Chapter 5 The Caregiver's Storm

The sky had been dark all day, but by evening, it unleashed its full fury. Lucy stood by her bedroom window, watching the storm devour Manhattan. Lightning carved through black clouds while wind screamed against the mansion's stone walls.

A knock interrupted her thoughts.

"Mrs. Ashcroft?" Margaret, the head housekeeper, stood at the door, worry creasing her face. "Mr. Ashcroft's caregiver called. She can't make it through this storm. The roads are completely flooded."

Lucy's pulse quickened. "What about William? He needs help with..."

"His evening routine, yes ma'am. Mr. Cooper suggested you might assist for tonight."

After William's cold warning in his study, the last thing Lucy wanted was to be anywhere near him. But as thunder shook the windows, she knew she had no choice.

"Of course. Show me what needs to be done."

Minutes later, Lucy stood outside William's bedroom, arms loaded with medical supplies, pill organizers, and Margaret's hastily scribbled instructions. She knocked firmly.

"What is it?" William's voice cut through the door like ice.

Lucy entered. The bedroom was enormous. A king-sized bed dominated the center, surrounded by dark furniture and floor-to-ceiling windows that revealed the apocalyptic storm outside. William sat in his wheelchair near the windows, a dark silhouette against nature's rage.

"Your caregiver can't get here because of the flooding," Lucy said, keeping her voice steady. "I'll be helping you tonight."

William's head turned slowly, his blue eyes catching the lamplight. "I don't need your help."

"Margaret says you do. Your medications, at minimum."

"I can handle it myself."

Lucy's patience, already worn thin from his earlier dismissal, snapped. "Can you? Because your staff seems to think otherwise, and I'm not going to let you suffer because you're too proud to accept help."

Something flickered across William's face-surprise, perhaps even grudging respect. Thunder crashed overhead, and the lights dimmed ominously.

"Fine," he said through clenched teeth. "Leave the medications on the nightstand and go."

Lucy set everything down and picked up the pill organizer, reading Margaret's notes. "These need to be taken with food."

"I'm not hungry."

"That's not optional."

"I said..."

"I heard you," Lucy interrupted, meeting his glare. "But I'm not leaving until you've taken your medications properly. We can fight about this all night, or you can cooperate. Which will it be?"

The lights flickered again. William's jaw worked as he clearly fought between pride and practicality.

"The easy way," he muttered.

Lucy called the kitchen for food, then stood awkwardly as silence fell between them. She could feel his eyes studying her, measuring her.

"Why did you really agree to marry me?" William asked suddenly.

Lucy turned, startled. "You know why. My family..."

"I know what your father needed," he cut her off. "I'm asking about you. Isabel couldn't run fast enough when she saw me in this chair. But you stayed. Why?"

Lucy considered a diplomatic answer, but something about the genuine curiosity beneath his coldness made her choose truth instead.

"Because I had no choice," she said quietly. "Isabel's rejection didn't just cost my father a business deal, it destroyed him. The shame, the humiliation. And Mirabel would use it to poison what's left of his life. So I did what I had to do."

"Sacrificed yourself."

"I did what was necessary. Just like you did when you agreed to marry one of the Carson sisters despite clearly despising the idea."

William's eyes narrowed. "What makes you think I despise it?"

"Everything about you screams that I'm nothing but an inconvenience. You've made that abundantly clear."

Before William could respond, the lights died completely. Darkness swallowed the room except for sporadic lightning flashes. William cursed under his breath.

"The generator should start any second," he said.

But seconds became minutes. The generator never kicked in. Temperature began dropping immediately.

"I'll check on it," Lucy said, reaching for her phone's flashlight.

"Don't bother. If it hasn't started by now, something's damaged."

Lightning illuminated William attempting to wheel himself toward the bed. His chair caught on something. Lucy couldn't see what and he struggled.

"Let me help."

"I don't need..."

The wheelchair lurched violently sideways as it hit an uneven fold in the rug. William tried to compensate, but momentum worked against him. Lucy rushed forward, grabbing the handles and steadying the chair before it could tip.

"Are you alright?" Her heart pounded.

"I'm fine," William ground out, but she heard the strain beneath his words.

"You're not."

His face suddenly contorted in pain. His hand flew to his right leg.

"What's wrong?" Alarm shot through Lucy.

"Muscle spasm." His voice was tight. "Happens sometimes. Just give me a minute."

But this was clearly more than minor discomfort. William's entire body had gone rigid, his breathing shallow and quick. Lucy remembered Margaret mentioning something about massage for severe spasms.

"Tell me what to do."

"Nothing. Just..." His words dissolved into a sharp gasp.

Lucy made her decision. "I'm helping you to the bed, then I'm going to try to work out that spasm. You can fire me tomorrow, but right now, you need help whether you want it or not."

Perhaps the pain was too intense, or perhaps he finally recognized that pride wasn't worth suffering, but William didn't argue. Lucy helped him transfer to the bed, surprised by the strength in his upper body despite everything.

Once he was settled, Lucy carefully rolled up his pant leg, trying to maintain professionalism despite the intimacy of the situation. She could see his calf muscle locked in a vicious spasm.

"This will hurt," she warned before beginning to massage the knotted muscle gently.

William's sharp inhale confirmed it, but he didn't tell her to stop. Lucy worked carefully, remembering techniques her mother had used years ago when Lucy got cramps from ballet. Gradually, infinitely slowly, she felt the muscle begin to release.

The room fell silent except for the storm's fury and William's gradually steadying breath. Lucy focused on her task, trying not to think about how strange this was. Her hands on her husband's body, this man who remained a stranger.

"My mother used to do this," Lucy found herself saying, needing to fill the heavy silence. "When I was younger, I danced ballet. Terrible cramps in my calves."

"You danced?" William's voice was strained but curious.

"Until I was sixteen. We couldn't afford it after that." Lucy continued the massage, feeling the tension finally easing. "I missed it, but there were more important things."

"Like keeping your family afloat."

"Yes."

Several more minutes of careful work, and the spasm finally released completely. Lucy lowered his pant leg gently.

"You should rest," she said, standing. "I'll stay nearby in case you need me."

"Lucy."

She froze. He'd never used her first name before.

"You were right," William said, his voice different somehow, less harsh, more human. "About me not wanting this marriage. But it wasn't about you." He paused, seeming to wrestle with something. "This was my father's dying wish. That I'd marry, have a family. He was terrified I'd spend my life alone and bitter after the accident. Made me promise I'd try." A humorless laugh escaped him. "He didn't live long enough to see how right he was about the bitter part."

"You're not bitter," Lucy said softly. "You're hurt. There's a difference."

Their eyes met in the darkness, and something passed between them-recognition, perhaps, of shared pain and unwanted circumstances.

The moment shattered as lightning struck close enough to shake the entire mansion. A tremendous crash echoed from somewhere below.

"I should check..." Lucy started toward the door.

"Don't." William's sharp command stopped her. "It's not safe wandering around in the dark. Please."

That single word, please, stopped Lucy cold. She'd never heard it from him.

"Whatever it is can wait until morning," he continued. "Just... stay."

Lucy hesitated, then settled into the armchair by the window, wrapping herself in a throw blanket. But within minutes, she was shivering violently despite the covering.

"The bed is large enough," William said quietly. "And you're freezing. I'm not going to attack you."

Pride warred with practicality and lost. Lucy moved to the far side of the massive bed, staying on top of the covers, as far from William as possible.

"Thank you," she whispered. "For letting me stay."

"Thank you," William replied, exhaustion heavy in his voice, "for not leaving me alone."

As Lucy lay in the darkness, listening to the storm rage and William's breathing gradually even out into sleep, she felt something shift between them. Not everything, the walls hadn't crumbled. But perhaps a few cracks had appeared.

She was just drifting off when she heard it. A soft thud, followed by William's sharp gasp of pain.

Lucy bolted upright, reaching for her phone. In its harsh light, she saw William on the floor beside the bed, his wheelchair overturned, reaching desperately toward the nightstand where his emergency medication sat just out of reach.

"William!" Lucy scrambled off the bed.

He looked up at her, and for the first time since she'd met him, she saw something other than cold disdain in his eyes.

She saw fear.