Page 169 of Diego

I glare at him, and he has the nerve to grin.

Then he stands and holds out both hands.

I look at them. “I can get out of bed.”

“I know you can.”

“But?”

“But we are going to do it this way anyway.”

I sigh and take his hands.

He helps me sit upright first and waits there, watching my face until he is satisfied I am not dizzy. Then he lets me swing my legs carefully over the side of the bed, one hand steady at my arm while I get my feet beneath me.

“I am not made of glass.”

“I know.”

“Why are you acting like I am?”

“Just indulge me, cara, will you?”

The tender way he says it takes the argument right out of me.

He thought he lost a baby too. I can't forget that. It wasn't just me.

His hand shifts to my waist as I stand, and he gives me a moment before we start moving. I let him help because even though I am perfectly capable of walking, there is still a lingering heaviness in my body that reminds me I am not yet fully myself.

We make our way toward the bathroom at a pace slow enough to make me feel ninety years old.

“This is humiliating.”

“No one has ever died of humiliation.”

“Are you sure of that?”

“I'm quite certain.”

I glance at him.

His lips curve.

When we reach the bathroom, he gestures ahead with exaggerated satisfaction. “Luckily for you, the amazing shower in my new bathroom has a bench. My broker really is great, isn't she?”

“She would be if she had actually sold you this property. But it seems she lost out on that sale because her client decided to make it a private sale.”

He looks entirely too pleased with himself. “And that is where you are incorrect. She did get the sale. He made sure of it.” He drops his voice and whispers the last part in my ear, sending shivers down my spine.

I turned my head toward him, eyes narrowed suspiciously. “Really?”

“Really.” His grin turns smug. “I made sure the commission went through Meridian.”

I stare at him. “You paid me commission on a house I did not even negotiate?”

“You found it. You showed it to me. You knew it was right for me before I was willing to admit it. Of course I made sure you got the sale.”

“That is not how it works.”