“You’re all right,” came the voice that wrapped a warm blanket around her while causing her heart to free-fall.He sat in a leather club chair next to the sofa.“I’m right here.”His voice soothed more of her aches than she cared to admit.
It would also be short-lived.
Sitting up all the way and stretching out her arms caused the blanket to fall off her and onto the wooden floor.“What time is it?”
“Five-thirty,” he said, moving to scoop up the blanket before her brain could command her body to move.She was stiff, achy, and…
She had the chills.
Was she sick?Oh, hell no.Right now?
Hudson took a knee beside her after replacing the soft throw.“I was concerned because you spiked a fever in the middle of the night.”
She pulled the blanket up to her neck, then sank back down.“I don’t have time to be sick.”
“No one ever does,” he said with a small smile.He handed her a glass of water.“Can you drink this for me?”
She took the offering and drained the contents.
“You’ve been camping outside in the elements, and God only knows where you were before you made it here.”
It hit her.“I stayed in a dicey motel.I slept in my clothes on top of the covers because I was afraid to touch anything.”
“Germs are everywhere,” he said.“Shopping cart handles.Steering wheels.All you have to do to catch some viruses is breathe.”
“You’re right,” she said with a groan.“Everything aches.”
“Any chance I can convince you to take my bed, where I can keep a better eye on you?”He pointed to the left.“The door is right there instead of down a hallway.And I’ll be right in here on the couch.”
“You should probably stay far away from me so you don’t catch whatever this is.”
He cracked a smile as his gaze bounced from her eyes to her lips and back.“I think it’s a little too late to worry about that.Besides, stress affects your immune system, and you’ve had more than your fair share based on what you’ve told me already.”
She couldn’t argue his logic.
“I have Zinc and Vitamin C pills.”He made his way to the kitchen and back in a few seconds.He held his hand out.“Technically, they’re chewable.”
Cassie took the offerings and immediately popped them into her mouth.The fizz made her want to throw up.She quickly washed the taste away with water.
“You talk in your sleep, by the way.”
That couldn’t be a good sign.Panic gripped her with icy fingers.“What did I say?”
“You mumbled mostly about a guy named Jarek.”
That was definitely not a good sign.
She compressed her lips into a frown and squeezed her eyes shut for a second before asking, “What did I say about him?”
“We can talk about it when you’re feeling better, okay?”
“I’d rather talk about it now.”
He felt her forehead and frowned.“Cassie, you’re burning up.Let me get your fever down first, and then I’ll tell you what little I learned about your past.”
Much like bad medicine, she’d rather take the hits now and get them over with.Shame filled her at how she’d let Jarek slip past her radar.Hadn’t she always been careful about letting people in?How that sonofabitch had crept through was beyond her.Looking back, there’d been signs.But when you never let anyone in, it gets harder to spot the slippery ones who end up hurting you.
“Okay,” she finally answered Hudson.“But I’m not proud of my past.”