Page 91 of Precious Hazard

She answers on the seventh ring.

“It’s two in the morning, Tara. What—”

“Arturo is sick,” I say as I climb back into the bed beside him. “He’s burning up. And he’s babbling nonsense. What do I do?”

“What’s his temp?”

“I… I don’t know. I don’t know where the thermometer is. But his skin is hot to the touch. And the gibberish he’s spewing makes him sound like his damn brain is fried.”

“Yeah, alright. I’ve seen that before. It happened when his fever spiked above a hundred and four.”

“A hundred and four?” I choke out as my stomach tumbles to my feet.

“Yeah. You need to bring it down. Fast. Get him into the shower. Lukewarm water, though. Not cold.”

“How? He’s twice my size, Sienna. And he’s barely coherent, ” I cry out. “Would meds help? He’s been carrying a bottle of ibuprofen with him for days, popping that shit like fucking candy. I could try to find it.”

“It won’t be fast enough. The pills, I mean. They’ll take too long to work. At least get some wet towels and cover him from head to toe. I’ll call Ilaria and ask her to come see him. Best not to give him any meds until then.”

“Ilaria?”

“The don’s mother.”

“Ajello has a mother?” I thought that man was spawned. By something dark and unnatural.

“I know, it’s hard to believe. But she’s a nice lady and a great doctor, so don’t worry. I’m gonna hang up now and call her. Keep me posted on how things go, alright?”

“Sure. Wet towels. Ilaria. Keep you posted.” I press my palm to Arturo’s scalding forehead. “Tell her to hurry.”

I toss the phone away and rush into the bathroom to get the towels.

Fifteen minutes later, I’m staring at the pile of half-dry towels next to the bed. I’ve been changing them almost as fast as I place them, but it hasn’t done anything. Arturo’s skin feels just as hot as before. Maybe even hotter.Fuck.

“Arturo.” I push the strands of his soaked hair off his face. “We need to get you into the shower.”

He blinks, slowly. His still dazed-looking eyes finally meet mine. “Mm-hmm… Love showering with you. Will you let me eat your pussy again?”

“No!” My cheeks warm. I can feel myself getting red all over. “You have a fever, and we need to bring it down.”

“So no pussy? I’m not going then.”

“I wasn’t asking.” I grab his wrists and pull, trying to get him up and out of bed. “A little help here, please.”

“Nope. No pussy, no help.” He drops back onto the pillow.

Jesus!“Okay. Fine. Whatever you want.” He can’t even sit up, much less go down on me.

With effort, I manage to get him on his feet, but both of us almost end up on the floor when he loses his balance. Catching him just in time, I swing his arm around my neck, and supporting him by his waist, lead him toward the bathroom.

“I love your smell,” Arturo says, burying his nose in my hair.

“Um… thank you.”

“I haven’t let Greta change my sheets since you spent the night in my bed. They smell like you, and I wanna keep them like that forever.”

“That’s gross.”

“Noooo. But if you don’t like, I can get new ones,” he says, straightening out. “But only if you move in. Into my bedroom, my bed. If you always sleep with me. On top of me. I loved that. Love many things about you, actually.”

---