Do You Still Love Me When We Meet Again? (Aubrey and Damon) novel Chapter 177

Chapter 177

He stroked the back of her hand, his eyes locked onto hers with a depth of emotion that felt almost overwhelming. His voice was a low, soothing velvet. “Aubrey, you’ve been asleep all day. You need to eat something, and then you need to take your medicine.”

Aubrey shook her head, her movements sluggish and weak. “I’m not hungry,” she murmured.

You have to eat, even if you don’t feel like it,” Damon insisted gently. He let go of her hand and stood up, heading into the kitchen. He heated the food he’d prepared, and a moment later, he brought it back into the room.

He began arranging the containers one by one on the over–bed tray, setting them carefully in front of her.

There were five different dishes and a bowl of soup–a spread so lavish it seemed impossible for just one person.

Aubrey looked up, her eyes widening in surprise. “Why did you make so much?”

Damon gave a soft, low chuckle. “I was worried you wouldn’t have an appetite. I figured if I made a variety, there would be at least one thing you’d ctually want to eat.”

Have you eaten yet?” Aubrey asked, her voice still thin.

Damon ladled some soup into a bowl for her. “I’ll just eat whatever you have left when you’re finished.”

A sharp ache bloomed in Aubrey’s chest–a painful mixture of being deeply moved and profoundly sad.

t was completely dark outside now. He had been by her side since he arrived at noon; she didn’t know if he’d managed to grab lunch, but she knew for

fact he hadn’t touched dinner.

Damon did so much for her–too much. A sudden, overwhelming urge to cry surged within her, and she had to fight with everything she had to uppress it.

Damon blew gently on a spoonful of soup for a moment before bringing it to her lips. “Chicken soup,” he murmured. “It’s been simmering for a long

ime.”

Aubrey took the spoon into her mouth. The broth was rich, savory, and warm.

As soon as he pulled the spoon away, she picked up a pair of chopsticks and held them out to him. “Let’s eat together.”

I want to make sure you’re full first,” he insisted. “Then I’ll eat.”

The food will be cold by the time I’m done.“.

It’s not winter,” he countered with a soft smile. “It doesn’t matter.”

Damon offered her another spoonful of soup.

This time, she jerked her head away, turning her face from him with a stubborn, hurt pout.

But she wasn’t actually upset with him–she was upset for him.

This man was nearly perfect, yet here he was, pouring his heart and soul into a woman who felt like she had nothing to offer in return. He was willing to settle for her leftovers, and the sheer devotion of it felt like a weight on her soul.

Just thinking about it made her heart twist with a sense of injustice.

Damon retracted the spoon, leaning to the side to catch a glimpse of her face. “What’s wrong? Are you mad at me?

Aubrey lowered her gaze, her voice small but firm. “Sit on the bed. We eat together, or I’m not eating at all,”

Damon gave her a helpless, indulgent smile. He set the soup bowl in front of her and climbed onto the mattress, sitting cross legged across from her with the bed tray between them.

“Happy now?” he asked, his voice dropping to a warm, intimate murmur.

Aubrey glanced at him, her icy resolve finally beginning to thaw. She picked up a pair of chopsticks and pressed them into his large palin. “You eat your food, and I’ll eat mine. No more hovering”

Damon cleared his throat, a soft light in his eyes. “Fine. Whatever you say ”

Aubrey bit back a smile, lowering her head to take a sip of the soup.

But Damon wasn’t interested in his own plate. He used his chopsticks to flake off a piece of fish, meticulously removing every tiny bone before holding

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it out to her. “Bree, open up.”

“Hmm?” Aubrey looked up, startled.

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The morsel was already at her lips, leaving her no choice but to part them. The tender fish practically melted on her tongue.

She chewed, a slight frown creasing her forehead. “I thought we had a deal? You eat your dinner, and I’ll eat mine. I can help myself once I’m finished with the soup.”

“I want to feed you,” Damon countered, ignoring her protest. His gaze was heavy with an almost overwhelming amount of devotion.

“I have perfectly functional hands, you know.” It wasn’t that she didn’t love the attention; she just wanted him to care about himself for once, instead of pouring everything he had into her.

“I don’t care if you have hands. I’m still feeding you.”

Aubrey let out a long, resigned sigh. “Fine. But are you actually going to eat anything yourself?”

Damon lifted another piece of fish to his own mouth, chewing slowly, his eyes never leaving hers as a smile tugged at his lips.

Aubrey hesitated for a heartbeat before mimicking his actions. She dipped her spoon into the bowl and brought the broth to his lips.

Without a word, Damon leaned in and took it.

She offered another spoonful, and he accepted it just as easily.

The dynamic shifted until she was the one feeding him. By the time the bowl was empty, Aubrey couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh. “You’re a grown man, Damon. You’re not even going to try to say no?”

Why would I?” he countered, his voice low and smooth. “I love it when you take care of me. It makes me feel… pampered.” He reached for her empty bowl and refilled it with more chicken soup, setting it back down in front of her. “I’ve had my fill of the soup. You finish this, and I’ll move on to the

rest.”

It struck Aubrey then just how unapologetically he lived. He was so completely himself.

If something brought him joy, he didn’t give a damn about social norms or unwritten rules.

As she sipped her soup, he continued to offer her bites of meat and vegetables, and this time, she didn’t pull away.

They spent the rest of the meal trading bites, the atmosphere thick with a sweet, domestic intimacy. She was just grateful no nurses had walked in on hem; she would have died of embarrassment at how mushy they were being.

In moments like these, she realized just how much she was learning from him about what it actually meant to love someone.

Once dinner was over, Damon cleared everything away and returned with a glass of warm water and her medication.

Aubrey stared at the tray of medication. There were more pills than usual–a silent, bitter confirmation that her condition was worsening

She kept her face a mask of calm, hiding the visceral wave of revulsion she felt at the sight of them.

Internally, she wanted to scream. She felt fine, almost normal–surely she didn’t need this many chemicals coursing through her system just to stay alive.

But she knew how deceptive this illness could be, a cunning predator that let its prey feel safe right before it moved in for the kill.

She took the glass of warm water and forced the pills down, one heavy swallow at a time.

The moment Damon set the glass back down, Aubrey looked up at him, her voice tinged with a restless edge. “Damon, when can I finally go home?*

“As soon as your lab results are all back and the doctors have finished their final assessment,” he said softly, his voice a steadying force. “They’ll give us the green light the moment they’re sure you’re ready,”

Aubrey nodded, then realized someone was missing. “What about Liv? She hasn’t been by today,”

“She’s staying at my brother’s place now.”

Aubrey’s brow furrowed in immediate concern. “But she’s starting her combined Master’s and PhD program next year. She needs to save up for her tuition and living expenses. Is your brother actually paying her for whatever work she’s doing there?”

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