An unsettling truth dawned on her.Nick had come upon the intruder and had been assaulted because of her.
He stumbled as he stepped forward, his body betraying the pain he was trying to hide.Instinct kicked in before thought, her arm sliding around him to steady his weight.She was acutely aware of the pull of his body heat and the hard arrangement of muscles lashing his abdomen where her hand curled against him.He was breathing heavily and she knew he was hurting.But he wasn’t accepting her help.
“Lean on me, I won’t break,” she gently chastised.
Relief flickered through her when he finally let himself lean.
She guided him up the stairs and into her home.He was clearly in some form of shock as he sank heavily into the chair she pulled out for him.
She leaned over him, and her fingers trembled as she brushed aside his hair, praying she wouldn’t find a fracture.
“This might hurt.Just sit still,” she said as she pressed gently against his skull making sure it was intact and there was no debris in the wound.He flinched under her touch, but held still, jaw tightening with effort.
Then to her surprise, he managed a small smile at her.
“Smells good,” he muttered.
“You can eat as soon as I tend to your injury,” she instructed.
The faint curve of his mouth gave her the feeling he hadn’t meant the food.
She swallowed and tried hard not to notice how his hot breath fanned against her clothed breasts.Or that when she stared into his eyes to make sure his pupils were the same size, his steady gaze held hers, and she noticed a warmth flickered beneath the pain.
Hmm, yes, very nice blue eyes.Inadvertently or maybe not so inadvertently, her gaze dropped to the bulge pressing against the juncture of his jeans.
Oh dear.He had quite the package.
Heat fused through her and she felt her cheeks get way too hot.She needed to get moving or she just might faint again.
She averted her gaze and kept prodding around his scalp until she was satisfied this wasn’t as serious as she’d first feared.
“Okay, you’ll live.”
“Good to know,” he said.She detected playfulness in his voice.
Had he noticed that she’d been inspecting the area between his legs?Why had she looked downthereanyways?
Suddenly she felt quite flustered.Heat crept up her neck, and she forced herself to focus on the task, not the man.
She moved away from him and located her clean dish towels.Quickly she folded a couple into a neat pad and handed it to him.Their fingers brushed, and she felt a jolt of protectiveness surge through her.Then she lifted his hand to press the pad over the area she had just inspected.
He grimaced.
“I know it hurts but put pressure onto this area.It will help stop the bleeding.Give me a sec while I get the first aid kit and some medication for your headache.”
“There’s no need.I can take care of myself.”
The edge of pride in his voice made her lift her chin in a quiet challenge.
“You’ll do as I say,” she said in a no argument voice.
She didn’t miss his eyebrows raise in surprise.
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied.The hint of amusement in his tone softened the tension.
Jenna walked quickly to the bathroom where she kept her first aid kit and a bottle of pain reliever pills.Within a couple of minutes, she returned to find that he was still dutifully pressing the pad against his wound, just as she had instructed.She was relieved to see that he was also eating, a positive sign given the circumstances.
“Okay, eating is a good sign,” Jenna said, setting the first aid kit onto the table.She then went to the sink, filled a glass with water, and carefully poured two pain pills out of the bottle.Then she returned to him.
