Page 28 of Texas-Sized Secrets

MONA HURRIEDthrough her shower, being careful not to use all the hot water. Reed had been good about her cutting away all the barbed wire, but he had to be hurting still.

With her hair wrapped in a towel, wearing nothing but shorts and a cotton blouse half buttoned and tied loosely over the bump at her waist, Mona hustled out of the shower. “Your turn,” she shouted, shutting the door to her bedroom behind her.

After swiping a brush through her tangled hair, she checked her face and clothes. Because the air conditioner wasn’t keeping up with the heat outside, Mona had chosen shorts. Were they too revealing? With Rosa and Fernando out of the house for the evening, Mona was alone with Reed. Alone and facing duties normally performed by Rosa—cooking and tending to wounds. Two things Mona had relied on Rosa to do all her life. Where did she start? “Band-Aids and ointment.” She’d worry about food later. Maybe a can of soup and grilled-cheese sandwiches?

Mona rifled through the first-aid kit located in the kitchen, scrounging a tube of antibiotic cream and a full box of Band-Aids. He’d need the whole thing with the number of holes he had in his body.

The longer he took, the more agitated Mona became. She tugged a skillet and a can of soup out of the cabinet. What was taking him so long? A quick glance at the clock and her face burned. Five minutes had passed. Okay, so she wasn’t anxious to apply the cream to his wounds. Or was she?

Blood rushed from her head to her belly and lower, making her hot in places she hadn’t been since she’d found out she was pregnant. The blouse she wore had been loose until her boobs had grown. Now her nipples puckered and pressed against the white cotton. They might as well be neon blinking lights. On her way back to her bedroom to change, the bathroom door opened and Reed stepped into her path.

She’d been hell-bent on changing and didn’t see the door open or Reed step out until she ran headfirst into his broad, naked chest.

Her nose smashed against the coarse blond hairs scattered across his bronzed chest. The man must have gone shirtless a lot to be that tanned. He smelled of soap and man. And he was wearing stretchy gray gym shorts, displaying thickly muscled thighs, slightly lighter than his chest, but still tanned and gorgeous.

Mona’s knees melted and she almost collapsed in a puddle in front of him, if he hadn’t grasped her arms and held tight. “Oh, you’re done.” Ranch owner to blithering idiot in ten seconds flat.

A smile curled his lips. “I can be quick when it hurts.”

At the mention of pain, Mona snapped out of her stupor and spun around. “Oh yes. I have Band-Aids and ointment in the kitchen for you. Why don’t you lie down on your bed. I’ll be there in just a minute.”

Reed followed her until he reached the doorway to his room, where he stopped. Mona continued to the kitchen.

With him behind her, Mona wondered what he thought of seeing so much of her legs. She’d been in jeans every time she’d seen him before. As conspicuous as she felt, she might as well have been naked.

Armed with the tube of antibiotic ointment and Band-Aids, she returned to his room.

Reed stood beside the window, staring out at the sunset.

She steeled herself to act impersonal and businesslike, when all she wanted to do was drool. “Lie down on the bed on your stomach.” While he complied, she turned her back, retraining her body in the necessary art of breathing. What was wrong with her? Had he been Jesse or Fernando, she wouldn’t hesitate for a second. Nor would she be breathing as though she’d been running for the past fifteen minutes. If she were honest with herself, she’d recognize the fear, apprehension and unquenchable desire, all raging within her. Her body was on fire!

Boy, she was in over her head. To keep from flapping her hands, she grabbed the ointment and unscrewed the top. “Where shall I start?” When she finally looked at him, he was lying on his side smiling up at her.

“You don’t have to do this.” Reed held out his hand. “Give me the ointment, I can do it myself.”

That smile rankled her. Did he think she couldn’t do the job, couldn’t remain impartial in the application of first-aid on one of her men? “No, you can’t reach the middle of your back. If Rosa were here, she’d do it. Since she’s not, it’s up to me.” She moved closer to the bed, her breath coming in short gasps. His back was every bit as yummy as his front. Broad shoulders, rippled with muscles, the skin tanned a nut brown. With a dab of ointment on the tip of her finger, she touched it to the first puncture wound.

The muscles of his back contracted and he shivered.

“I’m sorry, did that hurt?” She touched his arm with her other hand.

“No, just get it done.” His words were tight, as though he’d said them with teeth clenched.

She must have hurt him. At the next wound on his shoulders, she dabbed gently and carefully rubbed the cream into the wound, using a slow circular motion. His skin heated beneath her fingertips and she widened her motion to include the full expanse of his right shoulder.

His skin stretched tightly over muscles as hard as steel. When she moved to the other side, the story was the same. The man obviously worked out. No man could have muscles that big without making the effort to use them. Hell, he’d lifted her on more than one occasion without any effort whatsoever. His arms had been like steel bands holding her steady.

Her hands moved lower, massaging the ointment into the puncture holes around his lower back. Mona tugged her shirt away from her breasts, the fabric sticking to her skin. Was the air conditioner working at all?

“I could wait until Rosa gets back.”

“No. She’ll be tired and by then, infection might have set in. Did the barbed wire go through your jeans?” Her hand hovered over the elastic band of his shorts, her mind going blank beyond wanting to move the shorts lower.

Reed rolled to the side and grabbed her wrist. “I’ll take care of the rest.” He sat up, swinging his knees over the side of the bed. Still he didn’t let go of her hand.

“Are you sure?” Her lips were so dry, she ran her tongue across them.

“What are you doing, Mona?” His grip tightened, drawing her closer until she stood between his naked knees, skin touching skin.

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