Their Festive Island Escape

“Let’s get you to the couch,” Rinna suggested. “Theo’s gone back out for more pictures. Can you try to stand without putting any weight on that foot?”

She didn’t get a chance to answer. A deep masculine voice sounded from behind the three of them.

“I’ve got her.”

A set of strong, muscular arms suddenly wrapped around her waist and under her bottom. The next instant she felt herself lifted into Reid’s masculine embrace. Heaven help her, she took a moment to simply inhale the scent of him. The same mixture of citrus and sandalwood combined with mint, somehow still present despite the river water soaking his skin. Without giving herself a chance to think, she rested her forehead against his broad chest, taking comfort in the warmth of his skin against her cheek. Reid nuzzled his jaw against the top of her head. She didn’t dare try to read anything into his action. He probably just felt bad for her.

“Does it hurt badly?” he asked, his voice smooth above her head.

“No. Not really. Just a little achy.”

“Sorry about all this,” he spoke low into her ear as he carried her farther inside and toward the couch.

Great. Now he was trying to take responsibility for her fall. “I’m not sure why you’re apologizing.”

“You’re only here in the first place because of me.”

“That may be. But I fell into the water on my own. Due to my own carelessness.”

He exhaled deeply as he set her down on the couch. “Anyone ever tell you that you can be stubborn?” he asked.

Was it her imagination or did his hands linger around her body just a bit longer than was necessary after he set her down on the cushions? She looked up to find the smallest hint of a smile on his face.

“As a matter of fact, I do hear that from time to time.”

The smile grew. “I’ll bet.”

A strange sensation tugged at her heart. The warmth of his touch still lingered over her wet skin. The man did something to her insides she couldn’t recall feeling with anyone else ever. Not even the man she’d been prepared to marry.

Rinna appeared from behind them with a couple of pillows. She placed one behind her back and the other under the offending foot. Reid leaned over her. “May I?” he asked, gesturing to her leg.

She reluctantly agreed and he ran a gentle finger along the arch of her foot and around her ankle. Then he went up higher, toward her knee. Totally innocuous as it was, tingles of awareness rippled up her skin at his touch. Full-out kisses by other men had elicited less of a reaction from her than Reid simply examining her sore ankle. She had to suppress a shudder of reaction.

“It doesn’t appear to be broken,” he announced. “Just a sprain.”

“You think so?”

“I’d place a wager on it if I had to.” He nodded and gave her a teasing wink. “I’ve broken enough bones in my lifetime to be able to speak with some authority on the subject.”

Celeste thanked the other woman for the pillows and allowed herself a groan of frustration. What a burden she was being to these people. And Reid, for that matter. All because she had been a careless klutz. She had no one else to blame but herself. Truth be told, she’d been distracted and dazed since that first day when she’d gone to find Santa only to discover Reid Evanson in his stead.

“Do you have any ice?” Reid asked Rinna.

“We do. But we can do even better than that. Momma has gone out to gather the plants she needs to mix up a medicinal balm.” She laughed and shook her head. “I’ve had it applied to my various scrapes and bruises countless times over the years. She’ll be back to prepare it soon. You’ll start healing in no time,” she reassured.

Celeste resisted the urge to ask if Uma might be able to come up with a balm to ease the ache in her heart.

CHAPTER TEN

THEY ALL ATE in the living room so that Celeste could remain lying on the sofa with her foot propped up. True to Rinna’s word, Uma had wrapped a cloth around her ankle after applying the homemade poultice. Whatever the concoction was, it smelled heavenly. Miraculously, her foot started to feel better within minutes. Celeste didn’t think it was the placebo effect. She could feel the swelling go down and the throbbing sensation had almost completely stopped. Between the filling meal and the relief from pain, she found herself drifting off into a comfortable sleep.