27. Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Six
Rory
A fter having lunch with Lola again and gossiping about the guy she went on a date with the other night, I finally gather up the courage to go back into Jaylen's room now that his family has left.
Just go in there, get him to do some stretches, and then get out of there.
Keep it professional, don't think about the kiss, and you'll be fine.
I repeat what I have to do inside my head about five times before I take a deep breath and open the door, letting myself in to his room.
As soon as he smiles at me, and that cute dimple appears on his face, I know I'm screwed.
"What is it that I need to do today, darling?"
His voice stirs something inside of me.
My stomach swoops, my heart beats faster, and the blood running through my veins seems to turn to fire.
I clear my throat, avoid eye contact with him and keep myself a few feet away from his hospital bed, hoping the physical distance between us will keep my emotional and mental reaction to him at bay.
"We need to do some more stretches today," I tell him, mindlessly grabbing the chart from his bed and flicking through it as if I don't know everything that's written there already .
He groans loudly and whips the cotton cover off his legs, revealing the hospital gown and dark blue boxers he's wearing beneath.
My eyes dart away from him instantly as a blush creeps onto my cheeks.
"Sorry, my bad. Didn't realise the gown had ridden up," he states, amusement evident in his tone.
"It's okay," I mutter, hesitantly looking back him and breathing a sigh of relief when I see his gown is now pulled back down, covering him.
"Glad to see I can still make you blush, though."
A smile tugs at my lips but repeat what I'm meant to be doing in my head again, distracting myself from the very alluring man in front of me who seems adamant to break my facade.
"So, you've been doing gentle, controlled mobility stretches lately, and because your tolerance has obviously improved and you seem to be flying through your recovery, we're going to work on range of motion and strengthening exercises today."
"I'm not sure I like this," he grumbles.
"That's shocking because you've been doing a lot of exercises by yourself that you shouldn't even be doing yet," I shoot back at him.
"I wasn't on about that," he states. "I don't like when you're being all professional with me."
His frown seems to pull at something inside my chest, and I feel a small amount of guilt slither through my body.
"Besides, these exercises are pretty pointless considering I was literally walking in here earlier with a little bit of help. "
"You done what?" I turn to him with wide eyes. "You definitely shouldn't be trying to do that yet! You could seriously hurt yourself, Jaylen."
He smirks at me.
"You worried about me, darling?"
I huff and shake my head.
"You're relentless."
"I'm just trying to get to the truth about why you stopped our kiss yesterday and why you've been avoiding me since," he says, sitting up in his bed.
He rolls his wrists, stretches his arms out, lifts them up and bends them again.
"Full range of motion, and no pain doing it," he states. "I can do the same with my legs if I really have to. Or we could get to the important topic at hand and talk about you being worried that I'm going to get hurt if you let yourself feel something for me."
"Are you always this perceptive?"
"Yes, and it's as annoying for me as it is for other people sometimes. Now, don't try and change the subject. Talk to me Rory." His gaze burns into mine, and his hand locks around my wrist, gently tugging me towards his bed. "Please."
The softness of his voice breaks through my defences and my shoulders slump in defeat.
"I was telling the truth when I said I was worried about my job," I tell him. "But you're right in saying that isn't the only reason I'm afraid of getting closer to you."
"Care to elaborate for me?"
"I'm scared, Jaylen. "
"Scared of what?" he asks, interlocking our fingers and squeezing my hand.
"Everything," I mutter. "I'm afraid of you getting hurt. I'm scared of myself getting hurt. I have a gut feeling that something terrible is bound to happen if we continue the way we are, and I would never forgive myself if I was the reason you ended up hurt or in trouble."
He reaches forward, cupping my face between his hands, and his thumb gently strokes my cheek.
"Personally, I think you're worrying over nothing, but your feelings are valid and if you want to take a step back then I respect that." When my eyes connect with his, he smiles. "One thing I can guarantee you right now though, is that you won't get hurt. Not by me, or anyone else."
"You can't know that for sure."
"Yes, I can, because I won't let anything bad happen to you ever again, Rory."
My heart is in my throat, and tears are threatening to drip from my eyes.
"You don't always have to be in protective mode, you know?"
"I don't really know how to turn it off," he says, chuckling.
I place my hand against his and gently pull them away from my face, keeping hold of them as I place them on the bed between us.
"I don't want or need you to be a protector for me, Jaylen. I can look after myself just fine."
"I don't doubt that at all, but it's always good to have some extra protection. Especially when you live a life like mine. "
"But I don't live a life like yours," I tell him, watching my fingers run across the back of his hands so that I don't have to look at him in case he can sense that I'm telling a little white lie.
"But you have," he states, shocking me to the bone.
My fingers pause their movements, and I'm certain my heart freezes inside my chest.
"I'm not prodding for information, I'm just making an observation," he says gently, covering my hands with his.
When I remain silent for a few more minutes, he sighs.
"Did you bring fizzy rainbow belts?"
My gaze flicks to meet his and he winks at me.
"You said you'd sneak me some, and if you did, then I'll share them with you. I don't usually share with anyone, but I'll make an exception for you."
The corners of my mouth turn up, thankful that he's once again realised I was getting uncomfortable and started shutting down therefore, he's given me an out by changing the subject.
"Well, I can't turn you down then, can I?"
He laughs and leans over the table beside his bed.
"Let's be honest, you wouldn't dream of turning me down, darling."
No, I wouldn't, because I've grown to love spending time with him.
"Well, I'll go and get the sweets from my locker then."