Page 23 of Hammered and Nailed
Emery kept a hand on me as I sank down. “Tell me your symptoms.”
“I don’t have any symptoms.”
“Bullshit. You’ve got a headache. What else? Nausea, I bet. Are you dizzy?”
Defeated, I nodded.
“Anything else? You’re sweating hard.”
“It’s literally hotter than hell up here,” I pointed out. “Of course I’m sweating.”
Emery pushed my shoulder gently. “Lie down for a minute. See if the dizziness passes.”
I groaned and lay back against the roofing felt, where I hadn’t managed to put shingles yet. Eyes closed, I covered my face with my hands to block out some of the sun. “Shit,” I mumbled.
“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Emery let out a soft sigh and brushed hair from my forehead. Even though I felt like I was dying, it sent butterflies fluttering through me, my breath hitching. We were both quiet for a long time as I took slow, deepbreaths, trying to get my head to stop spinning. After a while, Emery cleared his throat. “Do you think you can climb down? We need to get you somewhere cooler.”
I nodded and eased myself into a sitting position. Another wave of nausea. Another clench of my jaw to make sure the contents of my stomach stayed where they belonged. “You go first.” I bent my legs and put my head between my knees as I waited for Emery to make it to the ground.
A few moments later, the rattle of the ladder ceased. “Alright, I’m down,” he called.
Opening my eyes, I eased toward the ladder and the edge of the roof, breathing deep. I took the ladder slowly, one rung at a time, pausing when the dizziness got to be too much. It felt like an eternity, but eventually I made it to the ground where Emery immediately wrapped his arms around me.
“Let’s get you inside.” He released me and put a hand on my back, guiding me inside gently. “I think you have heat exhaustion.”
I felt like a damn fool letting myself get sick, but I was grateful to Emery for looking out for me. Putting one foot in front of the other, we made it into the house, where a wave of cool air blasted me. I shivered immediately as my body adjusted to the temperature difference. “I should take a shower.”
“You sure you’re able to stand up that long? Or do you want to lie down first?”
I shook my head. “Shower.”
“If you insist.” He followed me to the bathroom, turned the water on, and took a seat on the toilet lid.
“What are you doing?”
Emery shrugged. “I’m going to stay here and make sure you don’t pass out in the shower.”
I smirked, dizziness slowly receding. “Want to join me?”
A snort escaped him as he shook his head. “No. Well, I mean, yes, but no. Not this time. You’re sick. Now’s not the time to fool around in the shower.”
“Fine, fine,” I muttered. “Have it your way.” With my back turned to him, I tugged my shirt off and dropped it to the floor before tugging my shoes and socks off and stepping out of my shorts. A moment later, I stepped into the shower, pulling the curtain closed behind me. As the cool water hit my shoulders and back, I let out a guttural sound from deep in my chest. It felt so, so good to cool down a little. I turned to face the water so that the spray ran down the back of my head and neck, pressed my hands to the shower wall, and took slow, deep breaths to settle my racing heartbeat.
I didn’t know how long I stood there, but eventually my body began to feel a little more normal. I soaped up and rinsed, washed the sweat from my hair and the dirt from my face, and sighed in relief.
“That good, huh?” Emery’s voice startled me. I’d somehow forgotten he was in the bathroom, making sure I didn’t die in the shower or something.
With a weak chuckle, I turned off the water. “It really is.”
Emery pushed the curtain open slightly and handed me a towel.
“Come on,” I teased, thinking about the other day. “You don’t want to take another peek?”
“Maybe next time. Let’s get you to bed.”
“Is that a proposition?”
He let out a startled laugh. “No, it’s an instruction. You need to rest.”
