Page 11 of Outback Heat
A hot, wet droplet lands on my cheek, and the sharp smell of copper intensifies. I flinch as reality comes slamming back in. Running down the left side of his face is a rivulet of bright red blood.
“Let me up,” I say and push at his firm abs to get him to roll off me, refusing to be distracted by how defined the rippling muscles are. He’s seriously toned.
Murphy doesn’t budge.
“It’s barely a scratch,” he says as he rolls off me and sits up. He pokes at his head and stares at the blood on his fingers.
“Don’t poke at it! You’ll get the wound dirty.” I swat at his hand yet, instead of discouraging him, he sees it as an opportunity.
He jumps lithely to his feet and grasps my extended hand with his bloody one and pulls me effortlessly off the ground. “Come here, a pretty thing like you shouldn’t be rolling around in the dirt.”
“What?” I splutter incredulously. I’m only ‘rolling around in the dirt’ because I came to save him!
And then he smiles and my claws retract. It’s devastating, like a lighthouse turning its beam directly at you. The creases at the sides of his mouth deepen and his eyes sparkle. They fucking sparkle! It would render me speechless if his teeth weren’t coated in blood, staining his plush lips red.
Nurse mode activates, and I step towards him to take a better look at his injury. “You’re bleeding. I need to check the–”
Before I can finish, Murphy pulls me into a tight embrace, loops an arm around my waist, and effortlessly tosses me over his shoulder.
I squeal and clutch at the back of his dusty shirt, digging my nails into his skin in my alarm, but he doesn’t flinch. In fact, he doesn’t even act like an angry beast just rammed him repeatedly against metal fencing. Shouldn’t he be in pain and unable to walk?
Laughter from the crowd draws me back to reality and the very public domain. A burst of embarrassment makes me go limp in his arms and I hide behind my swaying curtain of hair.
Murphy quickly whisks me out of the bright lights of the arena and into the shadows behind. The smell of livestock is stronger, but it doesn’t help mask how heavy my perfume has become.
“You can put me down now,” I insist, tapping his back urgently while attempting to maintain my balance.
“Why on earth would I do that? I’ve caught myself an Omega, fair and square,” he remarks in a playful tone. His deep voice rumbling up his solid body and through me. My insides quiver and tingle.
“That’s not what’s happening here,” I sputter, surprised by his dismissive attitude and the inappropriate way my body is responding to his possessive declaration. “I told you. I’m a nurse. Put me down so I can check on your head injury.”
“You sure? Seems like you’re enjoying it up there,” he retorts, his voice filled with a smirk. If the blood hadn’t already rushed to my head, I’m sure my cheeks would be bright red at his insinuation. He’s right. The longer he touches me, the more aroused I become and the more I perfume for him. The last thing my body wants is to leave the heat of his. I want to thrash against him and tell him he’s wrong, but we’d both know I’d be lying.
I choke on my spit as his large, warm hand glides up the back of my thighs. “Yeah, nah. I think I’ll be keeping you.”
His hand runs higher, reaching the juncture of my thigh and ass, and I suck in a breath.
“Quit messing around, Murphy. Put her down,” says a deep, stern voice. A man, no, an Alpha, approaches from behind. He is taller than Murphy and older, grey hairs streaking near his temple.
“Aw,” Murphy protests, his words carrying a hint of amusement, yet he complies with the instructions from the other Alpha. I make a conscious effort not to revel in the sensation of my body gliding down his as he gently lowers me back onto my feet. However, to my surprise, he refuses to release me. Instead, he firmly presses me up against him, moulding our bodies together, while his large arm envelops my shoulders. It’s an embrace which feels both possessive and protective.
A part of me acknowledges I should create some distance and assert my independence yet an impulsive voice within urges me to surrender to the moment. There’s a magnetic pull between us, and I find myself drawn to the pleasure of his touch. Why should I burden myself with thoughts of potential consequences or over-analyse the situation? In this fleeting instant, I relish the intoxicating sensation of his presence, allowing myself to indulge in the simple pleasure of his physical connection.
“Why would you do something as stupid as riding a bronc? You got a kangaroo loose in the top paddock or something?” the Doc spits, his arms crossed over his chest and a deep glare furrowing his brows. He’s the opposite of the Alpha currently holding me – serious and stern.
Murphy shrugs. “I saw an opportunity, and I took it.”
“An opportunity for what? Another concussion on top of the one you’ve already got? Looks like you succeeded.”
I whip my head up to glare at Murphy, and he gives me a sheepish smile.
“You’ve already got a concussion?” I ask accusatively, poking at his chest. “Don’t you understand just how dangerous that can be?”
“He understands perfectly,” Doc mumbles.
“It was worth the risk. I got what I wanted,” Murphy replies in a deep, sensual tone. I can feel the hot press of his stare and resolutely turn my face away. He’s talking about me but there is no way he knew I’d jump a fence like a madwoman to come help him.
“I was hoping to catch a pretty Omega’s eye, but looks like I caught an armful instead,” he chuckles and reaches for me again, squeezing me into his side and I’m mortified when I purr. I tense, alarmed by my body’s betrayal. I only ever purr to comfort my patients.
