Waiting for Willa (Big Sky, #3)(56)

She stares at me wordlessly, then blinks rapidly and kisses my cheek, careful not to press herself against me.

“Thank you. I’ll be ten minutes.”

She hurries off, and I turn to Alex, who’s sniffling.

“Let’s go to the bathroom and get you cleaned up, buddy.”

“Okay.” He doesn’t argue as I help him strip out of the pajamas that were clean thirty minutes ago and into the shower.

“Are you okay here while I change your bedsheets?”

“Yeah. I don’t want to wash my hair.”

“No yuckies in your hair, so I think you’re safe.” I kiss his cheek and hurry back to his room, where I strip the bed, put the linens in the laundry, and find clean ones in a hall closet.

Just as I finish making the bed, Rocky hops onto it and turns a circle, settling in to rest.

“Good boy,” I say, petting his head and scratching his ears. “You stay here and get ready to snuggle your human. I’ll have him back here in a flash.”

I find another set of clean PJs and rush back to the bathroom.

“How’s it going in there?” I ask.

“I feel a little better,” Alex says, his voice weak.

“Good. Are you all rinsed off?”

“Yeah.”

“You can get out then. There are clean clothes by the sink. Are you okay by yourself?”

“Yes, sir.”

I grin. Even when Alex doesn’t feel well, he has his manners. He may be pushing his mom’s patience lately, but Willa’s still doing something right.

“I’ll meet you back in your bedroom.”

I walk out to the kitchen to find a fresh Willa unpacking grocery bags.

“This is incredible,” she says with tears in her voice.

“It’s just Gatorade and pizza,” I say, not sure how to navigate this.

“No, it’s not.” She shakes her head. “It’s a lot more than that. I don’t remember the last time I had someone here to help. My mom’s awesome, but it’s—”

“It’s not the same.” I tug her to me and rub my hands up and down her back soothingly. “It’s not the same as having a partner.”

“No.” She sniffles and looks up at me. “I’m afraid to get too used to this, Max. To depend on it. I’m too accustomed to being a one-woman show, and I’m good at it. I don’t know what I’d do if I had to go back to that once I settle into this.”

“Just trust me,” I reply and kiss her forehead. “And don’t overthink it. I’m just here to help with the flu today, Wills. And I love you, so I’m not going to leave you here to fend for yourself. That would just be cruel.”

“Well, I guess there’s no time like the present to jump into the deep end. You’ve seen him when he’s fun and playful, and even when he’s being a handful. Now, you get the rough stuff. We’ll see if you’re still here in two days.”

“Is that a challenge?”

“It’s a fact.”

“Have the others before always bailed when it got rough?”

She sighs. “I’ve never given them the opportunity to make it this far. This is new territory for both of us.”

I can hear Alex emerge from the bathroom, so I quickly tug her to me and kiss her hard.

“I’ll be here. In two days. In twenty years. And I’ll prove it to you, one day at a time.”





Chapter Seventeen


Willa


“I’M SO BORED,” Alex whines, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in one hand, and the remote control to the TV in the other.

It’s Sunday evening, and his fever finally broke this afternoon. Which means, he’s feeling much better. He moved from his bedroom to the living room this morning, where he’s watched everything from Captain America—for the twentieth time—to Harry Potter. Rocky has been great about sticking close to his boy for cuddles and food scraps.

They’re a team now.

“I know, Bubba, but you have to rest. You’re still getting better,” I remind him.

“At least I get to go to school tomorrow,” he murmurs as I walk into the kitchen.

Max walks in from outside, shaking snow from his jacket and boots.

“We got another foot, easy,” he says with a grin. He’s been here since we got home two days ago, helping with everything from cool baths to bring the fever down to taking Rocky outside to go potty.

The billionaire who made People’s sexiest people in the world list has become quite domesticated.

“Thanks for shoveling,” I reply and boost myself up on my toes to plant a kiss on his cheek. “Want a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?”

“Is that even a question? Of course, I do.” He pats my butt as he walks past me to wash his hands in the kitchen sink. “How’s the patient?”

“Bored,” I reply with a sigh. “But feeling better.”

“My mom said this would be a stage of the process,” he says, drying his hands on a towel.

“You talked to your mom?” I ask with a grin.

“Of course. I didn’t know what to get at the store, so I called her.”

“How is she?”