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“Oh, wow,” she remarked. “You’re strong.”
He chose not to reply to that. Obviously, he was strong. Also, she wasn’t even as heavy as the packs he’d carried in battle training. But if he opened his mouth to tell her so, he would end up inhaling even more of her alluring scent.
Just holding her body so close was awakening his senses dangerously.
But she was only a Terran, her simple biological system was vulnerable to the most docile bacteria. Even in this cold, she could lose life or limb to an infection from some half-frozen fungus her immune system couldn’t recognize or fight.
“I’m fine,” she told him. “Really. I can walk. I can just get back to the dogs.”
“No,” he said firmly.
“What are you even going to do?” she asked.
“Clean the wound and cover it properly,” he told her gruffly. “It might save your life.”
That shut her up long enough to get her over to the chem sink.
He was relieved to see a lump of real wash-root soap on the edge and a small door that opened to an outside shelf covered in fresh snow.
“I can do it myself,” she said softly.
He placed her gently on the counter, not dignifying that nonsense with an answer.
Our mate will be cared for and pampered,the dragon purred.
For once, man and dragon were on the same page. Kian would take Kinsley’s pain away and restore her to her lighthearted state.
“Pull up your skirts,” he told her.
She blushed a little, but did as he said, causing the dragon a burst of enjoyment.
Kian opened the tiny door and retrieved a large handful of snow from the shelf outside, then let it melt in his hands.
“Real water,” she murmured contentedly. “So much nicer than a chem bath.”
“Water is protocol for injuries,” he told her, forming his palm into a cup shape, and letting the frigid liquid warm a bit before gently pouring it over her inner thigh.
“Oh,” she sighed. “That feels better.”
He gritted his teeth against the sound of that sigh of pleasure, trying not to notice the curve of her soft flesh.
“I’ll have to soap it next,” he told her, through a tight jaw. “It may sting.”
She nodded bravely and waited for him.
Kian gathered more snow and lathered up his hands with the lump of soap.
It was so quiet in the barn that the slow sound of their breathing and the crinkling of the soapy bubbles on his hands created a sensual soundtrack that had him almost in a haze.
Turning back to her, he made the mistake of gazing into her dark eyes before he put his hands on her.
In them, he saw his own wonder reflected back.
He could practically hear her heart pounding out a frantic rhythm. The pull between them was strong, and she felt it too.
She glanced down at her thigh and his eyes followed.
“Hold as still as you can,” he whispered, reaching for her.
