Not my type. I liked men with a sharper edge…
Still, my brain betrayed me with dirty little thoughts.
What would it feel like to let Henry handle me like he handled the wood?
Nope. Absolutely not. Delete that thought.
I turned to leave before I got caught moaning again, but my oversized boot caught on a plant pot, sending me arse over tit onto the frozen paving slabs.
One undignified yelp later, I sat on the ground, clutching my ankle through the rubbery traitors.
'Everything all right there?'
Of course he’d heard me.
Henry crouched beside me, all big blue eyes and thick fingers.
'Don’t move,' he said, his calm demeanour almost commanding. I folded like a cheap deck chair.
'I’m fine,' I lied. 'Just tripped.'
'Right,' he said, smiling a little. 'So you’re holding your ankle for emotional support?’
He reached out a hand. 'Come on.'
'I can get up myself.'
'You could,' he said, 'but you’ll just hurt it more. Stop being so pig-headed and let me help you.’
Before I could protest, he scooped an arm under mine and half-lifted, half-guided me toward the greenhouse. It had been bad enough watching him from afar, but being pressed up against his warm side had my stomach flipping.
'Honestly,' I said, 'this is unnecessary.'
'Humour me.'
He eased me down onto a wooden bench among rows of plants and glass jars filled with cuttings.
'Right,' he said, crouching again. 'Let’s have a look.'
'That’s not?—'
He was already gently tugging off the boot.
'Sit still,' he murmured, and a ribbon of heat filled me. My sock followed, and when his thumb skated my ankle, it took everything in me to avoid my face giving me away.
His hand wrapped gently around my ankle, steady and warm, as he turned it this way and that. He wasn’t remotely inappropriate, unfortunately. It was attentive.
But my insides didn’t care about that. Every nerve ending in my body lit up like a gaudy shopping centre Christmas tree.
'Does that hurt?' he asked, looking up.
His eyes were the exact colour of the winter sky on a clear day, and one curl hung down to graze his brow. I wanted to tuck it away, but daren’t move.
I swallowed. 'No.’
He raised a brow.
‘Well, maybe a little.'
