Abby swallowed a chuckle. “I see,” she replied. “So…?”
Behind him, Cathy paused, fascinated with the story.
“So, he decided to prove his theory. And he shot his rifle towards the target, but going around the tree in front of him. Since I was over at the obstacle course, evaluating the potential recruits, I didn’t see the idiot fire. It wasn’t even supposed to be live fire today. We wouldn’t have been on the obstacle course if there had been. Too dangerous. But this guy…!” Zeke shook his head in obvious disgust. “He had some live rounds in his pocket and wanted to prove what a hot shot he was. Hence, my back.”
Abby laughed. She just couldn’t help herself. It was such a ridiculous story, the idea of a bullet going around a tree and curving because of the tree’s gravitational pull. “Okay, so…the guy…? Is he going to make the cut?”
The man snorted. “Oh, he’s going to get cut, all right. Right to a court martial!”
Abby fully agreed. “Glad to hear it. This is one for the books.” She sighed and clasped the chart to her chest. “I hate to tell you this, big guy, but you need stitches.” Abby moved behind the man now that Cathy had finished cleaning the wound. Abby checked the edges and realized that it wasn’t as ragged as she’d anticipated. “But I think I can do a pretty good job of…”
Zeke didn’t want to hear it. Stitches meant needles. He didn’t do needles. Period.
“No stitches. It’s just a scratch!” he insisted. “I can barely feel it!” That was an absolute, bald-faced lie. It felt as if his back was on fire.
She placed a gloved hand on his shoulder. “Okay, I’m hearing you aren’t a fan of needles,” she said carefully. Zeke appreciated her not maligning his masculinity by asserting he was afraid. He was! But that didn’t mean that he wanted that fact advertised.
“I’m going to use some Novocain spray on your back first. Then you won’t feel what I’m doing. Will that work for you?”
He sighed, but even that slight movement hurt. “It’s just a scratch. All I need is a band aid and…”
She touched his shoulder again, this time it was bare and he felt her touch echo through his body, centering in his groin. Yeah, other men might be able to control their libidos when in pain, but they hadn’t been around this doctor before. She was just that gorgeous!
“I’m sorry, but this is going to require more than a band aid. And what’s more, you’ve lost a lot of blood. I’m going to need…”
“I’m fine,” Zeke interrupted. He saw the worry in her eyes and suspected he might be acting like an ass. Still, the thought of needles was just…no. He hated them. “How about if we make a deal?”
She frowned warily. “I’m not in the habit of making deals with my medical services, Colonel.”
He grinned, thinking she was cute. Was he being patronizing? He didn’t think so. He was just a man interested in a woman and Zeke wasn’t the kind who waited for a perfect situation. “I’ll let you do whatever you want to my back, if you’ll agree to go out to dinner with me.”
The woman froze. He could feel the seconds tick by and a soft lock of her hair slipped out of the loose knot, dancing beside her cheek before she impatiently tucked it behind her ear.
He heard her sharp intake of breath and could tell that she was attracted to him. He could also see the pulse throbbing at the base of her neck, saw that pulse speed up after his question. Yeah, she felt it too.
“How about if I treat your back, and then we can discuss dinner?” she offered.
He didn’t buy it. “Agree to dinner first, then fix my back.”
She laughed, but apparently, she was at the end of her negotiations. “No. Now shut up, Colonel and let me do my job.” She moved behind him and pulled on a fresh pair of gloves. Damn it, he wanted to feel her fingers against his skin. Not the damn gloves!
The doc gave several instructions to Nurse Cathy who hurried away. Zeke ignored the dizzy sensation and straightened up. There was a touch of fire along his back, then a cooling spray. A few moments later, the burning pain vanished and he breathed a bit easier.
“So, what’s your name?” he asked, determined to get something out of this miserable situation.
“Doctor Fisher,” she replied. “Or you can call me Captain Fisher. That works too.” He could tell by her tone that she was concentrating hard, but since she was behind him, he couldn’t see what she was doing.
Abby worked quickly, tightening up her stitches carefully while Cathy continued to sponge away the blood. As she closed the wound, the bleeding slowed. Since the wound was so long, he needed a lot of stitches. Not to mention, it was pleasant to work on a man with this many muscles. Every touch of her fingers against his skin was warm.
She gave Cathy more instructions and Cathy moved quickly. She was an excellent nurse and Abby enjoyed working with her. She was knowledgeable and efficient, and also a genuinely nice person. She was married with four kids, and the stories Cathy told cracked everyone up. With four boys in the house, Cathy was always on her toes. So coming to work in the emergency room was an escape from the chaos of her home life.
