Free Olympic Cove 2-Breaker Zone by Nicola Cameron Page B

the
mer’s groin. Bad
doctor. No licking the
patient, even if he could be a freaking underwear model.
    Gingerly, he grabbed the edge of the
blanket and pulled it back over Aidan. “Uh, I meant internally. Any sensation of pressure, sharp pain?”
    “No. Your medicine helped with that. I’m
just sleepy now.”
    “Okay, yeah. Good.”
    They stared at each other in the dim
light. “I should go—” Nick began.
    “Would you stay with me?” Aidan asked
softly. “Just until I fall asleep?”
    The slightly wistful tone in the mer’s
voice tugged unexpectedly at him. “I … yeah. Yeah, I
can do that.” Spotting an old armchair shoved in the corner, he dragged it to
the side of the bed. “It’s probably a good idea anyway,” he said, sitting down.
“I really wish I could’ve gotten a CAT scan or MRI of your leg. Call me
overprotective, but I don’t like not knowing what’s going on inside you.”
    “You could just ask,” the mer said
mildly.
    “I meant medically.”
    “Oh. Why did you drag the chair over?”
    “Well, sitting on the edge of the bed
would get uncomfortable after a while.”
    “No, I mean why don’t you take the other
side of the bed? I can move over, and then you can stretch out. Has to be more comfortable than sitting in a chair.”
    Nick’s face heated. A totally
irresponsible and unprofessional part of him suggested he do just that—shuck
off his jeans and shoes, crawl into bed next to Aidan, and go to sleep curled
around the mer’s body.
    The problem was what would happen before
he went to sleep. His cock twitched once as a reminder. “I can’t do that,” he
said slowly.
    “Why not?”
    “Because you’re
my patient.”
    “So what?”
    Different
worlds, remember? “I can’t share a bed with a patient. It’s unprofessional.” Not that the AMA would ever believe this.
    Aidan came up on his elbows. The blanket
shifted again, and Nick couldn’t help staring at a set of the most perfect
washboard abs he’d ever seen.   “Why?”
    He pinched the bridge of his nose,
groaning a bit. After two beers he was in no shape to explain emotional
vulnerability in patients and licensing board rules to a non-human. “It just
isn’t. You have to trust me on that.”
    Aidan frowned. “So you’ll just sit there
all night?”
    “Yeah, if that’s
okay with you.” He winced. “All right with you, I mean.”
    “I speak English, Nick. I know what
‘okay’ means.”
    “I wasn’t sure. You and Bythos were
speaking another language earlier.”
    “Gaelic.” The merman
finally settled back on the pillows, but left the blanket where it was. “My pod
originally lived in the waters off the coast of Ireland before they came down
here. Gaelic was Ma and Da’s first land language, and I grew up speaking it. We
always learn the language of the local landfolk. It makes going ashore easier.”
    Nick leaned back in the chair, trying to
get comfortable on the elderly upholstery. “So how old are you?”
    “Thirty-three.”
    “Oh.”
    “What?”
    Nick smiled. “I just—I expected you to
say something like thirty-three seasons or something like that.”
    Aidan snorted gently. “What part of ‘I
speak English’ did you not get? I’m not something out of a fairytale, Nick. I
talk like you do.” He sighed. “Although Éthlé is a little
more formal than English.”
    “Éthlé?”
    “What we speak when we’re under water.
Apparently humans think it sounds a lot like dolphin.” He snuggled down into
his pillow, eyes closing. “How old are you?”
    “Thirty-five.”
    “Mm. Good. You’re the right age.”
    Nick slouched down in the chair,
propping his head on a balled hand. His eyes were getting heavier by the second. “For what?”
    Aidan chuckled. “Lots
of things.”
    “Like?”
    “Finding someone and settling down.”
    He thought briefly of Aaron and his last
words. I have to let you go, pet. I’m
sorry. “Yeah, I’m not good at that.”
    Aidan made a sleepy noise.