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“You said I was bleeding.” She lowered herself carefully to the edge of the cushioned leather seat.
“You’re fine. But it might help to drink something before we get started. We’ve got cold Coronas, or if you need something stronger, there’s some good Kentucky bourbon in the cabinet.”
“A Coke would be nice if you’ve got some,” Tess said. “I wouldn’t mind a beer, but with my sister a recovering alcoholic, I’m doing my best to support her. That includes following her rules—with no cheating, even when I’m away from home.”
“Coke it is. Hang on. I’ll be right back.”
He returned a few moments later with two Coke cans and a large red cooler—some kind of medical kit. Opening the cooler, he took out a dispenser of antibacterial handwipes and handed one to her. Taking her cue from him, she cleansed her hands. The scrapes and cuts from the fall stung when the alcohol touched them. “We’ll put some salve on those after I get that spine out of your back.”
He popped one of the Coke cans and handed it to her. “Drink up. When you’re ready, lean over the arm of the sofa. Getting the barb out is going to sting pretty bad. Can you handle that?”
“You’d be surprised what I can handle.” Tess took a deep swig of Coke and put the can on the glass-topped coffee table. “As a kid, I was always getting stuck. My dad pulled the spines out with pliers. It hurt like hell, and he didn’t hold with girls crying.”
Brock would remember her late father, of course. Years ago, after Bert Champion had arranged to buy a desirable piece of land, Brock had bought it out from under him by offering the owner more money. The Champion family had needed that land for their cattle. They hated Brock to this day. Even in light of the new partnership, that hadn’t changed.
CHAPTER TWO
THE CACTUS SPINE, ITS TIP BARBED LIKE A FISHHOOK, HAD PASSEDthrough Tess’s thin white shirt to become imbedded in the flesh of her back. Her struggles after the fall from her horse had driven it deeper. Brock knew that a too-hasty pull on the shirt would break the spine and leave the barb, leading to more pain and a nasty infection.
“How does it look?” Tess was leaning over the rounded arm of the sofa to better expose her back. Brock would have to peel her shirt up until he could see where the spine had pierced her skin.
This was not the way he’d imagined undressing her.
“It’ll take some care,” he said. “You’ll have to hold very still.”
“I know. Get it over with.”
Brock turned on the reading lamp above the sofa for more light and pulled up the ottoman to give him a low seat next to her. The slight crackle as he sat reminded him of the envelope he’d stuffed into his pocket with the clipping inside. If its arrival meant what he feared it might, everything he’d worked for could be at risk.
But he would have to deal with that later.
He used an alcohol wipe to sterilize the tweezers from the kit. “Ready?”
“Ready.” Her body tensed as he pulled the hem of her shirt loose from her jeans and eased it upward to expose the cactus spine. Tess’s face, neck, and arms were golden brown from years of working in the sun. But the skin on her back was soft ivory, glistening with sweat. The urge to see the rest of her triggered a stab of arousal. But he forced it away as he plied the sharp-tipped tweezers.
“You mentioned your sister,” he said, making small talk. “How is Val doing?”
“All right. Now that Casey’s back on the circuit, she’s home again. She’s been urging him to quit bullfighting and get a different job, maybe as a trainer. But you know Casey. He loves being where the action is.”
“So they haven’t set a wedding date?”
“Casey would marry her tomorrow. But Val’s still gun-shy. Whatever’s going on in her head, she isn’t telling me about it.”
“And Lexie?” Brock probed around the imbedded cactus spine, checking the angle of the barb.
“Her baby’s due in May. It’s a boy. She and Shane are over the moon.”
“Tell them I’m over the moon for them.”
Shane Tully, who’d lived on Brock’s ranch since his teens, was one more source of conflict between him and the Champions. Brock had offered the young man a brilliant future as his manager and eventual heir. Shane had chosen Lexie and independence. Brock could only hope that fatherhood might change his mind.
“I’ll tell them that you—ow!”Tess yelped as Brock worked the barb free.
“Got it.” He held up the tweezers for her to see. “Don’t move yet. You’re bleeding.” He stanched the blood with gauze, then applied salve and an oversize adhesive bandage before pulling down the back of her shirt. “I’m guessing you’ve had a tetanus shot.”
“Hasn’t everybody?” She sat up. “If you’ll give me the salve and point me to a bathroom, I’ll manage the rest of my wounds.”
“Here you are.” Brock felt a twinge of disappointment as he handed her the tube of Neosporin. He’d enjoyed taking care of her. “The bathroom’s down the hallway, first door on your right. You’ll find fresh washcloths in the cabinet. I’ll clean up here and meet you on the porch.”
