Sympathy Pains by Sharon Sala

Author:Sharon Sala [Sala, Sharon]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781459294820
Publisher: MIRA
Published: 2001-02-14T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 5

Marilee woke up hot. It took her a few moments to realize she wasn’t coming down with a fever, but was wrapped in Justin’s arms. Her tummy was rolling and she needed to go to the bathroom, but getting up was impossible until he turned her loose.

“Justin, I need to get up,” she said, nudging him gently.

He came awake instantly. “What?” he muttered. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I just need to get up.”

“Okay,” he mumbled, and rolled over.

As she stood, she groaned softly. Lord, she could barely remember what it felt like not to hurt somewhere.

Justin opened a sleepy eye. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Just a little nauseated,” she said. “It will pass.”

She stumbled to the bathroom. A couple of minutes later, she opened the door to find Justin sitting on the side of the bed in a slump.

“What’s wrong with you?” she asked, noticing the thin film of sweat on his upper lip and the pallor of his skin.

“I don’t feel so good,” he muttered, then bolted past her into the bathroom just in time to throw up.

Sympathy for his misery sent Marilee into the bathroom behind him where she handed him a cold washcloth to put on his face.

“This will make you feel better,” she said. When he hesitated, she insisted. “Trust me. I know.”

He swiped the cloth across his face as he sat down on the side of the tub. “Man, I don’t know where that came from.”

“I hope you’re not coming down with a bug of some sort,” Marilee said.

“It doesn’t feel like a bug,” Justin said. “In fact, I’m already beginning to feel better.”

“Maybe it was all that junk we ate last night before we went to sleep.”

He shrugged. “Maybe, although I’ve eaten worse with no ill effects.”

“Do you think it’s over?” she asked.

He nodded and then tossed the washcloth on the side of the tub as he stood. “Come on, honey, let’s get dressed. Maria will fix breakfast as soon as we show up.”

She arched an eyebrow. If he was already thinking of food, then he was definitely on the mend. “Maria is the cook, right? The woman who served dinner last night?”

“Yes, she’s been here for almost thirty years. She worked for my grandfather before I inherited the place.”

“Does everyone eat together at every meal?” she asked.

Justin sighed. After what she’d endured yesterday, he couldn’t blame her for dreading another confrontation.

“Usually,” he said, and then wrapped his arms around her and gave her a hug. “Don’t worry, darlin’. Everything will be different today—I can promise you that.”

“I don’t see how,” she said.

Justin’s chin jutted mutinously. “Trust me.”

She sighed and then looked up. “You have to know by now that I already do or I wouldn’t be here, subjecting myself to this crap.”

There was nothing he could say that would change the truth. “Give me a couple of minutes to brush my teeth and get dressed. Then we’ll go, okay?”

While Justin was in the bathroom, Marilee dressed in shorts and a pink, loose-fitting top. By the time he emerged, she was pulling her hair up into a ponytail in deference to the heat.

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