“Lie down. I’m going to rub your feet.”
My nostrils flared. “Gross. No you’re not.”
An endearing little chuckle left his mouth. “I am. Now lay back and fucking relax, you stubborn-ass woman.”
“I’m not stubborn.” I huffed but appeased him by laying along the length of the couch and plopping my feet on his lap. I’d rather endure him touching my fucking feet than verbally spar.
I let out a surprised hum at the first pass of his thumb against the arch of my foot, and of course he grinned. “Feels nice, huh?”
I bit back a small smile. “Kinda.”
“Just kinda?”
“Yeah.” I stretched my toes wide and exhaled the slowest breath I’d released all day.
Each pass of his thumb relaxed my body further until I felt the first heavy waves of sleep begin to pull at me.
I jolted when Shaun’s hand wrapped around my ankle.
“Sorry,” he murmured. “Just changing over. Relax again, Hells. Go back to snoring a little.”
“The fuck I was.”
His low chuckle rolled over me. “You were. It was cute.”
Muttering my displeasure, I slung an arm over my eyes and let myself doze again.
“Magic fingers,” I murmured somewhere between levels of consciousness, causing another laugh from Shaun.
“You know it, Hallie.”
A knock on the door jarred me awake again and Shaun got up to answer it. The conversation with Mac was hushed and brief, and when he shut the door and returned to my side, he brought the smell of a hot meal with him.
“Mac just dropped off some food. You hungry?”
I lethargically shook my head, then slowly rose to my feet. “No, thanks. I’m heading to bed. You can see yourself out when you’re done.”
“Will do.” Despite that, Shaun followed me into the bedroom with the takeout containers.
I paused climbing between the sheets. “What are you doing?”
He sat on the other side of the large bed, put his feet up, and shuffled the pillow behind his back until it was just right.
Once settled, he looked at me with innocence. “Getting comfortable to eat my dinner.”
“Get the fuck out of my bed!” I exclaimed.
Releasing a hearty laugh was his only reply, along with a headshake.
I stood upright and slammed my hands onto my hips. “Shaun, I’m serious, get out.”
He snorted and pointed a plastic fork at me. “Get your ass in bed, Hallie. I’m staying because I know that, despite you denying it, you both want me to and need me to.”
My eyes narrowed into slits. “I hate you right now.”
“Sure,” he said around a mouthful of something that smelled succulent. “Let me get the lights.”
He was up from the bed before I could protest, then the lights in the living area went out. He hovered at the bedroom doorway until I was set, then appeared to have a thought. “Do you mind if I watch TV in here while I eat, and you sleep?”