She scrubbed her hand down her face. “Yeah, but not after I drink half a bottle of wine and sleep on the couch.”
I leaned forward and rested my arms on my knees. “A little hungover?”
She held up her finger and thumb pinched together. “Just a smidge.”
“Tell ya what. You help me get into this chair and I’ll get you some Tylenol and make you something to eat.”
Her eyes popped open. “Uh, how are you going to do that?”
“Same as I always used to.”
She rolled her eyes. “I think you can handle the Tylenol, but I’m not too sure about you cooking.”
“And why is that?” I demanded. I wasn’t a gourmet chef, but I could handle scrambling eggs and making toast.
“Can you even reach the stove in your chair?”
Well, hell. “You might be right about that.”
Another reason why I hate this damn chair.
“I can get breakfast, Roc. It’s really not a big deal.” She moved to stand but I laid a hand on her arm.
“Wait. I can make something else. Something that is amazing.”
I wanted to make her breakfast. She had been waiting on me hand and foot, and the least I could do was pull something together for her to eat.
She raised an eyebrow. “Can I ask what the something is?”
A huge smile spread across my lips. “Cereal.”
*
Mave
“Gotta admit, that was the best bowl of cereal I have ever had.”
“It was the bananas, wasn’t it?” Roc dropped his spoon in his bowl with a satisfied smile on his lips.
“The bananas totally put it over the top.” I grabbed both of our bowls, dropped them in the sink, and snagged the pot of coffee to refill our cups. “So, what were you wanting to do today?”
Rock rolled back from the kitchen table and over to the patio window. “Well, seeing how it’s raining right now and I don’t think it’s going to change much, I thought maybe we could watch a couple episodes.”
I chuckled and nodded. “I think we can do that.” I set the coffeepot back under the coffee maker. “First, let’s get you changed and then I need to shower and change.”
“Hop to it, Doc.” Roc headed in the direction of his room, and I followed behind. He was really getting good at getting around the house.
“So now you really get what binge watching means, right?” I laughed.
“I see the benefits of it when you don’t have anything to do. Not sure I’ll be binge watching when I’m back on the road with the team, but it serves its purpose now.”
I grabbed a t-shirt and tossed it at Roc. I had woken up sleeping on his bare chest and then had to watch him make breakfast with no shirt on. I had taken all I could. The man needed to put a shirt on or I wasn’t going to be held responsible for what I did.
“Put that on. I think your shorts are good since we put them on last night after you got out of the bath.”
Roc pulled the shirt over his head and chuckled. His head popped out of the shirt, and he had a huge smile on his face. “Are my bulging muscles too much for you, Doc?”
“Yes.” I figured there wasn’t any sense in lying. “You’re the only person I know who can lay around for a week and still be all toned and…well…”
“I’m not putting my arms in the shirt until you finish that sentence.”
I cleared my throat and pressed my hand to my mouth. “Hot,” I mumbled.
Roc put his hand to his ear and leaned toward me. “I didn’t hear that, Doc.”
I shook my head and darted out of his room. “I gotta shower, Roc. Holler if you need me for anything.”
I jogged up the stairs with Roc hollering at me. Nope, I was not going to be that easy.
“You’re gonna tell me what you said.”
“Maybe someday,” I called back.
I ducked into my room and slammed the door shut behind me. I was running scared from a man like I was fifteen years old.
Lord help me, but the grumpy man was making me feel things I hadn’t felt in a while, and it was absolutely terrifying.
*
Chapter Twelve
Roc
“You got a little something.” Mave motioned to her chin.
I swiped at my face with a napkin. “That’s when you know the ribs are good.”
“When you’re wearing them?” Mave laughed and leaned back in her chair. She rested her hands on her stomach and sighed.
“Full, Doc?”
She nodded. “I am, but I also spotted pecan pie on the menu. Split a piece with me? I can never say no to pie. Especially pecan.”
I was full to the brim, but I was learning I couldn’t say no to Mave. No matter what it was.
We had spent a good four hours at the car museum where Mave asked fifty million questions and I had been more than happy to answer all of them. We had gotten a late start to the day and didn’t have enough time to go to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but Mave had spotted a barbeque joint on the way back home she insisted we needed to stop at.
“Only if you get it with ice cream,” I countered.
She moaned and nodded. “Is there any other way to order pie?”
I flagged down the waitress and waited for her to come over.
“How’s it going over here?” she asked.
“Amazing. Probably some of the best barbeque we’ve ever had.”
“For me, it was,” Mave piped in. “Roc travels the country so I’m sure he’s had some pretty good barbeque before, but it was the best I’ve had. Ever.”
The waitress laughed and cleared away our plates. “Is there anything else I can get you two?”
“Pecan pie,” Mave replied without hesitation.
“With vanilla ice cream,” I added.
“She probably thinks we’re bottomless pits,” Mave laughed.
I shrugged and rested my arm on the table. “I’m sure we’re not the only ones who ate ‘til we were stuffed.”
Mave toyed with her napkin and sighed. “So, are you excited for tomorrow?”
“Grilling out?” I asked.
She nodded. “Uh, yeah.”
“I guess so? I mean, it’s not like we’re having a crap ton of people over. It’s just the crew.”
“I’m still not sure we have enough food,” she hemmed.
“Doc, I promise we have more than enough food.”
We had spent two hours at the big warehouse store buying everything. A huge nine hundred dollar dent into my credit card later and we were headed home with enough food to feed an army, four brand new patio chairs, an outdoor speaker, and a portable fire pit.
“I just think maybe we should stop on the way home for more hot dogs.”
The waitress came over with two pieces of pecan pie and ice cream.
Mave’s eyes bugged out of her head when the huge piece of pie was set in front of her. “Uh, maybe we should have told her we only wanted one piece,” she whispered when the waitress walked away.
I dumped the ice cream from mine onto her plate and set my piece of pie to the side. I could eat a shit ton of food, but even I had my limits. “We’ll take that piece home.”