Page 116 of Chasing Caine
“One of? So there are more?”
She chuckled once and sucked in a breath, bringing her free hand to her head by the stitches.
My heart ached each time she made that face. I needed to be more serious. “Do you want to nap?”
“No. Since you’re forcing me to stay another day—” She smirked and flicked her eyes toward me, then back up to the ceiling. “I think I’d like to spend the day talking.”
“About what?”
“Everything. Do you remember living in Brenton when you were little? What was it like growing up in Rome? Who was your best friend in fifth grade? Favorite holiday memory?”
“So literally everything?”
She removed her fingers from my grasp and rolled onto her side facing me, tucking one arm under her pillow. Her left leg, injured ankle and all, rose to rest on my hip. She was still for a moment, eyes crinkled, mouth pursed. Likely fighting through a wave of nausea or pain. “Maybe it’s notjustwhen I move fast.”
“Believe it or not…” I ran my fingers along her arm, unsure what else to do but what I did best. Talk. “I would say Mario was my best friend in grade five. There was also a boy who lived close to us named… allora… I can’t remember his name. But he moved to Roma from Berlin that year and he taught me my first German.”
Her eyes remained closed. “You speak German?”
“Sì, not as proficiently as English, of course, but well enough.”
“This is going to take a long time, isn’t it?”
“What is?”
“Getting to know each other.”
“We have all the time in the world.” My hand skimmed along her side, down her narrow waist and hips, along the strong thigh. “Is there anything else big you have yet to tell me?”
“Like that I was in the FBI?” Her eyes finally opened again, those beautiful pale green eyes.
“More along the lines of you not liking flowers. What woman doesn’t like flowers?”
She stilled, breathing deeply through her nose.
“Scusami. No jokes.”
“They’re beautiful, but they die too fast.”
I brought my hand up to brush her cheek. “And you prefer things that last?”
“Experiences over things.”
“I love this idea.” I leaned in to kiss her nose. “The last ten days have certainly been an experience.”
“No kidding.” She rolled onto her back again, groaning quietly.
“You need a nap.”
“I think so.”
I moved the tray to my desk, pulled back the covers and picked her up, placing her on the sheets.
“I can do this myself,” she said while stifling a yawn.
“Let me help.” I undid the buttons at her waist and eased down her shorts and underwear, kissing her abdomen before stripping them off. “You’ll be more comfortable like this and I’ll feel like I’ve accomplished something.”
She didn’t argue when I pulled her shirt and bra off, nor when I kissed her neck as I did.