Page 5 of Fierce Mountain Man

“Thank you,” I said. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“You’ll need it to get your business loan tomorrow,” he said.

I tilted my head. “You think if I limp my way in wearing a cast, they’ll feel sorry for me and give me the loan?”

Actually, I was worried it would be the opposite. They might decide I was too accident-prone to trust with running a business.

“You won’t be limping,” he said. “I’m going to fix you up.”

And that was when I realized he planned to do this for me. He already had the bag on the floor next to him as he knelt in front of me—in front of the foot that, luckily, still bore the gel pedicure I’d gotten before leaving the town near coastal South Carolina where I’d lived all my life.

From the beach to the mountains. Since nature had been the only good thing about my life growing up, may as well keep it in my life now. Sand, trees, water—those things you could count on. Even hurricanes were predictable. Humans always let each other down.

“So first, I’m going to bandage it,” he said, “and then I’m going to put this on.”

He pulled out a space-age-looking contraption. It was clearly a boot, but it would definitely not blend.

“Oh, wow,” I said, my eyes widening.

He looked up at me. “Yeah, you can’t really hide it under your pants, can you? It was the smallest one they had. You might be able to find something online, but this is a quick fix until then. Maybe you could put off your bank meeting until later in the week.”

“No, it’ll be fine,” I said. “They might consider the fact that I was checking out the site as a sign I’m going to really kick ass at this.”

He glanced up at me, and I’d swear he looked a little impressed. Was it my use of a cuss word? I had a feeling it had more to do with my determination.

“I’ll just leave this bandage on,” he said. “That’ll keep the ointment in place. But you may want to change the bandage and put more ointment on in the morning, after you shower.”

Tobias looked down as he said that last part. It was almost like he was shy. Did his words call to mind an image of me naked, water running over my body?

No, that probably hadn’t occurred to him at all. A guy like him wouldn’t be interested in someone like me. He was older, experienced, and hot as hell. I was young and just starting in my career. I didn’t know who I was yet. I had no place even thinking about a relationship.

He pulled out a roll of elastic bandage and removed the plastic wrap over it, eyeing my foot as he did so. It was almost like he was afraid to touch it. Maybe he was remembering the sight of all that blood. I doubted it, though.

“I can wrap it if you don’t want to,” I said. “I don’t mind.”

He shrugged. “It actually feels good to take care of someone besides myself for a change.”

It felt good to be taken care of for a change, but I didn’t mention that. He didn’t need to hear my sob story.

“Are your feet ticklish?” he asked as he reached for my right foot.

I shook my head. I didn’t think they were. But the power of suggestion could have me giggling as soon as his fingers touched the sole of my foot. I held my breath, hoping that wouldn’t happen. How childish would that be?

But instead of tickling, his touch brought the opposite reaction. Suddenly, a part of me that I generally ignored came to life. Warmth spread to that area of my body, and I wondered if he could tell.

That was silly. Of course, he couldn’t tell. Unless he directly touched me there, he would have no idea what was going on, right?

Crap if I knew. All of this was foreign to me. As foreign to me as a country I’d never visited.

“Just sit back and relax, and I’ll have you all doctored up in no time,” he said.

Tobias didn’t crack a smile as he began wrapping the bandage around my foot. Around and around he went, his thumb brushing my insole, my toes settling against his palm. There was something about the look on his face as he worked—an almost loving kind of expression.

This guy would make a great father.

That thought shot through me like a lightning bolt. Good parenting was another thing I knew nothing about. But I found myself drawn to this guy solely because of the way he was taking care of me.

Yeah, I could see raising a family with a guy like Tobias. And I was someone who was scared to even think about getting married and having kids of my own. But if I did, someone like him would be perfect.

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