Grace Under Fire (Buchanan-Renard 14)

“Yes.”

Her honesty made him smile. He was used to tough women, like his sisters, Jordan and Sidney, who could be bleeding to death and would swear their injuries didn’t hurt a bit. He liked the fact that Isabel told the truth.

“Want a Tylenol?”

“Yes, please.”

“Did you take your antibiotic?”

“Not yet.”

He got the Tylenol and one of the giant-size antibiotic pills, waited until she had swallowed both of them, and then finished wrapping the gauze around her upper arm. He tried to be gentle as he applied the tape to hold it in place.

“You’re doing a nice job,” she said. “Let me guess. After college and after law school you went to medical school, then specialized, then went into the Navy SEALS. Right?”

The dimple in her cheek reappeared and was interfering with his concentration. He laughed and shook his head. “Are you suggesting I’m an overachiever?”

“Ouch.”

He had pushed too hard on the tape. “Sorry,” he said. “Theo and Michelle are at Nathan’s Bay. They got in yesterday. We’ll ask her to check your stitches.”

“She’s a surgeon, isn’t she?”

He nodded. The gauze was beginning to bunch up, so he undid his work and started over. Isabel watched him. “On second thought, you didn’t go to medical school,” she said when she saw the difficulty he was having.

It seemed the most natural thing for the two of them to discuss mundane topics. As they ate breakfast together, Isabel was surprised by how comfortable she was becoming with him. The only other men she had ever really been comfortable with from the moment she met them were Michael’s five brothers, Noah Clayborne, and Damon. None of them had the ability to make her crazy, though, like Michael did. He could make her want to kiss him and scream at him at the same time.

Did he think about kissing her? Doubtful, she thought. She was sure she wasn’t his type. He probably only went for women who had triple degrees and carried guns.

They had slept together and he hadn’t tried anything. But then, neither had she.

“Michael...”

“What?”

“When we were in bed...”

“Yes?” he prompted, wondering why she was suddenly blushing.

“What would you have done if I had tried to seduce you?”

To say she caught him off guard was an understatement. He didn’t let it show when he answered. “I’d let you seduce me. So now I gotta ask. How come you didn’t make a move?”

Smiling, she said, “I didn’t want to embarrass you.”

“I would be embarrassed?” he asked, trying to understand.

Isabel suddenly realized she was wading into dangerous territory. She hadn’t intended for their conversation to turn racy, but now that she had ventured in, she couldn’t turn back. The last thing she wanted Michael to think was that she was a prude.

“I would be too much for you to handle, and that would embarrass you.” She brushed her hair over her shoulder. “I’m pretty incredible.”

“In bed.”

“Yes, in bed,” she agreed. “It makes sense that I would be superior.”

“Superior to me?”

She slowly nodded. Michael stared into her beautiful blue eyes, saw how they sparkled, and knew she was having fun teasing him. “Want to explain it to me?”