax with her top off.”

I sigh, exasperated by his one-track mind. “Will you let me take care of you if I take off my top?”

“Yes.”

“Fine.” I pull my T-shirt off. I’m kneeling on the floor in my push-up bra and jeans. I don’t know what’s more ridiculous …him asking me to take off my top or me actually doing it.

He exhales through his teeth. “Naughty Nurse Julia, you are fucking hot.”

“Lay back, buddy. I’m here to tend to your feet.”

“There’s more of me that needs tending.” He flexes his groin up toward me.

I smile and laugh. “Very well. I’ll tend to one part of you at a time.”

“If that’s the case, you should start with what needs the most care.” He looks suggestively down at the pup tent growing out from his sweatpants.

“How can you have a hard-on now? Aren’t you exhausted?”

“I’m game. You’ll just have to do all the work.”

I shake my head. He should be half dead after running twenty-six miles. Only Ben would want sex when he can barely move.

“Feet first.” I unscrew the cap of the ointment and carefully apply it to the blisters on his right foot. I look up at him. He’s clenching his teeth and flinching. I blow on each broken blister and apply a small bandage on each. By the time I finish with his left foot, he looks visibly relieved that it’s over.

“Better?” I ask.

He nods.

“Have you eaten anything?” I ask.

“I had a banana and an orange earlier. I’m sorry; I was going to order dinner up for us. Time got away from me.”

“A few pieces of fruit aren’t enough for you. I’ll find something in your kitchen. You need carbs and protein.”

“I’ll get it,” he offers.

“Just sit there,” I insist. “I’ll be right back.”

Grabbing the bottle of champagne, I walk into his kitchen. I open the refrigerator and marvel at it. It’s spotless. How the hell can someone have a refrigerator that has no spills and no rings where bottles once stood? This is not normal. There’s some pre-sliced turkey in the fridge and a loaf of bread on the counter. Multigrain. Naturally, he’s a health food freak too.

“Is a turkey sandwich okay?” I call out.

“Anything you make, I’ll eat.”

Good, he’s hungry. I can’t believe he just ran a marathon and all he ate was a few pieces of fruit. Men have no clue how to take care of themselves.

I put the champagne bottle in the refrigerator and take out the turkey, some mayo and lettuce. “Do you like mayonnaise?” I ask.

“Yes. Thanks.”

There’s a shock, the man eats mayo. There’s hope for him yet.

I bring two sandwiches and two bottled waters I found chilling in the fridge back to the living room. Ben is slumped on the couch with his eyes closed.  He straightens himself out when he hears me; his eyes stare directly at my chest. I almost forgot I was wearing just my bra.

“Start eating or I’ll put my top back on,” I warn.

“Yes, ma’am.” He smirks, his eyes still focused on my chest.

“You’re a perv, you know.”

“I do.” He smiles slyly.

“Oh, just eat,” I say, exasperated.

~o0o~

After we’re done eating, I take a quick look at Ben. I can tell he’s hurting. He looks stiff and not the good kind of stiff I’m used to seeing.

“Do your legs hurt?” I ask.

“A bit.”

“Did you ice your muscles?”

“No. After Camille dropped me off, I took a quick shower and dropped dead on the couch.”

“Oh, Camille was there?” I pretend I’m surprised at this information.

“She gave me a ride home as a favor.”

So, she was just his ride. I don’t know why, but I feel a little better about that. Besides, he sent me a text while he was with her. That has to mean something.

“I see. You need to ice your muscles. Do you have ice packs?”

“I don’t want to ice them.”

“You really should. It will help with your recovery.”

“I hate ice packs.” He crosses his arms and frowns like a five-year-old right before a temper tantrum. Men are such crybabies when it comes to anything uncomfortable.

“Tell you what… Let me ice your legs and I’ll take off my jeans.”

“No. I hate ice packs.”

“I’m wearing a thong,” I tease, slipping my finger down my waistband and pulling up the elastic string.

“Okay,” he answers instantly. Typical male, even in pain, he thinks with his dick.

“It’ll be easier to do this on your bed. Can you walk over there?”

“Of course I can.” He rolls his eyes, then stands and reaches down for the dinner plates.

“I’ll take care of that. Take off your pants and get into bed.”

“Naughty Nurse Julia, I like the way you think.” Slowly he walks to his bedroom. At the rate he’s going between his stiff muscles and the blisters on his feet, this could take a while.

I take the plates and place them in the dishwasher and grab two ice packs from the freezer.

When I get into Ben’s bedroom, he’s sitting on the edge of the bed.

“Lay down,” I tell him.

He shakes his head. “Strip first,” he commands.

“Seriously?”

“No thong, no ice.”

“Are you thirteen years old?” I ask, my hands planted firmly on my hips.

“Occasionally. Now strip,” he orders, his voice stern.

I slip off my shoes and shimmy out of my jeans. I can’t believe I have to do this in order for him to do what’s good for him. He’s very good at getting me undressed. “Satisfied?” I ask, holding out my arms.

“Turn around.” He twirls his finger in a circle.

“Fine.” I throw my hands in the air, surrendering to his indecent request and twirl around.

“Naughty Nurse Julia has a fine ass.”

I try to stop, but I can’t help but smile. “I’m glad you like it. Lay down. I’m going to ice your calves. I want hear about the race.”

His eyes sparkle as he tells me about his run, yawning most of the way through his stories. He talks about a few things I’m clueless about, like splits, gel packs at an aid station and target zones. But I smile, nod and listen intently. I can see it gives him great pride to relive these moments.

“I had intense calf cramps at mile twenty, fucking awful. I pushed through it— each step, each stride. That’s when I started making my deals with God.” He laughs. “I continued to make deals over the next six miles.” He pauses and looks down at me, his expression changing from humorous to serious. “I knew I had to finish. I didn’t want to disappoint my grandfather.” Our eyes lock. He smiles tenderly at me and I smile back. His words pull at my heartstrings.

I remove the ice packs from his calves and gently massage his legs. “Better?” I ask.

“Colder. Thank you for taking care of me.”

I look down at the bed and blush. I don’t know what to say. I enjoyed taking care of him. I lay down next to him, pulling the blanket up over us. I lean on my hand, resting on my elbow and rake my fingernails through his hair.

“Mmm, that feels nice.” He moans appreciatively, tilting his head back slightly into his pillow and closing his eyes.

“So tell me about the end of the race. How did it feel to cross the finish line?”

“Surreal… amazing.” He yawns, turns his head and looks at me with a sleepy smile. His eyes are watery from yawning so much. He looks absolutely adorable.

“I should go and let you sleep,” I say.

“No. Stay. I just need a few minutes to recharge.”

“Ben, you’re exhausted.”

“I’m okay,” he insists, but I know better.

“All right, for a little while.”

I continue to rake my nails through his soft hair. With each gentle stroke of my nails against his scalp, his breathing gets deeper and deeper. I peek over and he’s asleep. He even sleeps beautiful.

 “I’m very proud of you, Ben Martin,” I whisper in his ear. I reach across the bed and delicately kiss his soft lips. I scoot in close to him just to feel his warm body next to mine. I’ll lay here for just a few minutes, get dressed and go home.

~o0o~

There’s a hand on my stomach.

I open my eyes and see Ben’s arm draped across my waist. The sun is filtering through a small crack between the drapes; it’s obviously morning. Oh God, I fell asleep. It figures; my first sleepover with Ben, I’m half naked and he’s comatose. To top it off, no mind-blowing sex. Not exactly what I pictured.

What do I do? Stay? Sneak away before he wakes up? He told me to stay, but I don’t think he meant all night…. Did he? I’m so confused. I don’t know what to do.

While I figure out my next move, I take a moment and watch Ben sleep. Yeah, it’s a little creepy, but I have no witnesses to give me up. His lips are slightly parted as he takes slow, steady breaths. His long lashes fanned against his face and his hair is mussed up against the pillow. He looks so peaceful. His beard stubble grows in fast. I’m itching to touch it, but I don’t want to wake him in case I decide to make a run for it before he knows I stayed all night.

I take a deep breath and inhale his Benessence. Even in the morning, I’m attracted to his unique scent. There’s got to be away to bottle this; I could be a billionaire. He looks like he’s going to be out cold for a long time. I’m sure the marathon took a lot out of him. Typical male. He should have known he’d be too tired to tango last night. I should have known too. I saw how tired he looked at the finish line, but I wanted to be with him. Anyway, he contacted me.

I’ll just snuggle in for a few minutes, get up, dressed and leave him a note. I cozy myself into his side. His arm wraps around me, but he never awakens. This feels nice, lying in Ben’s arms, his skin against mine. I have to remind myself not to get too attached to this feeling, as I reluctantly have to admit, Cam-eel’s words do hold some truth. I’ll stay for five minutes and then I’m out of here.

~o0o~

“Good morning.”

I blink a few times and see Ben, leaning on his side, smiling over me. Oh God, I fell asleep again. I pull the sheet up to cover my mouth. “Good morning,” I mutter.

“Why are you covering your mouth?”

“Morning breath,” I mumble.

“Julia, you’re being ridiculous.”

“I don’t care.” I pull the sheet tighter.

“If you want to talk to me through a sheet, fine. I’m sorry I passed out on you last night. Not exactly the night I had hoped for. Thank you for taking care of me.”

“I’m glad I was here to help you. Sorry I passed out here all night.”

“Waking up next to you was the best surprise. I’m glad you’re here. I slept so well last night. It must be you.”

“Or the marathon you ran yesterday,” I say skeptically.

“No, I think it’s you. Come here.” He stretches out his arm and pulls me into his side. I cuddle in close. This feels perfect.

He turns his head and kisses my forehead. “You really are something else.”

“What does that mean?”

“I don’t know what it is about you. I like this. I like when you’re with me. It’s just… I don’t know… it just feels good to be with you. I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m glad I’m here too,” I say sincerely.

“Can you put the damn sheet down, I want to kiss you.”

“That is not going to happen until I brush my teeth.” Lucky for me, I keep a spare toothbrush in a travel case at the bottom of my purse for the days I eat something funky at work.

He looks at me with his smoky dark bedroom eyes. My stomach flips. He’s willing me to kiss him and I’m tempted as hell. No, even I have my limits. My first morning kiss with Ben will not be tainted by bad breath.

“I’ll be right back.” I scan the floor looking for something to throw over my bra and thong. The only clothing on the floor is my skinny jeans. I’m not shimmying back into those this early in the morning. I spot a white button down shirt hanging off a hook on his closet door. That’ll have to do. I crawl out of bed and retrieve the shirt.

“Don’t cover up,” he complains.

“It’s too cold to walk around in my underwear.”

“I’ll turn up the heat.”

“That won’t be necessary. This will do.” I slide on his shirt and button it up.

“I have to admit, you look hot in my shirt. I’m going to enjoy watching you take that off.”

“Stripping? Is that all you think about?” I ask.

“When it comes to you…getting you naked and what’s to follow is definitely all I think about.”

“You’re impossible”

“Impossibly attracted to you.”

I bite the inside of my cheek to hide my smile. “I’ll be right back.” I walk out of his bedroom to find my purse and my toothbrush.  When I walk back into the bedroom, Ben is climbing back into his bed. I look at him and frown.

“Brushed my teeth. You’re not the only one who is going to have fresh breath,” he answers my unasked question.

I smile and nod. This guy is so perfect he probably doesn’t have morning breath, but I’m glad I won’t have to find out.

 The first thing I do once I’m in the bathroom is remove my push-up bra. My squished breasts have endured enough torture. I unhook the back and set them free. Sweet relief! After taking care of my morning pee, I wash my face to rid myself of the raccoon eyes from my melted mascara, brush my teeth, and comb my hair with my fingers. I take a long look in the mirror. This will have to do.