The doctor had said no weight on the foot for one week, but after that he’d recover quickly. Summer wanted to believe that with all her might but he looked so haggard and hollow and pale. His mouth was tight, as if the pain meds weren’t working, or maybe that was just because she was hovering.

Not wanting to leave him alone, she sat on the edge of the bed.

“Hey, wife,” he said, eyes still closed, not moving a single muscle.

“Do you need anything?”

“Nah. Just checking to see if you’d answer to the title.”

“Funny.”

One side of his mouth quirked, and she caught a flash of his dimple. “Gotta get your kicks where you can when you’re down,” he murmured.

“You won’t be down for long. Are you hungry?”

“Yeah. I want a Big Mac and a Supersized order of fries, extra carbs and cholesterol please.”

He’d lost weight in the past few days. And since he was still so carefully not moving, she figured the order was more wishful thinking than anything else. “How about some soup and tea?”

He made a very soft noise of aversion and then was quiet.

So was she. For days she’d been living with the nightmare of what could have happened. How much worse this could have been. He could have taken the bullet in his chest, or in the head, in which case, she might be sitting by his grave—

She put her fingers over her mouth.

“You going to stare at me until I’m better? Because that might be a while.”

“Yes,” she said a little shakily. “Until you’re better, I’m not going to take my eyes off you.”

“Even when I’m in the shower?”

“Why not? I’ve seen it all before.”

“Not on a regular basis. Only when you’re needing a distraction.”

She stared down at him, horrified that that’s what he thought he was. She had nobody but herself to blame for that, because she’d started this whole thing with him for exactly that. A distraction. “Joe.” Her throat went tight. “You know how I feel about you, right? You know I—”

He opened his eyes for this.

But it wasn’t as easy when he was looking at her, she discovered. Not that there was anything remotely easy about speaking of her feelings at all. “Um…”

He arched a brow.

“I…”

He snorted and shut his eyes again. “Don’t hurt yourself.”

God, she felt like a fool. Why couldn’t she just say it? He made her laugh, he made her feel good, he made her happy. And if that meant she’d deepened her feelings to…love…then that’s what it was.

“I’m hot,” he said.

Pathetically grateful for the break, Summer leapt up and pulled off his blanket.

“Still hot.”