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I grunted as instant pain formed at my elbow. Still, I gripped Poppy’s chin and lifted her face, turning her head each way to make sure she was okay. “You good? Are you hurt anywhere?”
She frowned down at me and shook her head. “Just my pride. I forgot that you used to play football and were especially good at tackling.”
Sam and Jude looked down at us and shook their heads. They were used to Poppy and me battling to injury. They didn’t even stop to investigate; they just walked over to the bench to grab some water.
“You’re bleeding.” Poppy sat up and scooted closer so she could pull my arm into her lap. “I’m so sorry, Cyrus. I always get too competitive.”
I found that I liked being the patient to her doctor so I stayed where I was and let her fuss over me. It wasn’t anything we made a habit of doing, but she had cleaned up wounds for me before. “I ran you over. You don’t have to apologize for me getting hurt while tackling you.”
She looked up as Sam appeared with a first aid kit. His truck was forever prepared. I watched his eyes hover on her chest for a moment before he shook his head and walked back over to Jude. I wasn’t sure what I thought about knowing we were all still affected by those fucking kisses.
“Okay, you know the drill.” She gently ran her fingers up my arm and bit her lip. “I’ll clean it first.”
I sat up and propped my arm on my knee to give her better access. When she sprayed the disinfectant on it, I couldn’t help myself. I winced like it really stung and watched as she pursed her lips to blow on my skin.
She looked up at me while her lips were still pursed next to my arm and froze as our gazes locked. Her eyes widened and she shifted closer. “Better?”
I felt my lips tip up in a smile as I nodded. “Yeah. Much better.”
“Next, I’ll rub some antibiotic cream on it.” She licked her lips and looked away to grab the cream. “This might hurt a bit.”
I dropped my free hand to her knee and stroked her bare skin. I never would’ve considered doing the same thing a week before. Touching each other was normally kept to a minimum, but with her sitting so close, so bare, my body didn’t give my brain a chance to catch up.
Poppy cleared her throat and used a cotton swab to dot the cream over my shredded skin. Her eyes kept flicking to mine, checking to see if I was okay. “Now I’ll put a bandage on for you. Any specific character you had in mind?”
I gripped her leg tighter before letting go. “Anything girly. And obviously, the more glitter, the better.”
Raising her voice, she called over to Sam. “Where are your glittery bandages, Sammy?”
“Oh, I keep those in my big boy truck.” He pulled out his phone and frowned. “Shit. I’ve got to get home. I’ve got ten missed calls from possibly the most frustrating client I’ve ever taken on. I need to start vetting these people better.”
Jude looked at Sam’s phone and winced. “I know the family. I could set you up with Sharon. She loves judging people and is exceptionally good at it.”
Poppy took her time wrapping a plain bandage around my elbow but still hazed Jude. “You can’t just pimp out your secretary, Jude.”
“Why are we friends with her? She’s terrible. And violent. Look what she did to poor Cyrus.” Sam sighed dramatically as he walked closer. “You picked on the smallest guy around, Poppy. That just wasn’t right.”
I took his hand and let him pull me up. I was only a couple of inches taller than him, but those inches counted. I patted the top of his head. “Thanks for sticking up for me, buddy, but she also fixed me up, so I won’t be pressing charges.”
Poppy stuck her tongue out at Sam and then turned her wide eyes on me. “Plus, you’re coming over to help with my truck, right? Don’t say no! You promised last weekend that you’d show me how to do my own tune-up.”
“My toolbox is in the bed of my truck. You’re buying me lunch, though.” I moved my arm to flex out the soreness and felt the bandage pop right off. Not wanting her to feel bad, I hid it and kept my arm away from her. “I worked up a big appetite too.”
“As much as I’d love to help, I’ve got that thing to get to.” Jude rubbed his face and checked his watch. He looked like he was walking into his own torture chamber instead of a date with a woman he’d been lusting after for two years.
“Where are you taking her?” Sam missed the tightening of Jude’s expression, but I watched it happen.
Jude glanced at Poppy and then grabbed his phone and keys from the bench. “Ugh, I’m not sure yet.”
Poppy busied herself with her water bottle and scowled at it. “Got a date?”
There was something tense happening between them but it seemed like Sam and I weren’t on the need-to-know list. We glanced at each other and frowned. I shrugged lightly, letting him know I didn’t have a clue.
“Yep. Not a big deal, though.” Jude stabbed his arms into his shirt and jerked it over his head. The movements were awkward because of the things in his hands.
“Not a big deal?” Poppy made a thinking noise. “Is it with Sasha?”
Sam took a step back and raised his eyebrows at me. It definitely felt like there was a loaded grenade right in front of us and the pin had been pulled.
