My heart sank.
Kellen had found the axe. Had found the stump to chop the wood on. Had even found the pile that needed to be split into smaller pieces.
And now he sat on that stump with his jean leg raised.
I hustled my ass over there, relieve not to see gushing blood. I crouched down to examine his shin.
“Well?”
I sighed. “I’ll get some tweezers and should be able to extract that sliver. Lucky you didn’t chop your toe off.”
“Hey.” Hurt and defensive.
I gazed up and into his stunning-blue eyes. And stared.
His lips twitched into a pout.
“Your efforts were appreciated, Kellen. But chopping wood takes skill and practice. You can’t just wield an axe and cut the wood.”
“That cute guy on YouTube makes it look super easy.”
I squinted. “I’m not going to ask. And I promise you he wasn’t chopping with ease the first time he picked up an axe.” I stood. “Stay put. I’ll be right back.” I hustled to the cabin andretrieved my tweezers. Moments later, I was kneeling before him and removing the sliver. Then I pressed an alcoholic swab to it.
“Shit. Give a guy a warning.”
“So you can try to talk me out of it? No. I need to ensure you don’t get infected.”
He pursed his lips.
I was undeterred. “Do you think you can stand?”
“Of course I can stand.” He jutted his chin.
To myself, I smiled. Outwardly, I aimed for implacable. “All right. Let’s get you inside.”
“What about the wood?”
I frowned, then pointed to the massive pile against the side of the house.
“Son of a bitch.” He glared. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because you wanted to be helpful.”Because I felt guilty for calling you a waste of space.“Look, I have to go out to check my sensors again. You think you’ll be okay?”
The snow had stopped while we ate lunch, but the low, gray clouds still menaced.
“I’ll be okay. You need your coat.”
“Well, yeah.”
See? He can be a considerate person.
He removed the coat, shoved it at me, then hustled to the house. “I’ll start dinner while you’re away.”
I didn’t ask him if he knew how to cook.
In retrospect, I probably should have.
CHAPTER 7
