Where were she and Maggie supposed to go? She didn't have the money for a hotel, and even if she did, Ashley knew she was close to physical collapse. If-or rather when-that happened, who was going to watch over her daughter?
Involuntarily her eyelids closed. She desperately wanted to sleep. She wanted this horrible nightmare to end. And just once in her life, she wanted someone else to take charge and make everything better. She wanted to be rescued, just like in those fairy tales she read to her daughter. However, it seemed unlikely a handsome prince would show up to take her away from all her troubles and…
A shadow fell across the cot. Even with her eyes closed Ashley noted the sudden darkening. She forced herself to gather her last bit of strength and look at her visitor. Probably the shelter volunteer, Julie something, who had gently explained she couldn't stay.
But the person looming over her wasn't a too-perky student from the nearby college. Rather he was tall, silent and frighteningly familiar. Not a handsome prince, but the evil wizard-a creature both powerful and deadly.
She knew she was hallucinating, because there was no way her soon-to-be ex-boss was really gathering her up in his arms. She was still lying on the cot, imagining it, she told herself even as powerful male strength surrounded her. The illusion was surprisingly real and in it, he carried her as easily as she carried Maggie.
'You're staying with me until you're better,' Jeff Ritter said.
She blinked. The voice sounded genuine and she felt the soft whisper of his breath across her cheek as he spoke. Now that she made herself think about it, she could feel the smooth wool of his suit where her hand rested just below his collar at the back of his neck. She blinked, not sure what was real and what was fever induced.
'Are you carrying me?'
Gray eyes stared into her face. 'You're sicker than I thought.'
True or not, it wasn't much of an answer.
'We can't-' She pressed her lips together. What couldn't they do? She couldn't remember.
'You'll be safe at my house,' he told her.
Safe? Not likely. Suddenly she was being lowered into nothing. She clutched at Jeff, then sighed in relief when he settled her onto a chair.
'Collect her things,' he said to someone just out of Ashley's field of vision.
'I'll get her shoes.'
The last statement, spoken in her daughter's bright, cheerful voice, brought Ashley back to the land of the living faster than any drug.
'Maggie?'
'She'll be fine.'
She shook her head slightly and ignored the subsequent wooziness. With a couple of deep breaths, she managed to clear her head enough to focus on the man crouched in front of her. She hadn't been mistaken-it was Jeff Ritter, all right. Still dressed in his well-tailored suit, still looking distant and the tiniest bit scary.
'Why are you here?' she asked.
'Because you're too sick to stay at the shelter. I'm taking you home until you're on your feet.'
She wiggled her sock-clad toes and wondered if he had any idea that she felt as if she was going to be sick forever.
'We can't,' she told him. 'I mean, we don't even know you.'
His steel-gray eyes stared directly into hers. She searched for some flicker of warmth, of humanity, but there was nothing but her tiny reflection in his irises.
'What do you want to know?' he asked. 'Should I give you a list of references?'
That would be a start, she thought, but didn't dare speak the words.
Surprisingly Jeff reached out and touched her cheek with his fingers. Just a fleeting moment of contact, during which she felt heat and amazing gentleness.
'Don't be afraid,' he said quietly. 'I'm not going to hurt you or Maggie. You're sick. You need a place to stay. I'm offering one. End of story. I won't hurt you or pressure you.'
'But…'
'You have anywhere else to go?' he asked.
She shook her head. She wished the answer were different, but it wasn't. Her solitary job meant she didn't have any work friends, and she was always rushing into class from dropping Maggie off at school or hurrying out of class to pick up her daughter, so she'd never had time to make friends at the university. Her only acquaintances were her neighbors who were in the same situation she was.
'Mommy, here are your shoes.'
She was more awake now and could offer her daughter a hug and her thanks when the happy little girl returned with her athletic shoes.
Before she could bend over and loosen the laces, Jeff took them from her and began slipping the right shoe on her foot.
The touch of his hand on her ankle was surprisingly intimate. She felt embarrassed and light-headed. The latter sensation could have been from the fever she was fighting, but she didn't think so. Still, it was equally unlikely it was because of what Jeff was doing. He was being kind, nothing more. He was a stranger. A slightly scary stranger. She thought of him as an ice-cold killer, not an attractive man.
'Mommy helps me with my shoes, too,' Maggie offered, leaning against Ashley. 'With my pink shoes, she has to tie the bow two times instead of just one, 'cause they're so long.' Her voice indicated her reverence at the additional work her mother was willing to perform.
'I think I can get by with just one bow,' Jeff said, as he finished with the first shoe and started on the second. 'Are you ready to go?'
'I need a coat,' the girl informed him.
'Do you know where yours is?'
Maggie nodded, then took off in the direction of their cot. Ashley waited until Jeff finished with her shoes and straightened.
The room wasn't spinning so much now and her head felt slightly more clear than when she'd first awakened. Her body still ached and she knew she looked horrible, but as long as her brain continued to function, they would be fine.
'You're acting as if it's all decided,' she said.
'Isn't it?' He jerked his head toward the cot where two members of the volunteer staff were already collecting her things. 'You need time and a place to recover. I can provide both.'
'I want to trust you. As you've already learned, I'm running out of options. But I still have questions. I don't know why you're doing this.'
For the first time since he arrived, he wouldn't meet her gaze. He looked over her head, but she doubted he was seeing the bustling activities in the temporary shelter. He'd gone somewhere else, and based on what she knew about it, it wasn't a place she wanted to know about.
Finally he shrugged. 'I'm under my good-deed quota for this lifetime.'
It wasn't an answer. It wasn't even a good fake answer. She had the sudden thought that maybe he didn't know why he was doing it, either. Which was scary, but not as scary as having nowhere to go. It all came down to whether or not she trusted him. Ashley looked into his face, the strong bone structure, the empty eyes. He had a scar by his mouth and the few gray hairs at his temples. Both her gut and her daughter said he was safe. Was that enough?
'I'm a member of the Better Business Bureau. Does that help?'
The corners of his mouth turned up. The smile transformed him, making him handsome and approachable. It also made her heart beat just a little faster and her breathing increase.
The flu, she told herself. A physical manifestation of her virus. Nothing more.
'Thank you,' she said, pushing herself to her feet and swaying slightly before she gained her balance. 'I'm very grateful for your assistance.'
'You're welcome.'
There was a plus to all this, she thought. If Jeff turned out to be a nice guy in disguise, maybe she could convince him not to fire her from her cleaning job. Then in a few short days, she could return to her regular life and pretend none of this had happened.
