A shiver raced up her spine.
He pulled a bench closer to the fire. “Sit here.”
She tried to move her leg again but winced.
“What’s wrong?” His voice was sharp.
“I’m fine—”
“She injured her ankle.” Hyacinth spoke at the same time as Violet.
Sterling’s boots clomped across the puncheon log floor. He was beside her in the next instant, shoving aside the blankets on her legs.
She jerked the cover back down. “Hyacinth has taken care of it.”
“Let me see it,” he growled.
“There’s nothing you can do.”
He shot her a fierce scowl, then tugged aside the blanket again. His eyes dared her to defy him, and the stubborn set of his jaw told her he wouldn’t be swayed from examining her.
She sighed and leaned back.
He lowered himself to his knees and tenderly peeled back the towels she’d wrapped around her ankle and foot for warmth. As the covering fell away to reveal the discolored and swollen skin that circled her ankle, his brows pinched together.
He pressed his fingers against the puffy areas. “Tell me where it hurts the most.”
“Everywhere.”
He tossed her a censuring look, one that told her to cooperate.
As he probed near the inside of her ankle, the pain was sharp. “There. That hurt.”
He gentled his touch and continued to assess her. When he finished, he lowered her foot to the mattress. “I’ve seen broken ankles, and yours seems more like a sprain than a fracture.”
“Let’s hope you’re right.”
He covered her foot up, then sat back on his heels and glanced around the cabin, pursing his lips as he did when he was coming up with a plan.
How was it that she could remember what his various facial expressions meant? She’d never been able to forget his smile. It turned the brown of his eyes almost golden and made hiseyes crinkle at the corners. It also relaxed his features and the hardness of his jaw so that he was less intimidating.
She’d been able to bring out his smile from time to time when they’d been courting, and she’d loved being able to do so.
He stood, shed his coat, then before she knew what he was doing, he reached down and slid his arms beneath her, lifting her off the bed.
“Sterling, put me down.”
Ignoring her, he straightened, his movements cautious. As he turned and started toward the stove, he cocked his head toward one of the two chairs in the cabin. “Move the chairs closer to the fire,” he said to Hyacinth.
The young woman lifted her chin at Sterling as though she might defy him, then with a glare that held her contempt, she dragged the chairs directly in front of the stove.
With Sterling’s face so close, Violet couldn’t keep from studying his features, chiseled and bronzed and weathered. The layer of dark scruff only added to his ruggedness. He was every bit as attractive now as he’d been the day she’d first seen him. Of course, her body reacted as it always had, with a flutter low in her abdomen.
There was no questioning how handsome Sterling Noble was. He was one of the best-looking men in the area.
No, her physical attraction to him had never been the issue. She could admit that she’d liked holding his hand when they’d walked, had loved being in his arms when they’d hugged, and had felt a liquid heat when they’d kissed. While they hadn’t kissed often, they had kissed a few times as their wedding day had approached.
Even though the physical magnetism had grown between them, he’d been a strong man of character and had remained respectful with her. She could appreciate that more now than she had at the time. A lesser man might have pushed for more,especially so close to their wedding. But not Sterling. He’d remained in control of himself and had always treated her with the utmost respect.
