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Evelyn fingered the cotton material in her hand. Alex Walker was the most perplexing man she had ever met. One minute he behaved in ways that sent her temper soaring, and the next his thoughtful actions left her breathless. Shaking her head to clear her mind, she tried to focus on the task at hand. She had caught a glimpse of the torn flesh on Alex’s arm where the bear had raked him with its claws. Alex had dismissed it as a minor wound when she noticed it while he held her after her impulsive kiss. She could sense he wanted to kiss her again, had seen the longing in his eyes even as he scolded her and called her insufferable.
“I’ll tell you who’s insufferable,” Evelyn had voiced loudly, staring at Alex’s torn and bloodied shirt. “It’s you, Alex Walker, and your damn stubbornness.” She’d pulled away from him, and pointed a finger at his chest. “I may not have the skills and knowledge of a healer, but I do know a wound when I see one, and yours needs to be treated. At the very least, allow me to clean it and wrap it, and perhaps it won’t fester.” She hadn’t given him a chance at a rebuttal, and rushed off to find her leather pouch that held her meager belongings. Her most treasured item was the length of muslin.
Evelyn peered over her shoulder. Alex hadn’t argued, and headed for the creek that flowed at the edge of their camp. He unbuckled his belt from around his waist and pulled his shirt up and over his head. Even from a distance, several wide, angry-looking red gashes visibly slashed across his upper left arm where the bear had clawed him Evelyn hoped the wounds weren’t too deep. She didn’t have Aimee Osborne’s skills to treat Alex’s injuries.
With a will of their own, Evelyn’s eyes remained fixed on Alex’s profile. Heat slowly crept up her neck, and into her cheeks. Well-sculpted, chorded arms hung from wide shoulders. He knelt at the creek’s bank, splashing water on his face with his good hand, giving her a pleasing view of his broad and chiseled back. Fascinated, she watched the play of muscles along either side of his spine bunch and relax. He clearly favored his injured arm by letting it dangle at his side. Without having to see the front of him, she envisioned an equally solid and firm chest and abdomen. The skin on her back tingled with the memory of pressing up against him during the night, his strong arms shielding her from the cold.
Alex chose that moment to look up and glance in her direction. Evelyn whipped her head around. Her cheeks flamed in embarrassment at having been caught staring. Her pulse pounded at her temples, and the sensation of drowning took hold in her. She drew in a deep breath of air to fuel her deprived lungs. Had she been holding her breath while admiring his physique?
Raising her chin, she swallowed back the lump in her throat. She swiped some hair away from her face that had come loose of the confines of her braid, and gathered the strips of muslin. Evelyn pushed herself up off the ground, and with a determined set of her mouth headed in Alex’s direction. With each step she took, her heart sped up.
Good grief, Evie! It’s not like you’ve never seen a man’s nude torso before.
Her father and Henry had often removed their shirts in the summer months when coming in from the fields, but neither her father nor her brother looked like Alex. His lean body and sculpted muscles exuded strength. The memory of his strong arms holding her gave testament to that fact. Evelyn shook her head to clear her mind.
“Are you in a lot of pain?” she asked, hoping her voice sounded normal. There was no need to give Alex a glimpse of what she was thinking.
“It stings a little,” he said, his eyes on her. Evelyn hesitated for a moment, then sank to her knees beside him. Her nose caught a trace of his distinct male scent of sweat and rawhide, and her heart fluttered again.
She dipped one of the cotton rags in the cold water, resisting the impulse to use the wet muslin to cool her own face and neck. Instead, she wrung out the excess water and dabbed gingerly around Alex’s wounds to clean away the dried blood. She repeated her actions over and over, until finally the area was free of blood. He remained motionless while she worked, and Evelyn raised her head to find him watching her intently. She couldn’t tear her eyes from his at that moment if her life depended on it. An intense gleam shone in the depths of his stare, and she swallowed the lump in her throat. Extreme longing smoldered in his eyes, along with regret and uncertainty.
Give him time, Laurent had told her. He is afraid he will become his father.
“I think a bandage to keep the wound clean should suffice to allow it to heal.” The words barely escaped her dry mouth. If she could make time stand still, this was a moment she wanted to hold on to. To divert her attention away from Alex’s stare, she grabbed for another swath of muslin. Gently, she wrapped the material around his arm to cover his wound.
