He held out the gauze box.
I reached for it. And when I took it from his hand, our fingers brushed again.
Deliberately this time.
The heat returned, sharper now and impossible to ignore. My palm tingled where his skin had touched mine, and my pulse hammered so loudly, I was certain he could hear it.
Neither of us pulled away.
Knox’s gaze searched my face, traveling over my features like he was looking for an answer to a question neither of us had spoken aloud.
His thumb shifted. Just barely. A ghost of movement across my knuckle that sent fresh sparks shooting up my arm.
What the hell was that?
The question hung between us, unvoiced but deafening.
I opened my mouth—to say what, I had no idea.
Footsteps echoed in the hallway. Heavy. Purposeful. A CO’s boots against linoleum.
We sprang apart like we’d been caught doing something criminal.
The gauze box was suddenly very interesting. I clutched it to my chest, cheeks burning, pulse racing. Knox had already turned away as he resumed stocking the cabinet like nothing had happened.
But something had happened.
I just didn’t know what.
Before I could gather my thoughts—before I could ask about Dr. Mercer, about Doyle, about any of it—Officer Reyes appeared in the doorway.
“Blackwood. Time’s up. Let’s go.”
Knox didn’t argue. Didn’t look back. Just set down the roll of medical tape he’d been holding and moved toward the door with that controlled stride of his.
But at the doorway, he paused.
Just for a heartbeat.
His voice dropped to barely a murmur, meant only for me. “Have a good weekend, Harper.”
A soft smile. And then he was gone.
I stood frozen in the empty exam room, gauze box still pressed against my chest, my hand still tingling from his touch.
I hadn’t asked. After all that buildup, all that courage I’d tried to summon, I hadn’t asked.
Now I’d have to carry the question through an entire weekend. Two days of wondering. Two days of replaying that touch and trying to convince myself it meant nothing.
What the hell just happened between us?
The question followed me out of the infirmary. Into my car. All the way home.
I still didn’t have an answer.
But I was starting to suspect that whatever was happening between me and Knox Blackwood was something I couldn’t control.
And I wasn’t sure I wanted to.
