CHAPTER TWELVE

Ellie spent the rest of the day dosing him up with medicine and bathing him down, restricting herself to his torso out of embarrassment. But she had to admit that the feel of running a cloth over his huge body was kind of exciting, even in his current state.

He hadn't complained any more about what pills he had to swallow, and his lack of antagonism made her feel more relaxed.

The only thing he moaned about was the cool water she washed him down with, and he accused her of trying to kill him several times. But she blamed it on his temperature, because when he was cooler he didn't say anything bad, just looked at her with that strange expression.

"Are you hungry?" she asked him later that afternoon, touching his forehead and nodding.

"A bit," he said, studying her face as she leaned over him. He hadn't ever had anyone take care of him like this, except Lizzy, and he had to grudgingly admit to himself that he liked how it felt.

"Would you like me to get you some soup?" she said, looking down into his eyes and catching her breath at the warmth in them. It was something she hadn't seen in him yet and it looked strange.

"Thanks, I think I could eat some," he murmured, watching as she straightened up and left the room, a smile touching his mouth as she cast him one more worried look before leaving.

When she returned with some home-made chicken soup Lizzy had prepared, he pulled himself weakly up in the bed and started to feed himself, cursing huskily when he spilled some on his chest where his hand was shaking.

"Keep still," Ellie said softly, cleaning him up and then taking the spoon from his fingers. She filled the spoon and held it to his mouth, surprised once again when he ate it, letting her feed him the entire bowlful, his eyes ever watchful. "There, does that feel better?"

He nodded and leaned forward when she indicated for him to do so, so she could plump the pillows up and then push him back again, her hands drawing up the sheet and tucking it firmly around his waist. "I'll just take this downstairs," she said, feeling a bit useless now she had made sure he was comfortable, and she picked up the bowl and the glass he had used earlier. His hand came out and clasped her wrist weakly as his eyes started to get heavy.

"Don't go," he said quietly, and for just a second she wasn't sure she had heard him correctly. But he tugged her towards him and she sat down on the side of the bed, unable to resist feeling his forehead again. When his fingers slid onto her hand and linked through them, she just stared at them, thinking how nice it felt to hold his hand. She looked up at him again, but his eyes were closed and he was drifting off into a light doze, so she couldn't disentangle her hand until he had woken up. Placing the bowl back on the bedside table she gave a sigh, swinging her legs up onto the bed and curling up next to him. She had no idea how long he would be asleep and she felt pretty tired herself. A doze wouldn't hurt, she decided, and closed her eyes.

****

Becky moved around the kitchen, aware of Glenn's eyes following her everywhere she went. Ever since he had kissed her, he hadn't been able to take his eyes off her, and she didn't feel comfortable enough around him to cope with the intense stare. She couldn't believe that she had actually said, out loud, that she didn't want to forget the deal. Her eyes flicked over to Glenn and then back to the food she was preparing. How on earth could he look in the mirror and see a monster, when he was so good looking? Why couldn't he see what she could see? From what he had said though, there had been women in the past who had treated him like a monster too, but she couldn't understand anyone doing that. Unless it was because of his own attitude. He had shown her a cruel side to himself, and it had scared her to death, so much so that she couldn't help being wary of him now. But he did kiss really wonderfully, and the mere thought of what he had done to her mouth made her go red.

She jumped violently when he coughed just behind her, and the tomato she had been slicing slid across the counter, leaving a trail of pips behind it.

"Careful, honey, we wouldn't want you cutting a finger off," he murmured, his hand covering hers to still the knife.

Becky tensed at the feel of his long fingers enclosing her clenched fist, and her breath caught in her throat at his proximity, something he couldn't fail to notice. She kept her eyes fixed firmly on their hands as his head bent down to her ear, his body curled over the back of hers. "Is anything wrong?" he said softly, the smile on his face showing itself in his voice.

"No," she whispered, biting her lip as she felt his body press right up against her.

"Hmm, are you sure?" he asked, his free arm wrapping slowly around her waist so he could pull her into the curve of his body.

"I...I'm quite sure," she said, her voice high-pitched and shaky.

"Why do I think you're lying to me?" he whispered into her ear. Before she had chance to say anything else he spun her around and covered her startled mouth with his, feeding on her like a starving man. Becky went under with no protest at all, inwardly cursing herself for being weak, but unable to resist the way he kissed. She loved the fact he was so big and made her feel even smaller than she was, it made her feel faintly protected, even after the way he had acted. She moaned softly under the pressure of his kiss and he broke off, taking a deep breath as he studied her flushed face. "Tell me you haven't been thinking about that since we kissed before," he ordered her, his voice slightly breathless.

"I can't," she said numbly, holding tightly on to his arms as he held her up.

"Dammit, I want you," he bit off, bending and kissing her again fiercely, his emotions starting to spiral out of control. He picked her up suddenly and carried her through to the bedroom, not breaking the kiss.

Becky was dimly aware of floating, but all she could think of was how she was feeling. Her euphoric mood was broken when she felt the mattress under her back and her raw skin protested the pressure of the big man leaning down on her.

Glenn pulled back from her abruptly when she yelped, his brows drawing down. Damn, he had already forgotten about her back, he had just been ready to take her to slake his own passion. "Are you okay?" he asked, pulling her upright and looking at her pained expression.

"I'm fine...it's just my stupid back," she muttered, looking at him and biting her lip. "I wish it was better."

Glenn couldn't help smiling at that confession, because she so obviously didn't realise what she was giving away by voicing it. "And if it was?" he prompted.

Becky blushed as she realised what she was saying, and then she lifted her chin, staring him straight in the eyes. "Then I'd show you a thing or two," she told him, gathering all her courage.

His eyebrows shot straight up and then he laughed, the sound rich and full and filling the room with it's musical quality. Becky sat transfixed by him, amazed at how much laughter changed his face. He stopped and wiped his eyes, still grinning. "And what, exactly, would you show me?"

"You'll have to wait until I'm better," she mumbled, her courage starting to fade a little.

He studied her carefully and then stood up, offering her his hand. "Okay, I guess I can wait. Now, how about we go back to the kitchen and you can finish making me that huge sandwich you were working on?"

Becky gratefully took his hand, glad that he wasn't pursuing the subject just yet. But both of them started to feel more at ease in each other's company, and they sat comfortably together at the table whilst they ate their lunch.

"How would you like to come into town with me to get some supplies?" Glenn asked her suddenly, surprising her with the offer.

She thought about it for a second and then nodded with a small smile. "I'd like that." There was no chance anyone she knew would see her, she thought. Her stepmother, Isobel, never went into town anyway, always complaining that the stores there had nothing in them worth buying. So Becky felt she should be safe. Besides, a trip out with Glenn would be quite nice, she thought, looking at him with a smile, and receiving a smile in return.

"Great. I'll get this stuff cleaned up," he said, getting up from the table and indicating their plates. "Why don't you go and get changed into your clothes? They're folded up in the laundry room."

Becky nodded and smiled shyly again, getting up and going into the back rooms excitedly. She had only been here a couple of days, and he had been nasty for half of that time, but she really felt like they had a rapport now, and she started to feel at home.

****

Mark woke up the next morning and yawned, coughing slightly and then grimacing. Well, his cold was getting better it seemed. He looked down at the bed as he thought about Ellie, and he smiled when he found her curled up next to his legs, still fully dressed. Obviously she had fallen asleep before she had a chance to get ready for bed. He reached down and stroked his hand through her hair, brushing it back from her small face and studying her features.

The bruise he had inflicted had faded now, and he was glad of the fact. His brows drew down as he thought of how he had treated her. He had taken out all the bitterness he felt for his ex-wife and had directed it at this fragile creature, not thinking of how she might be feeling. In truth he hadn't thought about other people's feelings for years, but he hadn't ever had to live with the consequences of his actions before. Now he did, and he didn't like it. His fingers ran down her smooth face and under her chin. She was a lot stronger than he had first thought, and she had shown him that she could be stubborn too, what with the way she had cared for him yesterday. Another smile curved his mouth. Given the chance she could give Lizzy a run for her money when it came to telling him off, he thought, and he wondered if he ought to give her a little more freedom. The thought that she might leave if he didn't keep an eye on her, made him frown again, and he sighed, leaning back on the pillows and staring at the ceiling. What the hell was the matter with him, he wondered. He didn't actually care about her, did he? Hell, he didn't even know anything about her.

He felt her stir and he looked down again, his eyebrows raising when she suddenly sat up and turned her head to look at him. "Oh, I didn't realise...I only laid down for a minute!" she said, scrambling off the bed and standing next to him, looking embarrassed. "How are you feeling?" she asked, placing her small hand on his forehead and feeling for herself before he could say anything. She jumped when he grabbed her hand and brought it to his mouth, placing a kiss on her palm. "Why did you do that?" she couldn't help asking, feeling her hand tingle under the caress.

"Because I wanted to. Is that okay?" he asked her, smiling.

"I...well....er...I guess so," she murmured, caught in his eyes and unable to look away.

"Good. Now come down here and kiss me," he told her, reaching up and pulling her down to him, ignoring the warning voices in his head telling him not to lose himself in a woman ever again. He allowed himself a brief taste of her and then made her sit next to him. "Ellie, I want to know more about you, about your likes and dislikes," he said, shocking her. "How would you feel about us spending the day together, just talking?"

"If you like," she murmured, staring at him and wondering why he wanted to know anything about her. He hadn't shown an interest thus far, and she didn't wholly trust him. But she would do as he requested, because really, what choice did she have?