“Nah. That’s what friends are for.”
“Is that what we are? Friends?”
“I’d like to think so,” he said. “I mean, I don’t save a bar stool for anyone else.”
“Thanks. I appreciate everything you’ve done for me and my dad.”
“Don’t think twice about it. Now close your eyes and get some sleep. You need it.” He ignored the voice in the back of his head that told him that kissing her would be a mistake. It was just a little peck on her cheek. It meant nothing and at the same time it meant everything. “Good night,” he whispered as he closed his eyes.
This wasn’t the time to go making a pass at Paget. But he would be there for her, and when the time was right, he’d make his feelings known.
2
Paget stepped from her father’s room and let out a long sigh. She bent over, gripping her knees. A wave of nausea hit her like a tidal wave. It came out of nowhere and without warning.
“Are you okay?” a familiar deep voice asked.
She cringed as she stiffened her spine. “I’m fine.” She locked gazes with Steven, who sported his uniform.
He rested one hand on the butt of his weapon all cop-like. “I’m so sorry about your dad.”
“Thanks.”
“What can I do?”
She shook her head. “There isn’t anything anyone can do,” she said. “But thanks for asking.”
Steven reached out and squeezed her forearm. “You’re not alone in this. Let me take care of you.”
Bile smacked the back of her throat. The last thing she needed was Steven all up in her junk trying to make things easier for her when all he ever did was make her want to climb out of her skin. “Stop,” she said firmly. “Just stop it right now. I’m not your girlfriend.”
“Okay.” He held up his hands as if someone were waving a gun at him. “But you were once, and I still care about you and your dad.”
“If I need something, I’ll call you, okay? Otherwise, please, give me some space.” She turned on her heel and quickly turned the corner, walking right into a sturdy body. “Shit,” she mumbled. “Sorry.”
“No worries.” Boone took her by the biceps. “I’ve got two cups of what a vending machine calls coffee and a couple of pastries in the waiting room.” He looped his arm around her waist. “I overheard you and your boyfriend talking.”
She let out a puff of air. “Stop calling him that. It makes me nuts.”
“You have made it clear to him, so he should get the hint.”
“But he never does.” Paget took the cup of coffee Boone offered and blew into the dark liquid. It smelled like tar and tasted like nothing she’d ever experienced before. Words couldn’t describe the slop, but it had caffeine and Lord knows she needed it. She leaned against the table in the center of the waiting room, trying not to stare at the sofa they shared last night.
Waking in his arms had been a dream come true, even if the circumstances had been dismal. When the nurse nudged her at five in the morning, he’d been the one to gently slip from the couch, helping her to her feet and guiding her to her father’s room. Boone had been exactly what she’d needed and everything she’d been avoiding her entire life.
“How’s your dad feeling this morning?” Boone asked as he raked a hand through his way-too-sexy morning hair. His wavy locks fell just above his shoulders, bouncing like a shampoo commercial, which was totally unfair because he had better hair than she did.
“He’s struggling to express himself, and that just makes him angry, and then there’s the fact he can’t really move his left side, but the nurses are really great at calming him down. They do better than me, and I’ll need to learn from them.”
“How long is he going to have to stay here?”
“A few more days.” This was going to cost a small fortune. One she couldn’t afford. Her father’s insurance would only cover so much. And it wasn’t just the hospital stay, but the required therapy and home health care that could potentially break the bank. If she had any doubt about selling her cabin, it was gone. She’d have to list it as soon as possible and hopefully she could sell it quickly.
And quietly.
The last thing she needed was for her bosses to hear what was going on. All the Whiskey siblings were generous with their time and money, and she didn’t want their charity. She couldn’t cope with that. Not now. Not ever. No matter how well-meaning they were, she needed to stand on her own two feet, and she knew what it would do to her father’s pride if outsiders had their fingers in any aspect of his business.
He struggled enough with accepting help from his own daughter.
All she had to do was take care of things, like selling her place, while her dad was in the hospital, before he had a chance to catch wind of it, or he’d find a way to put a stop to it.
She’d just have to price it where someone thought it was the deal of the century and maybe list it with the furniture included.
“That should give you enough time to prep the house for his return. At least the master is on the first floor. That will help.”
She set the Styrofoam mug on the table and rubbed her temples. “I’m going to have to take some time off work to do this, and I’m not sure I can afford to do that right now. We have some new horses coming in, and finances are tight.” Fuck, she didn’t mean to say that out loud. The last thing she needed was for him to know the full extent of her issues.
“I can help out around your dad’s house. I don’t do much during the day, and I have a really good staff at the bar. I can sneak in and out. So put me to work.”
“I can’t ask you to do that.” She shook her head adamantly. Boone had managed to worm his way into her life in an accepted manner. She wasn’t sure when he’d become an integral part of her life, but she couldn’t remember the last time a day had gone by when she hadn’t seen his face.
“That’s what friends are for, remember?”
She should tell him to go. To leave her and her dad alone. Her father had raised her to be independent and to rely on no one but herself. She’d come a long way from a ranch hand mucking stalls at the age of sixteen, working minimum wage. Working hard had paid off, and she didn’t need anyone. She could figure this out on her own.
“You’ve been really great. And last night, well, that was really sweet, and I’ll never be able to repay you for that. But I can’t ask you to give up your days to help me or my dad through this. It’s going to be a long road, and it’s going to require more than chatting about history and the occasional mowing of the lawn.”
He closed the gap between them, taking her hands. He pressed his warm lips against her palm. His dark, mesmerizing gaze held her captive.
She couldn’t turn away if she tried.
Not that she wanted to. She felt safe staring into the depth of his soul. He was both mysteriously dangerous and genuinely kind. Her father would constantly tell her that Boone was the kind of man she should become involved with because he respected people for who they were, not who he thought they should be. And while she would agree that Boone had the right blend of raw sexuality, that didn’t mean she was the right man.