“Ah, no, I don’t remember them if I did.” She let out a shuddering breath. “I actually slept pretty well considering. Sometimes I have trouble sleeping.”
“Not a shock you had one about that asshole. I’m going to call Ed soon and see what happened last night. You hungry?”
She nodded.
“Doc said it might be a good idea to stick to regular times for snacks and meals for your diabetes, is that what you do?”
Wow. He’d talked to a doctor about her? That was sweet. “Ahh. I try. Sometimes I forget though.
“I’ll go make some breakfast. Scrambled eggs on toast okay?”
“Sorry to be so much hassle.” She glanced down.
“Hey, look at me.” He waited until she raised her face. “You’re never a hassle, understand me?”
She nodded. But she didn’t believe it. She’d been a hassle her entire life. And things didn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.
“Oh, your clean clothes are on the dresser. We’re going to need to get you some new things, though. As cute as you are wearing one of my T-shirts, I don’t think you want to wear them all the time.” He winked at her and then left.
Crap! How had she forgotten that all she was wearing was his T-shirt? Yikes. How easily she could have flashed him.
After checking her blood sugar levels, she got dressed and pulled her hair back into a ponytail. She made the bed. She tucked her snuggly and Princess Nana back in the backpack. He hadn’t said anything about them. Maybe he hadn’t noticed them? Or maybe he thought she was a weirdo. If he’d seen her sucking her thumb, no doubt he already thought that.
Just get out there and eat breakfast.
She injected some insulin. Then, heart sinking, lead in her stomach, she practically dragged her feet into the kitchen and dining area.
Linc looked up from where he was setting two big plates of food on the small kitchen table. He gave her an inquisitive look.
“I know my cooking isn’t cordon bleu, but people don’t usually come to the dinner table like it’s their last supper, either.”
Oh jeez, Marisol. Way to be ungrateful.
“I’m so sorry, it’s not the food. I guess I’m just feeling a bit down right now.” Was it okay to admit that? People didn’t like to be around people who were feeling low, right? Maybe she shouldn’t have said it.
Urgh. She just wasn’t good at this crap. And by crap, she meant anything to do with other people.
“Shoot. Sorry. I just keep mucking up.”
“Hey.” He took her face between his hands, raising it so he could stare down into her eyes. “It’s completely understandable that you’re feeling a bit off. Okay? You never have to apologize for your feelings.”
“I don’t want you to think I don’t appreciate everything you’ve done.”
“Far as I can tell, I haven’t done much at all.”
“You came out in the middle of the night because I was in trouble. Brought me back here. Washed my clothes. Gave me yours to wear. And you just made me breakfast. I can’t remember the last time someone helped me this much. I don’t think anyone has made me breakfast in years. Not since Ana.”
“Ana?”
“She was our housekeeper for a while when I was younger, she was from Venezuela. When my aunt wasn’t home, Ana would make me all sorts of goodies like arepas and cachitos. I was telling Ed about Ana last night. She was our housekeeper for about a year until my aunt came home one day and discovered her teaching me Spanish. She fired Ana and forbid me from ever speaking the language. The only bits of Spanish I know is a few swear words I’ve picked up here and there. Then about a month later, my aunt was arrested and this lovely social worker let me to stay with Ana and her family. That week that I stayed with Ana, well, I actually felt like part of a family.”
“God, teeny,” he said with sympathy. “That aunt of yours has got a lot to answer for.”
She shrugged. “She is what she is.”
“Well, I don’t like that you weren’t cared for the way you should have been. That won’t happen while you’re here. How is your neck this morning?”
She raised her hand to touch the still-sore skin. “It feels all right. Hopefully, it won’t bruise too badly.”