Fletcher nodded. “I didn’t know what to do. And I figured of all the people in the world, he would. I also knew he would pick up my call.”
“How did you know he would pick up your call?”
“He’s been texting since we left Vegas. Just checking to see that you’re okay.”
She nodded. “He texted me too.”
Fletcher’s head came up. He frowned. “He did? What did he say?”
She shook her head. “Just I’m sorry. I texted back that I’m doing great and everything worked out. And that was it. I haven’t heard from him again.”
Neither of them said anything for a moment. Then she said, “Thank you for calling him.”
Fletcher lifted a brow. “Thank you?”
“Yes. I know that was hard for you. I know how much you love to be the one with all the answers and the one fixing things for me and asking for help is a big deal. To ask for help from Jason, of all people, is a huge deal. But having Gatorade last night and the burger today,” she glanced at the peanut butter cups and then down at the coffee. “And the chocolate and caffeine at exactly the right time, and now the peppermint oil for massage later, is all perfect. And I really appreciate you being willing to do that for me.”
Emotions flickered across Fletcher’s face, but he took a step forward and met her gaze directly. “I will always do anything for you, Jordan.”
She believed that to her very bones.
“Okay, I’ll meet you on the couch,” Jordan said. “You bring the pizza and massage oil and wings and cheesy bread and…” She laughed. “You bring everything and I’ll meet you down there.”
“Perfect.”
He turned away and Jordan lifted the cup to her lips. But rather than leaving the room and going to hunt and gather her pizza and cheesy bread, he began unbuttoning his shirt. He shrugged out of it and tossed it into the hamper and Jordan swallowed coffee down the wrong pipe. She started coughing, which wasn’t great for the tiny lingering ache at the back of her head. But it did cause him to turn back.
Fletcher looked great from behind. He had a great ass, trim waist, and hard back and upper shoulder muscles defined by doing manual construction labor with his brother all summer long. But from the front, he was downright drool worthy. Hard six-pack abs, a light dusting of hair over his chest that narrowed to a line down the center of his flat belly. And a line between the tan skin on top and the lighter skin below his waistband that teased her as his pants lifted and lowered on his hips as he moved.
His hands were on his belt buckle as he frowned and asked, “Are you okay?”
“Didn’t know I was getting a strip show,” she said, coughing again and clearing her throat. “But please continue. That’s definitely making me feel better.”
He cocked an eyebrow and unbuckled his belt. “You’re not really feeling that much better.”
It wasn’t quite a question, but she could tell he was curious.
In spite of her headache, she flushed and felt her heart start to race. “I do believe there is some research out there about endorphins and pain and orgasms,” she said.
“I’m going to need citations for your work, Mrs. Landry,” Fletcher said with a half-grin. He crossed to the dresser and pulled open a drawer. He grabbed a T-shirt and shorts, closed the drawer, and headed into the bathroom. The door swung shut behind him.
“Chicken,” she called.
He didn’t respond. But she was grinning when he came back out.
“Move your sweet ass to the couch, and I’ll be back soon with supplies,” Fletcher told her. “And get rid of all the dirty thoughts. I’m going to give you a massage with peppermint oil and it’s only going to be for your headache.”
That was truly all she wanted. It was probably all she was really up for tonight. But she loved being able to tease. This was a new layer to her relationship with Fletcher. Just like him witnessing all the stages of her migraine.
In spite of being friends for so long, it seemed they had plenty of things they still needed to learn.
She made it to the couch and finished her coffee as well as several peanut butter cups by the time Fletcher got home. He’d come with everything she’d asked for plus a giant chocolate chip cookie. They ate and watched a movie, propped up on opposite ends of the couch. It was exactly like so many other nights they’d spent, but it felt very different. It wasn’t just the ring on her left hand, which she twirled as she thought about everything. It was the fact that they were getting closer, something she hadn’t realized they needed to do.
As the movie credits rolled, Fletcher cleaned up all of the boxes, napkins, and paper plates. When he came back to the couch, he had a tiny brown bottle with him. He handed it over.
“Is this right?”
She looked at the label. It was massage oil with peppermint essential oil added. It would be perfect.
She nodded. “Exactly right.”
“Okay, show me what to do.”
“Come sit behind me.” She scooted forward on the couch cushion so that he could slide in behind her.
His back was to the arm of the couch, one long leg stretched along the length of the cushions, and his other foot rested on the floor. She sat between his legs, leaning into his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, resting his hands on her belly. His chin rested on her shoulder.
“This is nice,” his low voice rumbled near her ear.
A tiny shiver of pleasure danced down her arm and she nodded. “It is.” She let her head tip back on his shoulder and her eyes slid shut.
“But I can’t reach your shoulders like this,” he said. His big hands rubbed up and down her arms.
Even that felt soothing and warm.
After a few seconds she took a deep breath and then leaned away from him. She pulled her knees up and wrapped her arms around her lower legs, causing her shoulders to curl forward. She rested her forehead on her knees.
“Now you can reach.”
He ran his hands up and down her back and she sighed with pleasure. He slid one hand under the bottom of her shirt, running his palm up her bare back. Oh, that was even better.
“Hang on.” She sat up and stripped her shirt off. The t-shirt she’d been wearing was loose and she did not have a bra on. The fewer things squeezing and rubbing on her skin when she didn’t feel well the better.
Fletcher groaned behind her.
She looked over her shoulder. “You had to know the massage oil would go on bare skin.”
“Yeah, I should have known that,” he agreed.
Jordan laughed. “You really didn’t?”
“I didn’t really think about it.” He put a hot hand on her back, just resting it there. “I was just focused on there being something I could do. I didn’t think any further than getting the oil and making sure it was right.”
“You said you talked to Jason last night,” she said as a thought occurred to her. “Did you talk to him today too?”
“Texted him. He sent me a photo of the stuff you usually use. But Mitch knew this place where they do essential oils and stuff and he said he checked there first.”
“And you were annoyed when he didn’t get exactly what I usually have, right?” She knew that was the case.