Into The Fire (Gorgeous Entourage #1)

by E. L. Todd

  ***

  I entered Alessandra’s apartment and saw her lying on the couch. Used tissues were scattered everywhere and the TV was on in the background. It was stuffy. “Did someone die in here?”

  “Me,” she said with a weak voice.

  I set everything on the kitchen table before I knelt beside her. Her face was pale like she hadn’t seen the sun in years. Sweat glistened on her forehead like she was hot.

  “Yes, I look like shit. Don’t make me feel worse by saying it.”

  “That’s not what I was thinking.”

  “Liar.”

  I felt her forehead. “You’re really warm.”

  “I am sick…”

  “Well, I got you something to make you feel better.” I retrieved everything from the table. “I have Nyquil and Aspirin.”

  “Thank god. I would have gone out myself but—”

  “You shouldn’t go anywhere. And I got you some ice cream.”

  “Ooh…what kind?”

  “I wasn’t sure what you liked so I got Neapolitan.”

  “Excellent choice.”

  I helped her sit up before I poured her the Nyquil. She drank it instantly like she’d been waiting for that all day. Then I retrieved the ice cream and handed it to her.

  She shoveled it into her mouth. “Man, that feels so good on my throat.”

  I sat beside her on the couch and watched her eat.

  “Thanks for bringing everything.”

  “No problem.”

  “Were you out or anything?”

  I didn’t want to tell her the truth. It would just make her feel bad. “Nope. At home.”

  “On a Friday night?”

  I shrugged. “What can I say? I’m pretty lame.”

  She kept eating. “That doesn’t sound like you.” She was about to take another bite when a round of coughing possessed her. It came from deep in her throat and sounded crackly.

  Something wasn’t right.

  When she finished, she returned to eating.

  I snatched her ice cream and spoon away.

  “Hey, that’s the only good thing I got going on in my life right now.”

  I pressed my ear to her chest. “Breathe for me.”

  “What?”

  “Just take a deep breath and shut up.”

  She did as I asked and inhaled.

  I immediately heard the distant crackle from deep inside her. It was unmistakable even without a stethoscope. I pulled away and sighed. “We need to get you to a hospital.”

  “What?” she blurted. “I’m just sick.”

  “With pneumonia.”

  “I do not have pneumonia. And if I did, how would you know?”

  “I’m a trained medic. It’s pretty common in the military. You never know when you’ll need to make a tourniquet or intubate someone.”

  “But even so…”

  “Just trust me on this.” I pulled her to her feet. “Let’s go. If you don’t treat it, it could be fatal.”

  That made her eyes widen. “Let me change…”

  “What you’re wearing is fine.” I shoved the pint into the freezer then scooped her into my arms.

  “I can walk.”

  “We’ll get there faster if I carry you. Just close your eyes and try to fall asleep.”

  She snuggled into my chest and released a sigh.

  ***

  I checked her into the emergency room and got her to see a physician. After they performed an x-ray and did a few tests, she was diagnosed with pneumonia. When the doctor left the room and we were alone, I gave her a gloating look. “Told you so.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Lucky guess.”

  “Nope. It was an educated guess.” I remained at her bedside and kept a close eye on her. They were keeping her overnight for observation and I planned to stay with her.

  “You can go home, Ash. I’ll be fine.”

  “I don’t mind.”

  “You aren’t going to get any sleep.”

  “I don’t sleep much anyway.”

  “No…you’ve done enough. Go home.”

  “Would you stop talking?” I asked. “It’s annoying.”

  She shot me a glare.

  I grabbed her hand and interlocked our fingers. “I want to stay—and not because I feel bad for you.”

  Her thumb moved across my knuckles. “You’re sweet.”

  “Only to you.” That line came out of nowhere, but I meant it. “Now close your eyes and get some sleep. Next time you open them, you’ll feel better.”

  “Okay…” She closed her eyes and her hand was still joined in mine.

  I watched her sleep for a few hours, unsure what else to do. It was the first time I noticed the tiny freckle near her temple. I paid attention to the prominent curve of her lips. She had long and thick eyelashes. Maybe that’s why her eyes were so pretty all the time.

  I kept staring.

  ***

  At some point in the night, Sawyer called me.

  I left the bedside then stepped into the hall, leaving the door cracked so I wouldn’t get locked outside. Then I took the call. “What?”

  “What do you mean what?” he snapped. “You just took off. What the hell?”

  “I told Irene I had an emergency.”

  “What emergency?”

  “My friend is really sick. I took her to the hospital.”

  “Oh…” That calmed his anger. “Sorry. Are they okay?”

  “She’ll be fine. They’ll release her in the morning.”

  “Well, that’s good to know…” His voice trailed off.

  “So, did you score?”

  “No,” he said with a growl. “She feels bad Irene got stood up.”

  “I didn’t stand her up. I showed up, didn’t I?”

  “But she thinks you ditched her.”

  “If all she cares about is how I ditched her when I had an emergency, then I’m glad I ditched her. She’s a selfish little cunt.”

  “Who cares if she’s a cunt? She was going to let you fuck her cunt.”

  “I didn’t want it anyway.” I blurted that out without thinking.

  “Dude, she was smoking hot.”

  “Yeah?” I asked sarcastically. “I’ve seen better.”

  “Dude, what’s up with—”

  “I have to go.” I hung up without saying goodbye then I returned to the room. After I quietly shut the door behind me, I returned to the chair at Alessandra’s bedside. When I looked at her, I realized her eyes were open.

  “You did have plans…and I ruined them.”

  Fuck, she heard me. I didn’t realize I was talking so loud.

  “You didn’t ruin anything.”

  “You had a date tonight?” It was hard to tell if she was hurt because her voice was already so hoarse. But her eyes didn’t possess as much light as they normally did.

  “No,” I said immediately. “My friend had a friend come out with us, and that friend had a friend… I was babysitting her more than anything. She was really annoying and I jumped at the opportunity to leave.”

  She watched my face for sincerity.

  “Would I lie to you?”

  She shook her head.

  I grabbed her hand and kissed the knuckles. “I’d rather be with you.”

  Her eyes softened as she looked at me. “You’re so sweet…”

  “Don’t tell anybody.” I covered my lips with my finger like we were exchanging a secret.

  She smiled. “Your secret is safe with me.”

  ***

  I took her home the next day.

  She was still under the weather but she was on the road to recovery, and that was all that mattered. We picked up the prescription of antibiotics and a few other things before we entered her apartment.

  “I’m so glad to be home.” She immediately headed for the bathroom. “I hate hospitals.”

  “I don’t mind them.”

  She washed her hands then came back to me. “I’m going to take a shower. Man,
I feel disgusting.”

  I hadn’t showered either.

  “Well, thank you so much for helping me. There were a million other things you could’ve been doing but you chose to take care of me.”

  “I’d do it again.” Even though her hair was greasy and she still looked sickly, she was beautiful.

  “Well, thank you. You’re a good friend, Ash.”

  Was I a friend? I felt like something more. But I didn’t feel like a boyfriend either. No way. “You’d do the same for me.”

  She nodded. “I would. I guess I’ll see you around when I feel better.”

  She wanted me to leave? “Can I stick around?”

  “You want to? I’m still sick.”

  “I don’t care.”

  “Oh…” Surprise was in her eyes. “Well, you’re welcome to stay as long as you want.”

  “We can watch a movie or something. But I’d really like to take a shower too.”

  “Well, get in line, buddy.”

  “Hey, let’s save water and shower together.”

  She smiled. “That’s the best idea I’ve heard all day.”

  We undressed then got under the water. Her shower was a little small, but then again, everything was too small for me. I grabbed the soap then lathered it into her skin. The soapsuds dripped down her back and to her ass. “Nice view.”

  “It’s much better than the front.”

  “I don’t know about that.” I wrapped my arms around her and massaged her tits.

  “Well, those are okay.”

  I pressed a kiss to her shoulder as I rubbed the soap into her breasts. “Smells like lavender.”

  She tilted her head back and looked up at me. “I’m glad I finally smell clean.”

  I leaned down and pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose, something I’ve never done to anyone before.

  She smiled then faced forward again. She lathered her hands with shampoo then massaged it into her scalp. Her hair became full of soap bubbles and they floated inside the shower. Then she turned around and leaned her head back as the water rinsed the soap away.

  I stared at her chest. “You really do have a nice rack. It’s the first thing I thought when I saw you.”

  “You don’t say?” She rolled her eyes but smiled at the same time.

  “And your pussy is really sweet.”

  “You thought that when you first saw me?” she asked incredulously.

  “No, but I suspected it.” I grabbed the shampoo then washed my hair.

  “So…you had a double date last night?” she asked without making eye contact with me.

  “No, not really.”

  “Her name was Irene?”

  Damn, she could hear well. “Yeah.”

  “And she’s a model or something?” Her voice trailed away.

  “Yeah. Swimsuit.”

  “She sounds like a catch.” Alessandra rubbed the soap across her arms and chest.

  “Actually, she was pretty annoying.” That was the truth. She was too forward. I didn’t like it when girls sold the farm too quickly.

  “I thought that was exactly what you liked.”

  “Not necessarily. A little work makes the end worth it. If she just gives it away, it makes me wonder how good the quality is.”

  “You have an interesting perspective.”

  “Like I said before, I was manipulated into the date.”

  “But you didn’t have to go…” Accusation was in her tone.

  “And I didn’t want to. But Sawyer guilted me into it.”

  “Did you…kiss her?”

  “No.” Was she jealous? Why was she asking all these questions? “Why do you want to know all of this?”

  She shrugged. “We’re friends, right? We talk about everything.”

  I never asked her about her personal life. I didn’t realize it until now. “Are you seeing anyone? Dating?”

  “Just you,” she answered. “I would have told you if there was someone else in the picture. I’m not really a two-guys-at-the-same-time kind of chick. It feels…wrong.”

  “You’ve never dated two guys at once?” I asked.

  “I have,” she said. “But I wasn’t sleeping with either one of them. That changes everything.”

  I guess that made sense.

  “If I find someone else, I’ll let you know. But I don’t see that happening anytime soon.”

  “You don’t go out often?”

  “What gave me away?” she said with a laugh. “Honestly, I hate dating and meeting new people. I don’t miss Tony but I miss what we had. It’s nice being in a relationship and just being yourself around someone. They’re your best friend but they’re also your lover. I’m not sure if I’ll ever find that again.”

  “You’ll find something better,” I said. “That guy sounds like a total douchebag. I’d punch him in the face if I ever saw him.”

  “I’d pay good money to see that.” She grabbed the soap then massaged it into my chest. The suds moved down my skin and to my crotch. Every few minutes, she had to cough. But she turned the other way and kept it away from me. “I can’t wait until this cold goes away.”

  “It’s not a cold. It’s pneumonia.”

  “Whatever,” she said.

  “How did you meet Tony anyway?”

  “Mutual friends,” she answered. “I know he acted like a hypocritical jerk near the end, but he really was a good guy. He’s generous, passionate, and loyal. I always knew there was a chance we would break up but I never expected that to be the reason.”

  “Jackass.” I really hated that guy. Alessandra was the coolest chick ever. Why would he fuck up something like that? He wasn’t going to find a better woman. Alessandra wasn’t fake or annoying. She was real—perfect. Who cares if she was a stripper for a short period of time? I hated judgmental people. They were the worst.

  “What about you?”

  “What about me?” I asked. “Am I a jackass? Sometimes…”

  “No,” she said with a laugh. “Was there ever anyone special in your life?”

  “I already told you I didn’t do the girlfriend thing.”

  “I know.” She rolled her eyes. “But someone you really cared about. You know, the one who got away?”

  I searched my mind but couldn’t come up with a single name. I’d have particularly sexy women hit my sheets, and I even had some sort of friendship with them, but I never felt anything more than that. “Nope.”

  “Never?” That seemed unbelievable to her.

  “Women are always looking for their Prince Charming to sweep them off their feet. Guys are just looking forward to the following day. Perhaps that’s why you and I are so different.”

  “Maybe.” She scrubbed my shoulders then my arms. “I really like your tattoos…”

  I grinned. “I picked up on that.”

  “What made you get your first one?”

  I shrugged. “Thought they looked cool. Still do. You really should consider getting one. And if not that, at least that clit piercing.”

  “I don’t know… I can’t resist pain as well as you can.”

  “It’s really not that bad. It’s just a tiny pinch and then it’s over.”

  “And how would you know?” she challenged.

  “You’ve seen my dick piercing.”

  “Still…not the same thing.”

  “Well, get it pierced and we’ll compare.”

  “I don’t know… What if it got infected?”

  I raised an eyebrow. “Are you not clean down there or something?”

  “Of course I am,” she said defensively. “But piercings are really vulnerable.”

  “Just wash it and you’ll be good.”

  She turned off the water and the silence echoed in the bathroom. “Thanks for helping me shower.”

  “No problem,” I said. “I always love a wet, naked woman.” I winked.

  She rolled her eyes then stepped out with the towel. She tossed one at me. “I feel a little better.”

&nb
sp; “The humidity should help you breathe.”

  After she dried her hair and pulled on her pajamas, she immediately lay on the couch with a blanket over her shoulders. She coughed into her tissues every few minutes, but she did seem better than the night before.

  I sat beside her on the couch. “What should we watch?”

  “Porn?” A teasing smile was on her lips.

  “I’m always down with that.” I nudged her in the side. “You know that.” I turned on the TV and changed the channel. When I came across the Disney movie, Frozen, she gripped my wrist.

  “Leave it here. I love this movie.”

  I gave her an incredulous look. “It’s a cartoon.”

  “So?” she challenged. “It’s amazing.”

  “If it’s amazing, then you’ve already seen it. So we shouldn’t watch it again.”

  “Come on,” she said. “You’ve never seen it?”

  “You tell me.” I shot her a glare.

  “You’d love it if you gave it a chance.”

  “Whatever.” I let her get her way. “I’m only doing this because you don’t feel well.”

  “Thank you.” She clapped her hands in excitement.

  I rolled my eyes and prepared to be bored to death.

  ***

  The movie ended and the credits rolled. “Thank god that shit is over.”

  “You really didn’t like it?” she asked sadly.

  “No.” A talking snowman and a princess just wasn’t my thing.

  “Not even the moose?” she asked. “So cute…”

  “You act like a child sometimes.”

  She glared at me. “You act like a child all the time.”

  “Whatever.” I left the couch. “Ready for some Nyquil?”

  “Yes, please.”

  I grabbed the bottle off the counter and poured her the dosage. “Let it go…let it go…can’t hold it back anymore…” The words escaped under my breath as I put the lid back on the bottle. I returned to her but stopped when I saw the wide smile on her face and the gloating in her eyes. “Wow, you’re really excited for this Nyquil, huh?”

  “What were you singing?”

  “Nothing.”

  “I heard you, Ash.”

  The realization came back to me and I tried not to look guilty.

  “You like that song, huh?” She was having the time of her life right now.

  “No…it’s just catchy.”

  “Uh-huh. Sure…whatever.” She couldn’t stop smiling.