by Alice Raine
I wasn’t surprised at how disappointed that made me feel. I liked that girl more than I should. My lips twitched as I recalled her drunken announcement of how she liked me ‘way more than she should’, a sentiment I definitely returned, even if it looked like it would never lead anywhere.
There was the noise of muffled voices down the line and several seconds of rustling before Allie spoke again. ‘Anyway, Cait’s here, she was hoping to speak to you.’
I doubted that. There were more muffled noises and a few seconds of silence which were finally followed by the soft notes of Caitlin’s voice.
‘Jack, hi.’ My eyes closed as I absorbed her voice, the sound of it causing me to feel warm inside. She paused and I again wondered if Allie had forced the phone into her hands. ‘I...uh...I heard about the fire and I just wondered if you’re OK.’
I suddenly didn’t feel so bad, just knowing that Caitlin was worried enough about me to ask made the pain and discomfort feel a whole lot better.
‘I’m not too bad, all things considered. Some burns to my arm and hand, and a bit of smoke inhalation. Nothing too serious.’ I didn’t want to upset her, so I left out the more gruesome details of my mangled wrist.
A breath whistled down the line, followed immediately by a deep sigh. ‘That’s a relief. I still can’t believe the set caught fire. It must have been so scary. What caused it?’
‘Yeah, it was certainly unexpected,’ I murmured. What a huge under-exaggeration. When I’d seen the flash of the fire starting I’d thought it was a bomb exploding. It had been utterly terrifying. ‘Last I heard they still weren’t sure. I suspect electrical problems, but there are some investigators in there at the moment looking into it.’
There was a pause, followed by a quiet snapping noise, and my eyes narrowed as I pictured Caitlin giving her elastic bands a ping. ‘I...I’m really glad you’re OK.’
Her confession meant far more to me than it should, especially as I knew how closed-off she could be. But still, as I ran her words through my mind I got a lump in my throat and had to take a sip of water before I could speak again.
‘I’m really pleased you called,’ I replied, to which I definitely heard a small intake of breath followed by a loud swallow. Perhaps I wasn’t the only one with a lump in my throat.
‘Yeah, well...that’s the sort of thing a friend would do...isn’t it?’
As much as I respected her request that we be just friends until I knew for sure she wanted more, I quickly realised that I could turn this situation to my advantage.
‘It is. Thank you for the concern,’ Licking my dry lips, I prepared to try my plan. ‘A friend might also pop into the hospital for a visit, you know, especially as I’m stuck here on my own and don’t have any family around.’ OK that was a bit of an exaggeration. It was true that my family weren’t around, but I had plenty of friends I could call up if I wanted some company. The problem was, the only company I really craved recently was Caitlin’s. I just didn’t think she was ready to return the sentiment in quite the same way.
Fully expecting her to find an excuse, I was astounded by the next words from her mouth. ‘Um ... I could come down for a bit this afternoon?’
My eyebrows shot up, and I immediately felt guilty about my underhanded coercion. ‘It’s fine, I’m sure you must be busy. I was just kidding.’
Caitlin cleared her throat several times before she spoke again, and this time I was sure I could detect the hint of a smile in her voice. ‘No, I’m free, I finished work at two. Which ward are you in?’
She seemed...keen. Practically speechless, I quickly told her the ward details and visiting times before she rang off, promising to be here in the next few hours.
Wow. For several seconds after she hung up all I could do was sit there in stunned silence with the phone pressed to my ear.
Three
Allie
Cait had totally frozen up when Jack had answered her call, so of course I’d had to grab the phone from her and take over. But then, after flashing me a thoroughly unimpressed look, she had hesitantly begun chatting. Initially her eyes had flashed around nervously and her answers had been stilted and edgy, but then she’d stepped away so she could continue the conversation with a little privacy.
I wouldn’t usually try and push a romantic notion, but I could tell how much Cait liked Jack. It was practically written all over her face every time his name came up. I’d never seen her so flustered about a man before. Not to mention the way she’d blushed when she had described his kiss – that flush had spoken for itself.
As much as I’d have loved to see more developing I wasn’t holding out too much hope. Cait appears fairly shy, but under that quiet veneer she is incredibly tough and extremely bloody stubborn, and if she’d decided not to advance things with him, then she would stick to it.
I was pleased that they were trying friendship though. Thrilled really. If Cait could take some steps towards a serious friendship with someone like Jack then it could help her rebuild some of her trust in men.
I know getting a boyfriend isn’t the be all and end all, but Cait is so sweet and loving and I just wished that she could open up and share that side of herself with someone.
Watching as Cait finished the call, I saw her lower the phone, ping the elastic bands on her wrist once, and straighten her shoulders before turning around. Her face was flushed, but her hazel eyes had a wary look to them as she approached me.
‘Is he OK?’
‘Kind of, he’s got some burns and smoke inhalation but he seemed OK.’ Shoving her phone back in her bag, Cait began fidgeting and then checked her watch, which I took as a very unsubtle sign that she was keen to end the conversation.
As tempted as I was to push it, I let her have her way. For the time being, anyway. ‘So, seeing as I’ve just got back and found the fridge bare, I think we need to pop out and do a food shop. Wanna come?’
Licking her lips, Cait hesitated, then she cleared her throat and averted her eyes as her cheeks flushed again. ‘Actually, I can’t this afternoon, sorry.’
Frowning, I checked my watch then looked back to my bestie. ‘Why? I thought you’d finished work for the day.’
‘I have, it’s just that I, um...I told Jack I’d go visit him in the hospital.’ Blinking in surprise, my jaw briefly hung open before I clenched my teeth together and tried my hardest to supress a grin of delight. The urge to do a happy dance right there and then was almost overpowering but I didn’t want her to see how excited I was in case it put her off.
Wow. I hadn’t expected that. Ever. Maybe I’d been wrong about her not progressing her relationship with Jack.
‘He’s on his own and they’re keeping him in for a few days so I think he’s bored.’
‘Did you offer, or did he ask you to visit?’
Her eyes darted to mine and narrowed. ‘Don’t read too much into this, I’m just trying to be supportive. He knows the deal.’ Hmm. He might know what Cait had told him about being ‘just friends’, but he definitely had a soft spot for her. ‘Anyway, I said I was calling to check up on him because that’s what friends do, and he said friends also go and visit in the hospital, especially when the patient was feeling lonely.’
Once again I felt my lips twitching with the urge to smile. Jack Felton, you cunning man. The more I got to know about him, the more I liked him.
‘I can do the shopping on my own, it’s fine. When are you going?’ Considering how excited I was about this developing bravery from Cait, I congratulated myself on how calm I sounded.
‘Now, I guess.’ Pulling out a fold-up map from her bag, Cait spent a few minutes consulting it. ‘The hospital is here, Wiltshire Boulevard. It’s in a different direction to the supermarket though, so maybe we need separate cabs. Or do you want to share and do the longer route?’
What I really wanted to do was become a fly on the wall of Jack’s hospital room so I could witness Cait’s visit, but instead I settled for nodding my head and linking my hand
through Cait’s elbow. ‘We can get separate, its fine. But let’s walk to the main road together.’
Four
Cait
My visit began with an awkward stop in the hospital shop–awkward because a) I had no idea what to take when visiting someone you barely knew but fancied like crazy, and b) I wasn’t sure I should even be buying anything in the first flipping place. Would a ‘friend‘ buy grapes, balloons, or chocolates?
Snorting out a frustrated breath, I ditched the idea of balloons and chocolates straight away. They would look waaay too forward, and I wanted to avoid anything that would look too over the top.
The very fact that I was even considering what would look too forward probably indicated that I was thinking about this far too much, but I pushed that thought aside with a frown and huffily grabbed a bunch of grapes.
Stepping into a lift, I gave my elastic bands a ping to try and calm myself, and had to grab the hand rail to steady myself after my legs went wobbly. Perhaps my coping mechanism wasn’t quite as effective as it used to be.
Gripping the rail with a clammy fist, I vaguely toyed with the idea of scarpering. As soon as the lift stopped I could press the ground floor button again and make a run for it, tell Jack I had a prior arrangement I’d forgotten about...That option was taken away two seconds later, however, as the lift reached Jack’s floor and the doors opened to reveal a suited man. ‘Miss Byrne?’
Bugger. There would be no swift escape to the freedom of the ground floor, then. As I flicked my gaze over him I recognised him as Jack’s bodyguard. I’d met him briefly a few times, but put on the spot like this I couldn’t for the life of me remember his name.
Great, I had practically collapsed in the lift in a clammy mess and now I was met with this guy’s steely gaze and unfaltering calm. I was getting myself far more worked up than I needed to, but really, what the hell was I doing visiting a movie star in hospital? In what universe was that a good idea?
I saw him give me a brief assessment, a small smirk curling his lips as he saw the bag of grapes in my hand, before clearing his expression. ‘I’m not sure if you remember me. I’m Flynn, I work for Mr Felton. He asked me to keep an eye out for you.’
Flynn. That was it. ‘I remember you, you’ve been kind enough to drive me home a few times now.’
My cheeks flushed as I remembered the first time he’d given me a lift home–the night I’d met Jack at the theatre and agreed to go for a drink with him. The conversation we’d had in the car that night had been pretty embarrassing – he’d asked me out, and I’d said no – all of which had been overheard by Flynn.
Flynn ushered me into a room but as soon as I crossed the threshold I stumbled over my own feet and flinched at the click behind me as he pulled the door closed. A second later my initial self-consciousness was forgotten as I became focused on Jack sitting in the bed in front of me. Smiling hesitantly, I moved forwards as I quickly ran my eyes over him to assess his injuries.
One of his arms and hand were bandaged and he was hooked up to various monitors and tubes, but apart from that he didn’t look too bad.
My heart kicked up a beat as I moved from his injuries and took in the man. He looked pretty damn good, with his hair all tousled, his handsome face as devastating as ever, and a bright, happy smile on his lips.
My throat dried up when my eyes briefly strayed to his chest. The sheet was pulled up high, but there was no mistaking the fact that he was topless. Maybe even naked. I swallowed hard and quickly tried to distract myself from that line of thought, because it really couldn’t go anywhere good.
Quite clearly the soft, brown hair that covered his forearms extended over other areas of his body, although it seemed to be trimmed short and neat on his pecs. I wondered if it was trimmed on his belly too, but that just led me back to thinking about where that hair might lead to. Oh God. The idea of Jack Felton stark naked nearly made my knees buckle.
Considering I avoided physical contact with men, it was quite surprising just how tempted I was to lean in and see how firm his muscles would feel under my fingertips. Licking my lips, I ripped my gaze away from his body and looked around the room, hoping he hadn’t caught my ogling. He no doubt had. Especially seeing as I could feel his gaze burning into me, making my skin tingle.
When I was finally brave enough to lift my eyes to his, there was a smile on his face, but not smug like I had expected. Instead, it was that sweet, soft, affectionate look that I’d seen in my house when he’d brought me a hangover breakfast. That look was quite something, and it made my stomach tumble with some emotion I couldn’t even begin to name.
Suddenly I felt completely overwhelmed. I really shouldn’t have come here.
‘Caitlin, you came.’
Breathe. My lungs either didn’t listen or my brain was speaking a foreign language, because it took another second or two for me to actually draw in a breath and connect my vocal chords.
‘Hi, Jack.’ Thankfully, my voice came out relatively smooth and nowhere near as shaky as I felt inside. ‘Of course I did, I said I would.’ I didn’t mention that I’d very nearly chickened out fewer than five minutes ago.
This man really had thrown my life into complete turmoil. I’d been through the cycle of denial, then avoidance, eventually slipping into grudging acceptance, and now here I was...stood at the bedside of a man I liked.
A lot.
Way more than I should.
Way more than I’d ever liked any man.
Would it be possible to build a friendship with him knowing I was ridiculously attracted to him? Knowing that he was attracted to me? I couldn’t see how I could date him, it was beyond my boundaries to consider, but he made me feel safe, and relaxed and...happy.
I realised I was still silent and he was sitting there gazing at me in quiet expectation, so clearing my throat I tried another shaky smile. ‘Uh...how are you?’
‘I’m fine.’ Jack’s reply was a little too speedy for my liking, so I narrowed my eyes and gave him a stern look that I’d perfected back in my teaching days.
He chuckled. Clearly my attempt at strictness hadn’t been particularly successful, but at least it had made him smile. ‘Honestly, Caitlin, considering I was in a fire, I really am doing OK. Thank you for coming.’
‘You’re welcome.’ Licking my lips, I fidgeted before remembering the small bag I was carrying. ‘Oh yeah, I, er, I bought you some grapes.’ As I said it I realised how clichéd it was, and dumped them down on his table feeling embarrassed and wondering why I’d bothered.
‘Thanks,’ Jack smiled, but as he spoke I saw his eyes flick to behind me and I turned to see a gigantic basket of fruit on a shelf. Bugger. I felt my shoulders slump with a sigh and gave him a rueful smile. ‘Ah, looks like someone beat me to it.’
Jack’s smile extended into a grin as he looked at the fruit basket and back to me. ‘Don’t worry about it, the hospital provided that but grapes are much better, I mean look...’ He gingerly lifted his bandaged arm and indicated the fruit basket again. ‘What good are oranges and bananas? I’m one handed, can’t even peel the things.’ As if wanting to prove his point he raised his good arm, plucked off one of my grapes, and popped it in his mouth with a wiggle of his eyebrows as he chewed.
The fact that he was trying to make me feel better instantly made me smile. He really was a decent guy. Genuinely nice, as Allie kept reminding me.
I was filled with the ridiculous urge to pluck off another grape and offer to feed him, but, thankfully, I was stopped as the door behind us opened and two nurses strode in, one with a small tray of medicines and the other with a jug of water.
The younger nurse placed the water down and made a show of placing a hand on Jack’s bare shoulder before givingit a little rub and fluttering her eyelashes with a grin. ‘How’s the patient? It must be so difficult for a strapping man like you to be stuck in bed.’
Strapping man? She might as well have bent down and nuzzled his chest.
‘You need me to
get you anything, Jack?’ she added, her voice all breathy and pathetic. Her obvious flirting really riled me for some reason. I felt my shoulders stiffen and my teeth clench. All I could think was get your hands off him, but before I embarrassed myself by clambering over the bed and smacking her round the face, Jack shifted so her arm fell away and then locked his gaze with mine, flashing me the tiniest of winks.
I couldn’t decide if I’d imagined the wink or not, but the eye contact instantly soothed my hackles. Either he was oblivious to her charms or not bothered at all, because his eyes only left mine for a split second as he thanked her and then immediately looked back at me. Ha! If it was a competition I definitely would have won that round.
Frigid freak one, sexy nurse zero.
A small, smug smile curled my lip as the younger nurse left the room, looking rather disgruntled. The other nurse – Jack introduced her as Miriam – began to undo his bandages before pausing and looking at me. ‘This isn’t a pretty sight. You might want to leave the room if you’re squeamish.’
Immediately I frowned and glared at Jack. ‘I thought you said you were fine?’
Jack flushed before shrugging guiltily. ‘I am. Mostly.’ He grinned at Miriam and looked at me again. ‘So, are you squeamish...?’
Five
Jack
Miriam peeled back the final loose bandage to expose my wrist to the cool air and I sucked in a quiet breath. It was aching and stinging, the entire area still feeling hot. A shocked gasp sounded in the room before small, warm fingers wrapped around my good hand and squeezed tightly. Really tightly.
‘Oh my God. Jack.’
My discomfort from the burn was immediately forgotten as I focused my attention on where Caitlin was gripping my hand. She was touching me of her own accord. Looking at her face, I saw it was blanched of colour, her hazel eyes staring at my opposite wrist in distress.
