Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 122550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
Then Jilly shot Regent a look.
As though they were both disappointed in him for not having a clue what the old man was talking about.
“That sounds nice. Tell Mrs. Stanley I hope she has a pleasant trip. Who is filling in for you?”
“My nephew, Alister. Jardin vetted him. If it works out, Jardin said it could become permanent.”
All right. He trusted Jardin. And this did all sound vaguely familiar. Generally, he’d remember things like this, but he had other stuff on his mind at the moment.
Mainly the woman lying in the bed, looking like death warmed up.
Regent had a suspicion that she was keeping things from him.
Which was completely unacceptable.
She should tell him everything that was going on. She hadn’t even confessed that her boss was bullying her to him. He’d had to find that out and take care of the issue himself.
Although perhaps he should tell her, then at least she’d know how far he was willing to go to protect her.
He would graciously accept her gratitude.
Later. He’d tell her once she was feeling better and could give him her full attention.
“Alister should be here shortly. He said he would clear his schedule if necessary to take care of Jilly.”
“I don’t need taking care of. I can look after myself. You can all leave. I’ll be fine.” She sniffled.
“Absolutely not,” Regent told her firmly as he stood. He crossed his arms over his chest. “You need someone to take care of you.”
“Why?” she asked. “I always take care of myself when I’m sick.”
What the hell?
“What about friends? Other family?” Although he seemed to recall that they didn’t have any family close by. Orlando Crane had only had one brother who’d died young in a fight in prison.
Anne might have had some relatives, but not in New Orleans.
“I don’t want to make my friends sick. I can look after myself.”
“That isn’t happening. You could grow sicker, slip into a coma and die. You could get dizzy, slip and hit your head and die. Leave the stove on and burn down the house and—”
“Oh, let me guess,” she said dryly. “Die?”
He scowled at her.
“And here I always thought you were a glass half-full kind of guy.”
Doctor Stanley barked out a laugh. “Not likely.”
Regent had to recite all the reasons why he couldn’t wrap the doctor’s tongue around his neck and strangle him with it.
None were coming to him.
“Thanks for coming, Doc,” Jilly said, giving him a grateful look. “I appreciate it.”
“You’re welcome, my dear. But on this, I have to agree with the boy. You shouldn’t be on your own.”
There was another knock on the door. Regent strode over and ripped it open. “What is it?”
Jose stared back at him, an eyebrow rising in surprise. All right, if Jose was showing surprise, he really was acting out of character.
He didn’t understand. He was always calm and level-headed in a crisis.
It was this girl. She was twisting him into knots. It was unacceptable. But staying away from her didn’t seem to make anything better. If anything, he seemed to think about her more.
“What is it?” he asked in a calmer voice.
“Doctor Stanley’s nephew is here,” Jose said.
“Ahh, good,” the doctor said. “Send him up. I’ll brief him on our patient.”
“I really don’t think I need a doctor to look after me. That sounds expensive.”
“You don’t need to worry since I’m paying,” Regent told her.
She eyed him. “I hope you don’t want any favors in return for payment.”
This was said right as a tall, blond man stepped into the room. His pale blue eyes swung to Regent accusingly.
What the hell? Where did she get that from?
“Of course I don’t require any favors.”
“I should hope not,” Alister said lightly.
Regent narrowed his gaze at Doctor Stanley’s nephew. The older doctor could get away with a lot since Regent had known him since he was a teenager. His nephew could not.
His attractive, far younger nephew.
“This isn’t going to work,” he stated.
Jilly coughed. “Told you. Waste of money. I don’t want anyone looking after me.”
“That’s tough. Because I’m going to look after you. No arguments.”
23
I’m going to look after you. No arguments.
Jilly woke up and looked around her bedroom.
Huh. That had been a strange dream. Regent had decided that he was going to take care of her while she was ill. And he’d also said he would give up smoking for her.
Lord. What an imagination she had.
She sat up and glanced down at herself. Why did she feel like she’d been run over by a truck? Her head was thumping and her throat was hot.
Oh no.
Was she really ill?
Shit. What day was it? What time was it?
She must have been asleep for a while because she had to pee so bad.
Obviously, she’d been wishing for someone to take care of her and that’s why she’d dreamed that Regent had been here when she got home. That he’d swept her into his arms and declared that he would look after her.