The Doctor's Damsel in Distress

She wasn’t in this for a relationship, was she?

Because that would mean risking her heart and she couldn’t do that.

Wouldn’t do that.

Would she?

CHAPTER SEVEN

MADISON couldn’t stop staring at Levi’s mouth.

He’d lain back on the blanket he’d spread out, his hands propped behind his head, his eyes closed, and his breathing so even she could almost buy that he was asleep. Almost.

Something about the way he held himself, the slight tension in his body, suggested that, although he rested, he hadn’t fully gone to sleep.

Still, his eyes were closed and she could stare at his mouth to her content. While she fished. Mentally, she snickered. Her—fishing. What a joke.

Since t

heir arrival Levi had caught a half dozen fish, although none as big as that first one and none of the same type. She had yet to catch anything other than her turtle.

Not that she really wanted to catch a fish. She just didn’t want to be a complete failure on her first fishing trip.

Not that she’d consider any time spent with Levi a failure.

No, most of the day she’d just wanted to pinch herself. Could he really be interested in her? For more than just a quick roll in the sack?

But what did she know about him really? Just that she’d wanted him from the beginning and that he had a reputation of being a playboy.

Maybe he seduced women by making them think he was trying to be a good guy, that she was different from all the other women he’d known. Just looking at him, she could feel each and every defense she might have once been able to muster against him fading away. Not that she would have put up much of a fight anyway, even if she weren’t a “modern woman”. Really, did Sleeping Beauty put up a fight when the Prince bent to kiss her? Did Snow White push her Prince away? Hardly.

Feeling a slight tug on her line, Madison gave an excited yank to set the hook the way Levi had shown her.

Unfortunately her line came flying towards her, nothing on the other end except a bare hook. She shrieked and tried to dodge the hook. To no avail.

The hook caught her on the upper left arm, sinking into her skin with a painful stab.

Having sat up at the commotion, Levi winced, moved close to her and eyed her dilemma with sympathy. “Madison, you weren’t supposed to hook yourself.”

Yeah, even as a beginner, she knew that.

Tears pricked her eyes. No, she would not cry in front of Levi. She’d choked and now this? She’d make like hooking herself was no big deal, even though really she’d just like to let out a big sob.

“Ouch,” she whimpered, carefully holding in that sob teetering on the edge of her throat. She reached to pull out the hook in the hope the stinging pain in her arm would ease. Not that it was the worst pain she’d ever felt but, still, hooking herself wasn’t something she hoped to repeat, ever. Plus, she was feeling just woozy enough to worry she might pass out if she didn’t get the hook out pronto.

“Don’t.” He stopped her, eyeing where the hook was embedded in her flesh. “I’ll do it. It’s going to have to be pushed the rest of the way through, otherwise the barb is going to cause more tissue damage.”

More tissue damage? Nausea roiled her stomach and black spots danced before her eyes. Okay, as a nurse she should be able to tolerate such a minor injury, but when it was her skin, her life blood leaking out (okay, so it was just a tiny drop, but still), it was a different story altogether.

“Get it out.” She squirmed, willing herself to feel better once she was freed.

“I have a first-aid kit.” He kicked into doctor mode. “Just a minute, and I’ll disinfect that. Is your tetanus up to date?”

No longer letting her gaze connect with her piercing, she nodded. “When I started at Angel Creek I had to provide copies of my immunizations. Everything is up-to-date.”

He pulled out a sandwich-sized blue-and-white plastic box, snapped the lid open, and pulled out some disinfectant solution packets. “This may sting a little.”

She frowned. Like the hook stuck in her arm didn’t?