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For the love of God, why did this man always blind her? She tried to blink, the best she could, with a face swollen to the size of a jack-o’-lantern. “Can you please stop doing that?”
“No. I need more light to see what’s wrong.”
“It’s none of your business. Just leave me alone.” She stomped past him, but he caught up.
“Stop right now. This looks like a bad case of poison ivy, and you need to get to the doctor ASAP. You must be highly allergic to have this reaction.”
No shit. She rubbed her arm, and he tapped it with the flashlight. “Don’t do that, you’ll make it worse. Where are you going?”
She patted her inflamed cheeks, which demanded scratching. “To the villas. I have to ask Sydney or Trevor to take me to a doctor. I’m not an idiot, you know.”
“Why aren’t they picking you up?”
“They’re probably asleep. If you’d drive me up there, I’d appreciate it.”
“Have you inhaled any smoke?”
“Yeah, from the campers next door.”
Zach shook his head. “Okay, that’s it. Get in. I’m taking you to Urgent Care. You might have breathed in some poison ivy from their fire, which could cause internal symptoms, affecting your respiration.”
“The itching started before they made the fire.”
“It might be a combination of contact with the plant and breathing it in since you don’t know where they got the wood.”
She swallowed. Her throat did feel scratchy.
“For once, can you just listen to me? This is a safety and health issue, which I can’t have on my watch. Get in.” He waved to the passenger seat of the UTV.
At this point, she really didn’t want to deal with Trevor, so she climbed in. She dialed Sydney’s number again and left a message. That would get her off Crystal’s back if she bitched later about Zach’s interference by taking her to the doctor.
Zach hit the accelerator. He pulled onto a dirt path and stopped in front of a small rancher in the woods. With a click, he unlocked a blue pickup truck in the driveway. He hopped out of the UTV and called over his shoulder. “Get in the truck. I’ll grab you cold water from inside.”
As she rounded the pickup, an army decal in the back window caught her eye, and she froze. Had Zach been in the military? Duh, the buzzcut and the drab, olive T-shirts, plus the confident way he handled everything at camp should have been dead giveaways.
Her heart rate ratcheted up. That comment she’d made when they first met about how he didn’t know anything about danger must have insulted the hell out of him. No wonder he’d been dismissive and rude.
Gah. She’d been so self-absorbed and annoyed about being in the reality show that she’d missed all the signs. Jenna’s father had been a SEAL, and Crystal knew how hard it was on him and the family when he was deployed. She had to apologize to Zach.
Chapter Thirteen
Zach snatched a water bottle from the fridge. He couldn’t stay ahead of this train wreck of a woman. His plan, after yesterday’s almost-kiss in the woods, was to avoid her as much as possible. He’d been building a mental wall between them and swore he wouldn’t get close to her again. When he’d spied her walking down the road, he’d intended to drive right by until he’d seen her swollen face.
Flicking off the kitchen light, he headed outside. Crystal stood behind the pickup, staring at the rear window.
She glanced up at him.
“Why aren’t you in the truck? We have to get going.” He clicked the unlock button again.
“I…I need to ask you something.”
“What?” He stopped in front of her.
She shifted her feet. “Were you in the army?”
That was a random question he wasn’t expecting. “Yeah, why?”
“I didn’t know that when I met you, and I want to apologize for that remark I made about danger. I’m sorry. I never meant toinsult you. I have a lot of respect for those who serve.” Her voice rang with sincerity and regret.
