Jesus.
“I’m fine, Rosalind,” Marisol told her. “Just a bee sting.”
Rosalind threw back her head and laughed. “A bee sting? Are you serious?”
Marisol wasn’t surprised at the laughter. It was a very Rosalind reaction to someone else’s misfortune or pain.
“Of course she’s serious. I don’t see how it’s something to laugh at,” Linc said stiffly.
“Oh.” Rosalind waved her hand through the air. “I know my reaction might seem callous, it’s just that Marisol is always hurting herself or getting ill. She’s a walking calamity. A bee sting is very minor to what I was imagining when I saw you carrying her.”
Rosalind gave him an admiring glance, her gaze eating him up. Marisol clenched her teeth together in reaction. She didn’t like Rosalind staring at him that way. Having a fiancé didn’t seem to stop her from sleeping around.
“You must be very strong to carry Marisol. She’s no lightweight. Why don’t you put her down, I’m sure she can walk the rest of the way. I’ll pour you a drink. You look like a scotch drinker.”
“Actually, I’m going to carry Marisol up to her room and make sure she has everything she needs. Then I have to get going.”
Rosalind sniffed, her face turning dark at the rejection. “Suit yourself. Try not to track dirt through my house.” She sneered at him. “I don’t want to be cleaning up after you.”
Like she did any cleaning anyway. Wisely, Marisol didn’t say anything. Linc dodged around her aunt and carried her up the stairs.
“My room is just down here.” She pointed to the far end of the hallway.
He carried her to the closed door that she pointed to, shuffling her weight around as he opened the door. She wondered what he thought of her room as he looked around. It was pretty bare. A double bed and closet. A small bookcase. Luckily her snuggly and Princess Nana were hidden away. She didn’t like leaving them out when she wasn’t home.
“I expected more books,” Linc teased. He set her on the bed and grabbed a pillow, waiting for her to get comfy before he set the pillow under her foot.
“We move around a lot so it’s not easy to bring piles of books with us. I had an eReader, but it broke so I’m back to paperbacks. Which is fine. I like reading from actual books too.”
Stop talking about reading, you’re probably boring him to tears.
But when she looked up at him, all she could see on his face was warm concern. “What can I get you? Water? Snacks?”
“I’ve got some water here.” She picked up the bottle of water she normally always kept on her nightstand. “And I have a couple of snacks in my bag.” She set her bag down on the floor next to the bed.
“Will your aunt bring you up some dinner?”
Drat. How to answer that without lying?
“Never mind, I can tell by the look on your face that she won’t. I should have just taken you with me to my place.” He ran his hand through his hair, looking worried.
“I’ll be fine, really. I’m sure the swelling will have gone down by dinnertime anyway.”
He shook his head.
“Linc, I’ll be fine. I promise.”
“I don’t like leaving you.”
“I know. Thank you for caring.”
He gave her a surprised look. “Of course I care. What time do you usually have dinner?”
“Around six.”
“Fine. I’m going to text you at five-thirty to make sure the swelling has gone down. If it hasn’t, I’ll find a way to get some dinner to you. All right?”
She wasn’t s