Cowboy Casanova (Rough Riders #12)(147)

Ben grabbed Ainsley’s cell and scrolled until he found Joely’s number. He dropped to

his knees beside her on the tile as he hit Send.


The doc picked up on the second ring. “Doc? It’s Ben McKay.”


“Ben. Why are you on Ainsley’s phone?”


“I stopped to see her and found her layin’ on the floor in the bathroom. Her skin is

on fire. She won’t go to the ER. It’s freaking me out because she was fine yesterday.

” His words came out machine-gun fast.


“Calm down. Can you tell if she’s been throwing up?”


“There’s none on the floor or in her hair or anything.”


“Can you ask her?”


“She’s pretty out of it.”


“Put me on speaker.”


Ben poked the button and held the phone lower. “You’re on.”


“Ainsley, it’s Joely Monroe. Ben says you’re sick. Have you been vomiting?”


“No.” She shuddered and Ben’s stomach roiled. He smoothed her damp hair from her

face.


“When did you first start getting sick?”


“Right after I went to work this morning. I couldn’t stay so I came home.”


“Tell me your symptoms.”


“Hot. Cold. Chills. Headache. Body aches. Sore throat.”


“She sneezed a lot last night,” Ben inserted.


“Have you taken meds for any of the symptoms?”


“No.”


“Okay, here’s my on-the-fly diagnosis. She has the flu. Probably the twenty-four-hour

variety. Hopefully it already hit its peak.”


“Do I need to take her to the ER?”


“Not unless she gets markedly worse. Right now, she needs to take two Tylenol and in

another hour, two Motrin. That should drop her fever. If she’s awake, make her drink

lots of water, but don’t wake her to drink. Put cool cloths on her face. That’ll at

least give her the impression of coolness until her fever breaks.” A pause. “You are

able to stay with her tonight, Ben, or is there someone else she can call?”


He tempered his initial response, No f*cking way am I ever leaving her, to a calmer, “

I’m staying.” He was freaked the f*ck out. He’d never taken care of a sick person

before in his life. Sick calves? No problem. Sick person? Not ever.


“This is a pretty quick bug,” the doc said. “But I’ll warn you: it’s highly

contagious. You should expect to get sick.”


“I never get sick,” he scoffed at the dial tone.


Ben tried to move her off the bathroom floor. “Come on. Let’s get you into your own

bed.”


“It’s too hot in there.”


“It’s cooler. I promise. Let me help you up.” Ben practically carried Ainsley to her

room. “Sit on the bed.”


“You’re always so bossy.”


“Part of bein’ a Dom.”


“Well, you’re not my Dom anymore, so let me lay down.”


He resisted the urge to snap, The f*ck I’m not your Dom. He breathed slowly and

deeply, completely out of his element on so many levels. “First you need to swallow