Chapter 8
eight
Emma
I must be dreaming. It’s the best freaking dream of my life.
The last thing I want to do is open my eyes and have it all disappear.
Asher’s hand is resting on my stomach, the weight of his arm pushing me into the bed.
He’s pressed tightly against my back, and his hard dick is rubbing against my butt cheeks.
If I wiggle, will it slide between my legs?
I’m more turned on than I’ve ever been. I want to beg him to make love to me.
It’s my dream. I can do what I want, right?
Except my annoying bladder decides I need to go now, and quickly. I realize it’s not a dream at all.
Asher’s hand is resting on my stomach—probably why I need to go so badly—his heavy arm is pressing me into the bed.
Heat radiates along my skin everywhere he’s touching, and nope, I didn’t imagine the hard cock rubbing against my butt, either.
Good gravy. How did this even happen? I made sure I was all the way on the edge of my side. Now I’m somewhere in the middle.
This should not be happening. Remembering the events of yesterday makes me wince.
I wish that yesterday was the dream. Asher is a stranger, a grumpy one at that, and definitely not my type—do I even have a type?
Not that it matters. I’m here for one reason: the mountain sweet pitcher plants.
But I’m not going to lie. This is like experiencing one of my fantasies.
When else would I meet someone like Asher? Never.
The only thing that would make it better is if he’d turn me over, kiss me until I’m dizzy, and make love to me until I’m screaming his name. Gee, Em, you need to cut back on the romance novels.
Besides, the last thing I should be doing is lying here fantasizing about Asher.
He’s not my boyfriend. He’s not my anything.
I need to keep my distance. Who knows the next time he’ll go all grump-meister on me.
For now, I’ll settle for slipping out from under his arm and finding a way out of this enormous bed.
The last thing I need is to have an accident.
How mortifying would that be? Like him helping me use the bathroom last night wasn’t bad enough.
“What’s got you thinking so loud, Raindrop?” he asks, his voice rough from sleep.
Fudgsicles. He’s awake. “Morning. I didn’t mean to wake you, but I need to use the bathroom.”
Thank goodness he can’t see my face, or he’d know exactly what I was thinking.
The last thing I want to talk about is the elephant in the room, or maybe the elephant’s trunk would be a better description.
I’m an educated woman. I’ve had boyfriends.
Okay, one boyfriend. But I know about morning wood.
What’s rubbing against me is more like a whole tree, though.
Finally, the arm moves as he turns onto his back.
I want to roll over and look at him since I was almost asleep by the time he came to bed last night.
Now that I’ve felt all his yummy muscles, I’d love to see them.
But then he’d also see me. That bumfuzzle I dated loved to tell me how much of a mess I was in the morning.
No, thank you. I’d rather avoid any further embarrassment.
I’ll just slither my way out of bed and take care of business.
“What did I tell you last night?” he grumbles.
“You said lots of things. Which one are you referring to?” I don’t have to see Asher to know he’s making that grouchy face. Maybe if I annoy him enough, he’ll let me go back to my tent. I can figure out how to get around on my own. I did after all the surgeries. I can do it now.
“Spankings are still an option, Raindrop. You know damn well I told you to wake me if you needed to go.”
Rather than answer him, I push up with my hands and wince. Frack. I forgot about the cuts and scrapes on my palms. It’s okay, I can deal with it.
“Stop right there. I’m not kidding. Doc said you’re not to put any weight on that foot for at least forty-eight hours.”
“Fine. But I need to go. Now.”
I swear he’s laughing at me as the bed shakes, or it could just be him getting up. I need to fix my hair, which has fallen the rest of the way out of my ponytail and is probably a knotted mess. Oh well, I’m here to work, not win a beauty pageant.
“C’mon, Raindrop. Let’s get you to the toilet.
” His warm hands wrap around my waist. He lifts me as if I weigh nothing.
I should freak out that he’s touching my bare butt, but I feel safer now than I have since I was a child.
And this is why I need to get away from him.
My ankle hurts like a thunder nugget, but falling for Asher would be so much worse.
After he puts me on the toilet, he turns on the faucet.
“I’ll be outside. Call me when you’re done.” Then he steps out and pulls the door closed behind him.
It doesn’t take me long to finish, and I’m so tempted to clean myself up and walk over to the sink.
The threat of a spanking makes me hesitate.
I’m intrigued, especially after reading countless scenes in books, but do I really want to test it out?
He’ll probably break my butt. Playing it safe is probably for the best right now.
Sighing, I admit there is some perverse part of me that likes him taking care of me. “Ashbear, I’m done.”
When Asher opens the door, he gives me that half-smirk-smile thing he has going on. But what kills me is when he says, “Good girl.”
Every time he uses those two words, I get wet.
It’s like some weird Pavlovian response, but only with him.
I wonder if I banged my head when I fell?
There’s no other plausible explanation. I’m a scientist, a nerd, and proud of it.
I don’t believe in all that instant love stuff.
Attraction—pheromones—sure. But what Asher does to me is unlike anything I’ve felt before, and not just in my girly parts.
My cheeks flame red when I hand him the toilet paper, and he cleans me up. Then sits me on the counter again and washes both our hands. Just like last night, he adds toothpaste and hands me the toothbrush. When I’m done, he wets a washcloth and cleans my face.
We feel like a couple getting ready in the morning, standing side-by-side, brushing our teeth and washing up. It’s like I’ve fallen through some wormhole to another dimension. Asher’s even being kind of sweet this morning, at least compared to yesterday.
As I try to untangle my hair with my fingertips, he gently pushes my hand away. “Would you like me to do your hair?” He holds up the elastic I must have lost in the bed and pulls a hairbrush out of a drawer in the vanity.
“It’s all knotty. Are you sure you want to deal with it?”
“Mine gets the same way. The only reason it’s not right now is that I dried it after my shower last night. I can even braid it if you’d like.”
Knowing I can’t do it myself, or at least not without arguing with him over it, I nod. “As long as you don’t mind. Thank you.”
“I wouldn’t have offered if I did. I rarely do anything I don’t want to. Just ask my brothers.” His toothy smile turns my insides to goo, and I think I melt a little on the counter.
I watch our reflection in the mirror as he brushes my hair into sections.
Once it’s smooth, he pulls it into a ponytail.
It reminds me of when I was little and my mom would brush my hair before school.
The memory brings tears to my eyes, but I don’t let them fall.
I miss my parents so much. There have been so many times over the last year that I have picked up the phone to call them, only to realize they aren’t here anymore.
“Now your hair won’t keep falling into your face. I have a surprise for you.”
His voice pulls me out of my memories. “A surprise? Do you have a wand that will miraculously heal me so I can get back to work?”
“Nope, sorry. Not that kind of a surprise.” He picks me up and carries me back into the bedroom and sets me on the bed.
“You got my stuff? Wait, how?”
“Aaron and Aaric went and packed up your camp. They loaded it into your car and drove it over here. Not that you’ll be driving anytime soon. But I figured you’d appreciate having your own clothes.”
“They packed it all up? What about my research?”
“You’ll still be able to do it. I’ll just bring you to the plants. But not for the next four, at least. We’ll see how your ankle looks after that. Remember, you’re not on a two-week limit anymore.”
“Well, yes and no. I am scheduled to defend my dissertation just under three weeks from now. I have it mostly ready except for my on-site research.”
“I’ll help you. You’ll get it all done, I promise. Let me worry about getting you there and back. All you need to think about is collecting your data.”
I want to believe him, but so far nothing is going right. And now I need to rely on him until I can walk again. Using crutches to traipse through the forest is no one’s idea of a good time.
“I’m sorry, I’m not trying to be ungrateful.
I really do appreciate them taking the time to get my stuff, and everything you’re doing.
But this isn’t how it’s supposed to be. I’ve waited a year to get permission for this trip, and now it’s turned into a total mess.
” Ducking my head, I blink away my tears.
I’m not a crier usually. Why am I so emotional?
He lifts my chin with his finger. “Emma, look at me.” Dang it. He’s so dominant when he uses that deep voice.
When I meet his piercing gaze, I get lost in his chocolate-brown eyes. The grumpy bear from yesterday has changed into a big teddy bear today.
Asher sits on the bed and pulls me onto his lap. It’s the most natural thing in the world for me to rest my head on his shoulder. I relax and inhale his woodsy scent. It’s sinful that he smells so good.
“Listen to me, Raindrop. I promise you, you’ll have whatever you need. I can’t apologize enough for what happened yesterday. So let me make it up to you. By the way, this is me groveling. Okay?”
I smile at the thought of him groveling. “Okay. Thank you.”
“Good, now let’s get you dressed. Then it’s breakfast and relaxing today. Although I’m sure we’ll have company, whether we want it or not.”
When his soft lips press against my forehead, I can’t help but wonder how they’d feel against my mouth. And as our eyes meet, I wonder if he’s thinking the same thing.