When he left again, she tried to shift to see what else was in the bag he'd set on the floor. But the shoulder made movement awkward. Settling back again, she nibbled on the burger and tried not to pout. The sound of footsteps returning had her pasting a smile on her face. "Where do you want them?" Gray asked. "Oh, on that little table over there. Yes, that's lovely. Your dinner'll be cold, Gray."
He only grunted, then sitting again took his own share of the meal from the bag. "Feeling any better?"
"I don't feel nearly bad enough to be pampered this way, but I'm glad you stayed to have dinner with me."
"Only the beginning, honey." He winked and with the half-eaten burger in one hand, reached into the bag.
"Oh, Gray-a nightgown. A real nightgown." It was plain, white, and cotton and all but brought tears of gratitude to her eyes. "I can't tell you how much I appreciate that. This awful thing they put on you."
"I'll help you change after dinner. There's more." "Slippers, too. Oh, a hairbrush. Thank God." "Actually, I can't take credit for all this. It was Maggie's idea."
"Bless her. And you."
"She said your blouse was ruined." Bloody, he remembered she'd told him and took a moment to steady himself.
"We'll take care of that tomorrow, if they spring you. Now what else do we have here? Toothbrush, a little bottle of that cream you use all the time. Almost forgot the drinks." He handed her a paper cup, topped with plastic with a hole for the straw. "An excellent vintage, I'm told."
"You thought of everything."
"Absolutely. Even the entertainment."
"Oh, a book."
"A romance novel. You have several on your shelf at the cottage."
"I like them." She didn't have the heart to tell him the headache would make reading impossible. "You went to a lot of trouble."
"Just a quick shopping spree. Try to eat a little more."
Dutifully she bit into a chip. "When you get home will you thank Mrs. O'Malley for me, and tell her please, not to bother with the wash."
"I'm not going back until you go."
"But you can't stay here all night."
"Sure I can." Gray polished off the burger, balled the wrapper, and tossed it into the waste can. "I've got a plan."
"Grayson, you need to go home. Get some rest."
"Here's the plan," he said, ignoring her. "After visiting hours, I'll hide out in the bathroom until things settle down. They probably make a sweep, so I'll wait until they come in and check on you."
"That's absurd."
"No, it'll work. Then the lights go off, and you're all tucked in. That's when I come out."
"And sit in the dark for the rest of the night? Grayson, I'm not on my deathbed. I want you to go home."
"Can't do it. And we won't sit in the dark." With a smug grin, he pulled his last purchase from the bag. "See this? It's a book light, the kind you clip on so you don't disturb your bed partner if you want to read late."
Amazed, she shook her head. "You've lost your mind."
"On the contrary, I'm extremely clever. This way I won't be at the cottage worrying, you won't be here, alone and miserable. I'll read to you until you're tired."
"Read to me?" she repeated in a murmur. "You're going to read to me?"
"Sure. Can't have you trying to focus on this little print with a concussion, can we?"
"No." She knew nothing, absolutely nothing in her life had ever touched her more. "I should make you go, but I so very much want you to stay."
"That makes two of us. You know, this sounded pretty good from the back cover copy. 'A deadly alliance,'" he read. " 'Katrina-she would never be tamed. The fiery-haired beauty with the face of a goddess and the soul of a warrior would risk everything to avenge the murder of her father. Even wed and bed her fiercest enemy.' " He lifted a brow. "Hell of a gal, that Katrina. And the hero's no slouch, either. 'Ian-he would never surrender. The bold and battle-scarred highland chief known as the Dark Lord would fight friend and foe to protect his land, and his woman. Sworn enemies, sworn lovers, they form an alliance that sweeps them toward destiny and into passion.' "
He flipped the book over to the front cover, reaching idly for a chip. "Pretty good, huh? And a fine-looking couple they are, too. See, it takes place in Scotland, twelfth century. Katrina's the only child of this widowed laird. He's let her run pretty wild, so she does a lot of guy stuff. Sword-play and archery, hunting. Then there's this evil plot and he's murdered, which makes her the laird and prey for the vicious and slightly insane villain. But our Katrina's no doormat." Brianna smiled, reached for Gray's hand. "You've read it?"
"I paged through it when I was waiting to pay for it. There's this incredibly erotic scene on page two fifty-one. Well, we'll work our way up to that. They're probably going to come in and check your blood pressure, and we don't want it elevated. Better get rid of the evidence here, too." He gathered up the wrappings from the smuggled dinner.
He'd barely hidden them in the bag when the door opened. Nurse Mannion, big as a halfback, bustled in. "Visiting hours are nearly over, Mr. Thane."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Now, Miss Concannon, how are we doing? Any dizziness, nausea, blurred vision?"
"No, not at all. I'm feeling fine, really. In fact, I was wondering if-"
"That's good, that's good." Nurse Mannion easily over-road the expected request to leave as she made notes on the chart at the foot of the bed. "You should try to sleep. We'll be checking on you through the night, every three hours." Still moving briskly, she set a tray on the table beside the bed.
Brianna only had to take one look to go pale. "What's that? I told you I feel fine. I don't need a shot. I don't want one. Grayson."
"I, ah-" One steely glance from Nurse Mannion had him fumbling in the role of hero.
"It's not a shot. We just need to draw a little blood."
"What for?" Abandoning any pretense of dignity, Brianna cringed back. "I lost plenty. lake some of that."
"No nonsense now. Give me your arm."
"Brie. Look here." Gray linked his fingers with hers. "Look at me. Did I ever tell you about the first time I went to Mexico? I hooked up with some people and went out on their boat. This was in the Gulf. It was really beautiful. Balmy air, crystal blue seas. We saw this little barracuda swimming along the port side."