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“Is that your nice way of saying you don’t embroider in your spare time?”
“Not a single tea towel.” She cleaned out the wound again. This time creating a cup with one hand to trap the alcohol and blood before it fell in his eyes. It just made a bigger mess. Snatching a washcloth from the towel rack, she crossed her arms. “Stand up,” she said and he did. She tugged on the bottom of his shirt and brought the fabric over his head. Inhaling, she tried to not get distracted by the sinewy muscles that shone as his skin reflected the light perfectly. She just kept cutting along the abs and perfect pecks.
“I’m not worried about my shirt,” he said, his voice deep and seductive.
She reached behind her to turn on the shower.
“Are we taking turns washing backsides?”
“No.” She scowled the best she could and pulled him toward the water. “Stick your head in there.”
With a shake to his head, he took her command.
Topaz made sure the water cleansed the gash. She was unwilling to admit she was enjoying the feel of his thick traps and shoulders. Thick, warm muscles under her hand sent tingling through her body.
“I’ve already been baptized,” he joked. “And I’ll have to turn around if you’re gonna drown me.”
She turned off the shower and grabbed a full towel to dry his upper body off. “Maybe you’ve committed so many sins since then you need a refresher,” she replied as he sat and she draped the towel over his shoulders like a cape.
“So, I’m a bad boy with scars? Maybe I should have you stop. There won’t be a woman who can resist me.”
“Well, contrary to popular belief this head is more important than your favorite one,” she said with her hand splayed over the top of his head and shaking it from side to side. “We gotta keep the blood there, so it can drain south and be used properly.”
“Let me guess which part of Red’s crash course to keep us alive you got extra credit on,” he teased.
She smiled. “I tested out,” she replied then gathered herself. She wasn’t supposed to be flirting with the guy. She was supposed to be putting him back together. “We have to do this. I’m sorry it’s going to hurt.”
“Are you really?” he questioned.
“Yeah, I am,” she whispered. Leaning forward and straddling Onyx’s leg, she pinched his skin together and poked the needle into his flesh. It required more pressure than she’d expected, but she focused on the task at hand.
He didn’t make a sound. Not even an inhale of breath.
She leaned back and glanced down at him. Onyx’s lips were tight and she could tell he was in pain. “I’m sorry.”
“Just get it done.”
His voice was absolutely emotionless and it chilled her. They were so close she could smell the sweat and leather from his body, even after the quick wash. It was doing something to her insides and she didn’t like it. When she pushed through a second time, his hands clasped her hips and she tried not to get lost in ideas of being guided by those strong hands over his hips.
“Sorry, can I please hold on?”
“Of course,” she said swallowing back her hormones.
‘Don’t think of the skin as connected to a person, you won’t be able to numb it for the injured person.’ Red instructed. ‘It is two pieces of tough fabric that needs to be joined. Do not think about the person in this situation. Emergency verses regular medicine. This is trauma, you need to assess and stabilize. They don’t need soft touches, they need quick and calculated.’Topaz finished putting three more stitches into his head, tied off the end, and snipped the thread. His hands released and she applied a large bandage.
When he turned his head up, their eyes locked.
Heat licked along her skin and her lips swelled wanting to taste his. Her heart sped as she waited for him to stand.
Right now, his tall frame had his head right below hers. Eyes scanned down her body, drinking her in like she was on a pole dancing for bills, not fully dressed. Make-up worn off and only the road on her.
“Leave that on tonight.” She stepped back, started cleaning and tossed everything she could away including the gloves before placing her hand on his head and tracing the tape on the edge of the gauze with her thumb. “Tomorrow morning, we can put a smaller Band-aid on it for the drive home.”
“Thanks.” He smiled, eyes open and inviting.
She felt relieved that they had been able to fix him up without too much pain.
When she tried to turn away he reached out and touched her arm. “Topaz.”
