"It looks worse than it is."
“It looks like a horror movie.”
Her fingertips pressed near the edge of the thick gauze the medics had slapped on. The bandage was soaked through, pulling at my skin with every breath.
She hesitated. “If we wait for Colt and Wren to get back, this will dry and stick. It could tear the stitches when we peel it off. I should remove the top layer… but only if you want me to.”
I let out a slow breath. “Do it.”
“Tell me if I hurt you.”
I didn’t answer. My right hand locked around the edge of the mattress.
“Stay still,” she said.
I already was. She peeled the edge of the tape back a fraction of an inch at a time. Her touch was so light it was almost worse than if she’d just ripped it off. But the sting didn’t even come close to the torture of her hands moving slowly over me.
Worse, her soft breath fanned my collarbone as she leaned closer.
"Brock?"
“Mm.” I didn’t trust my voice.
Any words right now would be the wrong ones. Ask her to come back to the ranch. Tell her that perfume has been driving me crazy for weeks. Just say?—
“Almost got it.”
The last strip of tape gave with a soft tear.
“Okay,” she said. “That’s… better. We’ll deal with the rest when we have proper supplies.”
I looked up. Her dark hair was a tangled mess. My gaze slid to her shirt, to the bruise I knew was blooming under it. I'd have taken that pain myself if I could.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
I shook my head. “Don’t be. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
The air conditioner rattled in the corner, and the bed creaked as she settled onto the mattress next to me. She turned to face me. Her hands hovered a second, then settled at my hips, her fingers curling tight into my jeans. She was close enough that I could feel her warm breath on my skin.
One stray lock of hair stuck to her cheek. I quit fighting it, reached up, and tucked it gently behind her ear.
"You're an idiot," she said quietly.
"Yeah."
I slid my hand to the back of her neck and pulled her in. She leaned her weight into my good side, like she'd already mapped out how to hold me without hurting me. Her palms slid up my bare chest and settled over it. I felt every heartbeat thumping against her hands.
I dropped my gaze to her mouth, then raised it again. Her pupils had gone wide as she stared back at me.
I tilted my head. She met me halfway, her lips parting. The taste of dust and heat lingered between us, so close our breathing blurred together?—
BZZZZ. BZZZZ. BZZZZ.
My phone rattled against the wooden nightstand.
She jerked back, her eyes snapping open. A flush flooded her cheeks.
I swore under my breath, reached over to snatch the device, and swiped the screen. "What."
