The Other Man (The Other Man Series Book 1) (10 page)

He stopped and spun to face me. Swallowing, his shoulders slumped and he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Fucking hell. Fucking hell, Blake. This is not good. I don’t do this shit.”

“What are you talking about? Don’t do what shit?” I asked.

“This!” He flicked his hand out. “This, worrying about people. Bringing shit magazines and
snacks
into hospitals. Do you know that when they loaded you into that ambulance, I drove around for two fucking hours and I have no idea where I went. I don’t remember! I just know I turned up, back at the smoking pile of rubble that used to be my livelihood and I’d lost two hours of my life. Have you ever been that worried? So completely driven insane with worry that you actually just lose hours of your life? Because I haven’t, not before yesterday, and not before you.”

I sighed, he wasn’t really making any sense.

“So what exactly are you trying to say, Zach?”

“I think…” he stopped.

“Damn it! You think what?”

“I think I want you.”

I frowned, “No offence, Zach, but that doesn’t make any sense. You already made that obvious and,” I lowered my voice to a whisper. “You had my dick in your mouth less than seventy two hours ago. Pretty certain I already knew that you wanted me. You’re jittery and acting crazy because you want me? I don’t buy it.”

“You don’t understand,” he pressed, sounding panicked. “I don’t do this. I fuck anyone as long as I find them attractive.
Anyone
. I never claimed to be a good person and I’d be a liar if I did. I don’t even fucking remember the names of the majority of the people I’ve fucked and I...Don’t...Care.”

Rapidly growing impatient with Zach’s nonsensical rambling, I reached out to grab his hand. His speech paused and his eyes fell to our joined fingers.

“Get to the point, Zach.”

With a heavy sigh, he sat on the edge of the bed and moved our hands to his lap.

“You know I want to fuck you, obviously. But I’m like a spoilt child when it comes to sex and I’ll have whoever I want, then go find the next person. That’s not it though, what I mean is, I want
you
. We’ve spent less than three hours together, including right now, but my brain doesn’t seem to care about that. I’m not sure even what I’m asking, but maybe, do you think we could...I want to
date
you or something. I want to
know
you.”

Before I could respond, the curtain swept open and I snatched my hand away from his lap. The nurse, followed by Carlie. Her eyes flicked between Zach and I, then back again. I tensed, not knowing how much of Zach’s words she had heard.

I was handed a tiny cup with tablets in and a glass of water so I swallowed them before anyone could speak.

“Um, hi Zach. What are you doing here?”

I watched him change in front of my eyes. His shoulders relaxed, he grinned and shrugged. His ego was showing again. The more I saw him, the more I was starting to think that was just a facade entirely. A mask that he put on each morning to face the world.

“When I found out that a fireman got hurt at the gym, I thought I’d come down and bring something to say thank you. It’s a brave thing to do and who knows, maybe things could have been even worse and someone could have died if they hadn’t been there. Seemed like the right thing do. Anyway, as you obviously know, I turned up and who’s the hero of the hour?”

He lied so easily, even I believed him and I
knew
he wasn’t being honest. It seemed as though Carlie did too when she cried, “Oh how lovely!”

She hugged him, then said to me, “See Blake, didn’t I tell you that he was such a good guy?”

“Yeah, Carlie, you were right. He
is
a good guy.”

I put extra emphasis on my words so that he could start paying attention. Sleeping around doesn’t necessarily make you a bad person.

“I’m going to shoot off anyway. It was good to see you, and I hope you feel better soon,” as he stood up to leave, Carlie reached for the bag of gifts that he had bought with him and he snatched it away. “No! Um...sorry. I’ll just put these away before I leave.”

He shoved the whole bag in the little cupboard next the bed and flicked two fingers in a wave as he left.

“Well that was odd,” Carlie mused.

It actually was odd, so I agreed with her.

“Anyway! I was just talking to the nice doctor outside and he said he’ll be round to talk to you after dinner, which is about fifteen minutes, but that he’ll be recommending that you stay here for four or five days so they can monitor you and keep an eye out for signs of infection or further respira...breathing issues. You’ll be right as rain in no time, he said! I’m going to head home before the dinner rush and evening visiting hours,” she shuddered. “You know how I feel about the germs in these places, especially when there’s so many people around. I’ll pop by tomorrow though, after I’ve found a new decent gym.”

She leaned down and kissed me on the cheek, lingering for a few seconds, “I’m glad you’re ok, babe. Love you.”

She strolled away and I was left staring at the closed curtain in shock. I know, I know, I definitely couldn’t be putting myself forward for husband of the year award, but I was willing to try. I was still making mistakes and I had a lot to make up for but I would never have left Carlie alone in the hospital less than an hour after she woke up from a life-threatening injury. Who does that?

There was still some fight in me but I was beginning to wonder if that was a waste of both our time. Didn’t I deserve to be happy too?

With the new painkillers flowing through my system, I gave up on trying to work out my life and closed my eyes.

The first rays of sunshine were touching the horizon when I woke up, telling me that it was still far too early. My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I hadn’t eaten, so I reached for the buzzer to call a nurse.

“What’s wrong?” Zach’s sleep-filled voice sounded from the side of me and I jumped.

“Fucking hell, you scared the shit out of me,” I hissed. “What are you doing here?”

Rubbing his eyes awake, he sat up further up in the chair and leaned forward.

“I couldn’t sleep last night. I was just pacing the apartment, not knowing what to do with myself. So I came back. Must have fallen asleep at some point, but damn this chair is
not
comfortable.”

He stretched out his back and extended his bent legs.

“Why do you need a nurse anyway?” He asked.

I looked at the buzzer in my hand, trying to remember why I had needed it, “Oh, I didn’t really. I just need something to eat.”

He scoffed, “Trust me, there aren’t nearly enough nurses in this place to help you with that. I’m sure it won’t be long until the breakfast comes round. Why don’t you just have something from that stuff I bought you for now?”

“Oh yeah, I forgot I even had that,” I reached for the bag but paused when Zach laughed quietly. “What?”

“You didn’t open it yet.”

“No, I fell asleep not long after you left. Why?”

He shrugged with a grin, “Just take a look.”

Curious as to why he found himself so funny, I opened the bag and emptied it all out onto the bed.

Magazines, crisps, chocolate & a few pieces of fruit. Nothing funny.

“Thank you?” I said, though it sounded like a question.

Still grinning, he leant over and pushed one of the magazines forward. A fully-nude man winked up at me from the cover and one of the articles said ‘Which position is right for you? Are you getting enough from your man?’. Once it hit me exactly what sort of magazine he’d bought, I scrambled to hide it under the pillow and scowled at him.

“Are you crazy? Why would you do that? I don’t want that,” I fumed.

He didn’t even have the grace to look guilty, “Well, at first I thought it would be funny. Then I started to wonder if it might actually help you figure some things out.”

I closed my eyes and my teeth clenched. There was a lot of things I needed to figure out at that point but looking at the front of that magazine made me want to throw up. I didn’t find men attractive and seeing one naked had no effect on me whatsoever. His obvious attempt at humour just fell flat and I could hardly bring myself to look at him.

“You might be ok with all this, Zach, but I’m not. I’m a married fucking man for crying out loud. What if Carlie had have found that?”

“It would be difficult for her to find it considering she’s not here, is she? She fled this place seconds after I left and she didn’t even hesitate. I was still sitting in my car wondering if I should be leaving at all and she comes strolling out like she doesn’t have a care in the world. She jumped in that shiny, girly car and just took off! Face it, Zach, that woman cares about no one but herself.”

“She doesn’t like hospitals.”

“Who does? No one
wants
to spend time in a place that’s full of death and disease. Don’t make lame excuses for her.”

Things were starting to get heated. What the fuck did he know about the way a wife should behave? He’d admitted it himself, that he was the world’s biggest slut. The thought fled as soon as it came because in a way, he was right and I’d thought the same thing myself. I just didn’t want to admit it.

“Look, this is getting us nowhere. Just...just don’t buy me things like that ok, I hate it.”

He shrugged, “It was just a joke, Blake. I think you’re overreacting, but fine, it won’t happen again.”

He fell silent, but kept his eyes on my face. He was looking at me like I was a puzzle he needed to solve. Part of me wished that I could just give him the answers, except that I didn’t even have them myself. I’d overreacted and he’d called me out on it.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bite your head off.”

He scoffed, “I’m not a woman, Blake, and I’m also not stupid. You can react however you want to react because they’re
your
emotions. I’m a big boy, I can take it. I don’t want or need your apologies. I should have known that you wouldn’t see the funny side just yet. Don’t worry about it, yeah?”

I narrowed my eyes slightly. It seemed far too easy, too simple, for that to be the end of it. I was too preoccupied with waiting for him to storm out that I almost missed it when he asked me a question.

“When’s your birthday?”

“What? Why?”

“Just answer the question!”

I told him, “March fifteenth. You?”

“June thirtieth. So you’ve just turned, what? Thirty? Thirty-one?”

“Thirty-five.”

His eyes bulged, “Seriously? Damn.”

“What? What’s wrong with being thirty-five?” I asked, confused. It wasn’t exactly old!

“Well, you just don’t look a day over thirty. Blake, does it bother you that I’m only twenty seven?”

I knew he was younger than me. Did it bother me? No.

I huffed out a breath, “Zach, you’re a
guy
. Do you honestly think that the fact you’re a few years younger than me is going to bother me, when the fact that you have a cock doesn’t?”

“Well, when you put it that way…” he paused. “No, I guess not. Favourite colour?”

“Green. Are we really doing this?”

“Playing twenty questions? Yep,” he confirmed with a nod. “I told you. I like you and I want to know more of you. If that means I have to revert to being a seventeen year old boy who doesn’t know how to hold a proper conversation, then that’s what I’m going to do.”

I opened my mouth to laugh, when my breath escaped in a rush and sharp pains shot through my lungs. I wheezed, coughed and tried patting my chest to relieve the pressure but I couldn’t seem to suck in a breath. Through the pain, I focused on Zach’s worried face and tilted my head towards the oxygen tank, “Mask. I need the mask.”

He jumped up, grabbed the mask and placed it over my face. The coughing subsided moments later and my lungs filled with air. There is nothing,
nothing
, worse than the feeling of not being able to get air into your lungs. It’s almost like you are watching yourself suffocate.

“And you wondered why I couldn’t stay at home,” Zach joked shakily.

“I’m fine, don’t worry. This will pass. I could do with some more of those painkillers though. My ribs are aching like a bitch.”

He ran to the door of the ward and returned seconds later with the little cup, the painkillers and a cheeky grin.

“That was quick,” I noted.

His grin morphed into a smirk, “How do you think I was able to stay at your bedside all night? That petite little blonde nurse is a sucker for a wink and a smile. Most of them are.”

“You’re unbelievable,” I shook my head while he agreed.

“I’m going to have to go and deal will all the boring insurance crap for the gym, but I’ll be back as soon as I can. There’s nothing more horrible than being on your own when you feel like shit. Do you need me to bring you anything back?”

I should have said no and that he shouldn’t bother coming back, but like he said, there is nothing more horrible than being on your own when you feel like shit.

And if nothing else, I just wanted the company.

“Honestly, yeah. Is there any chance you can bring me some actual clothes? I’m not staying in this thing,” I lifted the neck of the hospital gown. “For the next however long.”

“No problem. Phone charger?”

“Oh! Yeah, an IPhone charger,” I added.

“Gotcha. I’ll sort it. If you think of anything else, you can call me and I’ll get that too.”

“And Zach,” I called before he left, he turned back. “Thank you.”

He spun back towards me and climbed onto the bed, causing my lips to part in shock. Putting one hand on the pillow next to my head and the other on my neck, he leaned down, his breath whispered across my lips.

“You’re welcome, Blake,” his lips brushed mine. “Just so you know, this is what you do when you actually give a damn.”

Then he plunged his tongue into my mouth and took control. His fingers snaked into my hair and held my head still while he kissed me. My body reacted on instinct and my cock hardened. All too soon, he pulled away. Noticing that I was struggling to catch my breath, he handed me the mask again and laughed lightly.

He gave my cock a gentle squeeze, “Let’s hope this’ll keep for a while because there will be no more kissing for you until you can actually breathe.”

Thirty-five. I replayed my age over and over in my head in attempt to fight off the urge to sulk like a four year old who had been told they couldn’t have any more candies. Zach saw straight through me and smiled.

“There’s plenty more where that came from, but I’m going to need you to get better for me first, ok?”

“Yeah, ok,” I agreed.

“See you soon.”

I threw my head back and groaned. I had no self-control where that man was concerned. None. Zero. I was beginning to understand that maybe things were the same for him, though I would never understand why.