I sprint out back, door crashing behind me. I’m already on the lawn by the time she drops to all fours.
“Sasha!”
She doesn’t respond. From the way she’s bent though, head almost touching the dirt, it can’t be good.
I reach her side in a few seconds, and breathe a sigh of relief when she turns her head, at least far enough to study my shoes.
“I…” She shakes her head, probably smearing dirt across her forehead, since it’s still pressed against the ground.
“Come here.” I bend and scoop her up easily, all in one motion. Christ, the girl weighs almost nothing. When was the last time she had a decent meal?
Now I sound like a damn grandmother. What is this woman doing to me?
“What happened?” I ask, cradling her against my chest. “Look at me, Sasha.”
Her head is swaying, and when she does look up, her eyes are unfocused, sliding across my face before she zeroes in on my eyes and blinks.
“I… don’t know…”
“Do you feel dizzy? Lightheaded? Describe the symptoms to me.”
“I… Yeah, dizzy,” she admits.
I’m already striding toward the house, carrying her as fast as my legs will move. “Have you eaten something today? Drank any water?”
“Um…” She bites her lip. “Breakfast. And…”
“When was the last time you had water?” I prompt.
“I… don’t know.”
I heave a sigh. “You need to stay hydrated if you’re going to spend all day out in the sun playing at farmhand, City Girl.”
A small smile tugs at the corner of her lips at that nickname. Good. Smiling is good. Understanding jokes is good. “My bad. Forgot… We don’t have… Water in the city.”
I laugh at that even as I shoulder our way through the back door.
When we get inside the house, she swings her legs a little. “I can stand…”
“No way.” I breeze right through the kitchen, bypassing the living room, which only has a couple of armchairs, not anything you can really lie down on. I carry her straight into the bedroom and lay her down on the bed, taking care not to jostle her too much on the way down.
“Really, I’m fine,” she protests as soon as I’ve got her lying flat. She tries to sit up but I can tell from the way that her eyes slide in and out of focus that she’s bullshitting me.
“You’re not fine.” I catch her shoulders and gently press her back down onto the bed. “Promise me you won’t try to sit up while I get you water.”
She heaves a sigh but catches my eye, and something in my look must tell her I’m serious. “I promise,” she accedes.
Only then do I slip out of the room to go and fill her a huge glass of water. When I get back, my shoulders relax a little, seeing that she’s still awake, alert, and not trying to sit up or push me on this anymore. I sit on the edge of the bed and slide a hand between her shoulder blades—ignoring the pang that this intimate contact sends straight to my groin. It’s not the time.
I hold her upright, just far enough to drink. She takes a huge gulp at first, but I pull the cup away from her lip. “Small sips,” I say. “At least until the first wave of dizziness passes.”
She takes a couple of sips, then I help her lie back down and set the glass on the nightstand. Sasha heaves another sigh, this one the type of sigh I recognize. She’s frustrated.
“I was trying to help,” she says, her voice small, annoyed with herself. “I can work, you know. I’m not some completely spoiled brat.”
“I know that.” I’m standing again, because I don’t trust myself lingering here next to her for too long. If I hang around and watch her lying across this bed, it won’t be long before I start picturing other ways the two of us could sprawl across it. And that will only lead to trouble.
Trouble for her.
And probably for me too, since then I’ll have fucked my business partner.
“You need to be careful,” I tell her. “Take care of yourself. Don’t push too hard. Even if you can work, your body isn’t used to this pace.”
She nods a little, mouth pursed.
I glance past her at the window. “Catch some rest,” I tell her. “It’s getting late anyway. I’ll finish the roof, then make us some dinner. Sound good?”
She bites her lip. “You don’t have to take care of me.”
“I know,” I reply. I’m out of the room before she can say anything else.
I don’t have to. Doesn’t mean I won’t, at least when she’s like this.
City Girl is in way over her head here.
6
Sasha Bluebell
How fucking embarrassing. First I go and faint in front of Grant. Then he forces me to let him carry me inside and take care of me…