“I’m sorry, Jase. I didn’t see the ice. I guess I wasn’t looking. And just for your information . . . Ow!” Maia pulled her head away and glared at Cole as he dabbed at the cut on her head. “That hurts.”
“Stop being such a baby.” Cole was extraordinarily gentle as he wiped away the blood. There was an unfamiliar lump in his throat. All the while he was turning over possibilities in his mind. Had someone sprayed the walkway with water in order to cause Maia harm? Who could have done such a thing? He needed to take a closer look at Al and his wife. Find out if anyone had been visiting. Perhaps Fred had stayed with them instead of going home to his family.
“Does it really hurt, Doc?” Jase asked, frowning at Cole.
“I’m fine,” Maia assured. “He’s being gentle. I feel a little stupid falling on my head.” She wasn’t going to mention the bruises all over her backside. Cole’s face was very close to hers, and she could see his long lashes, the bluish shadowing along his jaw, the tiny lines etched into his weathered features. His gaze met hers and her heartbeat accelerated instantly. “You’re lethal.” She didn’t mean to say it aloud. She had to blame the bump on her head. It knocked out her good sense.
“Yes I am,” Cole warned. “Don’t forget it.”
Maia looked up at Jase and burst out laughing a second time. “At least I’m not the only one saying dumb things. Your horse, by the way, is doing great, Jase. No temp, the drains are working, and I gave him his antibiotic shots, so he’s fine for the time being. I didn’t feed him, so you’ll have to do that. And I want to move him to a small enclosure where he can get around without hurting himself. The trick is to get him to walk enough to keep the swelling down, but not so much that he pulls out the sutures or does more damage.”
“I still have to feed the other horses this morning,” Jase said. “I told Al I’d do it so he wouldn’t have to risk driving in the storm. We knew the storm would be bad, so I’ll take care of the stables, then let Wally into the small round pen inside the big barn. I can feed him there, unless you just want him to exercise a couple of times a day.”
“I’ll feed the horses, Jase,” Cole said. “Give me a few minutes with the doc here to get her settled, and I’ll go make the rounds.”
“I don’t mind, Cole,” Jase objected. “I can do the job.”
Cole scowled and opened his mouth to make it a command, but Maia deterred him, touching his wrist with her fingertips. When he glanced at her she shook her head slightly and turned her head to smile up at Jase. “Actually, I was hoping you’d stay with me for a little while so we could come up with a plan for Wally.” Her smile widened until it lit her eyes. “I think the name suits him. He likes it.”
“Did he tell you that?” Cole asked, his voice edged with sarcasm.
“As a matter of fact, he did. What do you say, Jase? Let the grouch feed the horses this morning, and we’ll map out a plan of action for Wally.”
“You may as well plan Christmas for us too.” Cole made the suggestion to forestall Jase’s protest that the horse wasn’t anything special to him. His heart jumped, slamming hard against the wall of his chest in protest. He would have taken the proposal back, but the boy suddenly looked hopeful.
Maia’s fingers tightened on his wrist. He hoped to hell she had no idea what the turn in the conversation cost him. Cole refused to meet her eyes, instead busying himself with getting the matted blood from her hair so he could see the wound.
“You sure you didn’t try ice-skating,” he said gruffly as he looked at the laceration.
A faint smile softened the lines around her mouth. “I’ve always wanted to learn, but it wasn’t my intention.”
“I can take her ice-skating if she wants to go,” Jase volunteered. “There’s a pond that freezes over every winter. It’s great for ice-skating.”
Cole glanced at the boy’s face. He was staring at Maia as if she were a goddess. He sighed and leaned down, his mouth against her ear, his lips brushing her skin. “Tone it down before the boy asks you to marry him.” The faint scent of peaches in her hair triggered a heat flash that seemed to spread through his veins straight to his belly and centered in his groin.
She turned her head so that her mouth was brushing against his cheek. “Really? I didn’t realize I had such an impact.”
Her voice vibrated down his spine. He could have sworn her finger stroked his wrist but when he looked down, her hand was lying there motionless. Innocent. Her lips were feather-light, soft and full. Cole felt the burn right through his skin. He jerked away from her. She was reducing him to a smitten teenager. Jase could fall under her spell, but he was damned if he would. It was supposed to work the other way around. He certainly wasn’t mesmerizing her. And she sure wasn’t falling into his bed. Maia looked up at him, her eyes wide and beautiful, and the breath left his lungs in a rush.