She placed his cell in his palm and watched his face as he glanced down to the screen. His eyes instantly darted back up to hers.
“Not snooping?” he mocked. “So at four in the morning, you suddenly took an interest in a rehab facility? One that you obviously know I have ties to.”
“You had a call,” she stated, her heart beating fast. “They couldn’t tell me much, but your dad fell and they’re taking him to Mercy Hospital.”
Cash swore under his breath, but his eyes widened as he instantly became more alert. “Who called? Mary?”
Jade nodded. “I told her I’d be right there. I wasn’t sure whether to wake you or not, so I just looked up what the facility was because I didn’t know what I was dealing with. My first thought was a nursing home, but—”
“He’s an addict.” Cash fisted his phone and swiped the back of his hand across his damp forehead. “Other than Tanner and Jax, he’s all I have. Actually, I’m all he has.”
Jade reached for him. She slid her hand just below his jawline, her fingers threading into his unruly hair at the nape of his neck. She stroked her thumb over the coarse hair on his jaw.
“I didn’t know.”
He nodded and stepped back, ins
tantly putting that invisible wall between them. Clearly, the topic of his dad was off-limits, but she just wanted to help. Maybe they weren’t as far into this relationship as she’d thought. They may have started out just physical, but she couldn’t pretend they hadn’t forged much deeper than that.
She’d shared so much of her life, maybe she was naïve to think he’d do the same.
“I can drive myself to the hospital,” he told her. “I’m not feeling nearly as bad as I was.”
He may be feeling better, but he looked terrible. “I’m just trying to help.”
“You helped. I wouldn’t have known they called.”
Cash turned and headed down the hall toward what she assumed was his bedroom . . . she’d never actually made it in there.
Jade followed but remained in the doorway. The king-size bed was a tangle of dark navy sheets and a charcoal duvet. There was a brown leather chair in the corner that held a stack of folded jeans. Her eyes scanned the room and landed on the chest of drawers on the opposite wall. There was only one decoration in the entire room, and that was the framed photo of a young boy sandwiched between a man and a woman. All three were smiling, all three appeared to be one unit.
No doubt this was Cash with his parents. Jade’s heart hurt just looking at the image, but she wasn’t about to bring it up when the tension and vulnerability was already so high.
Cash grabbed a pair of jeans from the chair and started changing his clothes, completely ignoring her. Jade didn’t want to admit to hurt feelings; that was one trait she’d learned and actually used from her mother. Never would she let someone see if they’d damaged her in any way.
Jade straightened her shoulders and suppressed a yawn. It had been a long time since she’d stayed up all night and now that she was slowing down and not so worried about how sick Cash was, exhaustion was settling in.
“I made soup for you,” she told him, trying to circle back to why she’d stayed to begin with. “It’s in the fridge. I’ll just clean up my stuff and get out of your way.”
Wearing only a pair of unbuttoned jeans, Cash clutched a black T-shirt in hand and faced her. “Don’t use that high-and-mighty tone, Red. We’re past that.”
She’d thought so, but maybe not. “I’m just letting you know. I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
Cash stared at her for another moment before he jerked the T-shirt over his head and covered those abs he really should leave on display.
“I’m not trying to be a dick,” he told her but made no move toward her. “There are just things I’d rather keep private.”
Meaning he didn’t want to open up to her, no matter that she’d spilled her own past and insecurities just the other night. Apparently, honesty and feelings only ran one way here.
Which was fine, right? They hadn’t agreed to all the personal, deep-rooted emotions. They’d agreed to sex—secret sex.
Why was something so simple in theory actually more complicated than she’d ever anticipated?
“I understand,” she told him and pasted on a smile she knew full well looked as fake as it felt. “I’ll just get going.”
She turned to go when he called her name. Jade stilled but didn’t turn back around.
“I don’t want you leaving hurt.”