The Barons of Texas: Jill Read Free

She blindly reached out for a pillow and pulled it over her eyes.
    She heard him stride into her bathroom, heard water running; then, after several moments, the mattress shifted with his weight as he sat down beside her.
    “Jill, honey? Can you open your eyes? You need to look at me for a second.”
    It was the last thing she wanted to do. The light was going to be intolerable. She dragged the pillow off her face and slowly opened her eyes. With each hand, Colin held up six pill bottles by their tops.
    “Which do you need?”
    She pointed to one.
    “How many?”
    She held up one finger.
    He lifted her head and slid his arm behind her shoulders to brace her. She took the pill with a gulp of water from the glass he offered.
    She settled back onto the pillow, her eyes once again closed. “The light…” The lamp was turned off before she could finish the sentence. The only other light came from a low-wattage lamp in her bathroom. She tended to leave that one on all the time, which was good, because once he left, it would be safer for her if she had some light, in case she decided she needed more medication or had to go to the bathroom. “Thank you. You can leave now. I’ll be fine.” If the pain didn’t let up soon, she was going to have to try something else.
    “I’m glad you’re going to be fine, but in the meantime, I think I should call your doctor.”
    Even with pain pounding in her head, she could appreciate the texture of his voice—low-pitched and husky with concern. “No.”
    “Jill, I’m not blind. You’re in severe pain. Your doctor should know.”
    “He knows.”
    She heard him exhale a long breath. “Okay, if I see that you’re feeling better within the next thirty minutes, I’ll hold off calling him for now. But I am staying with you.”
    “No.” She would never be able to relax with him there.
    “Shh. Don’t try to argue with me, because you won’t win. Besides, it’s clearly too much of an effort for you.”
    He was right about that. Then, though any movement was going to be hard, she managed to roll herhead slightly on the pillow and tried to reach the hairpins that had her hair bound so tightly into its French twist. Her movement brought a wave of nausea with it, and she faltered.
    He gently brushed her hand aside and did it himself. When all the pins were out, he slowly, tenderly combed his fingers through her hair until it was loose and her scalp didn’t feel quite as tight. Then he took her hand in his and softly stroked her forearm. She wouldn’t have thought it possible, but surprisingly, his touch soothed. Normally she didn’t like to be touched.
    She tried to calculate the consequences of Colin’s having seen her at her most vulnerable, but no thoughts could form when there was so much pain, pain that was exhausting her as she tried to fight it. So she lay very still, waiting, praying for the medicine to kick in.
    “What about your dress?” she heard him ask. “Would you be more comfortable in something else?”
    Yes, she would, but she simply wasn’t up to changing. “Not now.”
    “Let me know when you think you can move without so much pain.”
    She attempted to blank her mind, but she was too aware of the pain, too aware of the man stroking her arm.
    Colin carefully watched her, trying to think of what else he could do for her. He had recognized a couple of the names on the prescription bottles. It was medicine used for migraine headaches. Several people heknew had them. How long, he wondered, had Jill been suffering from them?
    From what he’d heard about migraines, she was a prime candidate for them—type A personality, a perfectionist through and through who worked extremely hard.
    Tonight had been a perfect example. She hadn’t enjoyed the party. She had worked the party. And he knew her well enough to know that his invitation, along with many others, had been extended to make up the numbers she needed. There had really been only two or three people she had