“Still painful?” Through the sheet, I could feel the heat generated by muscle tissue repairing itself. I sent an image of cool water flowing from my palms, penetrating underneath his skin and circling through the knee joint.
“Mm…” He turned his head to face me, eyes half open, and tugged the sheet higher. “That feels nice.”
“Let me get you a fresh ice pack. I’ll be right back.” Lifting my hands, I noticed my palms were bright pink and warmer than usual. I showed them to him. “You’ve got a lot going on under that sheet.”
My cheeks went as heated as my hands.
At least my patient laughed. “Calli, I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.”
In the blessedly neutral space of my kitchen, Leilani was peeking into the oven. She’d wound a printed cotton scarf around her head and was humming.
“Smells good in here! What kind of muffins are you baking?”
“Oatmeal, bran, walnuts, and raspberries from the canes in your garden,” she said, beaming. “They need another couple of minutes.”
I refilled the emptied Ziploc bag with ice, grabbed a worn linen dish towel, and gestured to the hallway. “I’m bringing this to Tanner. Save us at least two or three, would you?”
“There’s enough for everyone to have three.” Leilani lowered her voice. “I’ll hide a few. I know how much Thatch likes my baking. Harper always snitches extra for him when he’s at my house.”
“There should be enough eggs for breakfast. Make a list if you think of anything I should pick up in town.”
Her eyes went wide. “Am I staying here all day?”
“I’m about to discuss that with Tanner,” I said, ducking into the hall. “Once everyone’s awake, we’ll see what he and Kaz think.”
Tanner was flat on his back, knee bent and eyes closed, squeezing and massaging the thigh muscles of his damaged leg.
“I’ve got your ice,” I said, lifting the bundle.
He extended his leg until it was straight and adjusted the sheet over his pelvis. “What I really need is Rose. Or River. He could bring over whatever she suggests, but I think they’re both at the lake.”
“Did you call them?” I handed him the ice and reached across his torso for the summer-weight blanket on the other side of the bed. Covering him was an act of mercy for me.
He shook his head as I fussed over the blanket and then the pillows. “Phone’s run out of charge. You have to go into the office today?” he asked. I nodded. “Could I trouble you to stay with me for a few minutes?”
“Of course. Leilani’s getting some breakfast together for everyone, and…”
He shimmied away from the edge of the bed.
“Sit,” he said, patting the area beside his hip. “The other day, driving home, remember when we went to the place that sold plants?”
I nodded. Keeping my hands off anything more than Tanner’s knee required willpower. I anchored my gaze on his face and folded my hands in my lap.
“And as we left, there was that car you recognized, the one from a realtor’s office, with the name of the woman who left her card at the Pearmains?”
“Yes.”
“I think we should have a talk with her.” He put his hand on my leg. “And how are you?”
“I am so many different things right now, Tanner, my head may explode.”
Fuck it. I gave in to my need to touch his skin and traced the length of one of his fingers and another. Was there any part of him that wasn’t beautifully proportioned? “We should also talk about the Pearmains and the tunnels and the trolls. They’ve gotten pushed to the side, with me being away over the weekend. And Doug and Roger showing up.”
He turned his hand palm up and interlaced his fingers one by one with mine. “You in any pain from where I removed the tattoo?”
“It’s not bothering me. But I haven’t looked at it since you ripped it off and bandaged me up.” I stared at the pattern made by our twined fingers. I couldn’t stop myself from imagining the pattern of color and texture if our limbs were similarly wrapped around the other’s. Emotions I’d held in check for days swirled up my legs and arms, making them shake. “I don’t suppose you know a spell for stopping time so I can take a breath or five and absorb all this…change?”
Tanner curled up to sitting. The leather pouch swung away from his sternum. “You’re the one who’ll be doling out the spells, Calliope. There’s more I want to tell you—”
A banging at the door interrupted whatever he was trying to say.
“Mom,” said Harper. “We need you.”
“Coming.” I lifted my gaze from the bed to Tanner’s face, and before I checked the impulse or even checked in with him, I kissed him full on, slipping my tongue under his top lip to draw it more fully into my mouth.
I could have devoured Tanner Marechal as easily as I downed a pint of seasonal berries. And if his hand at the back of my head holding me in place was any indication of his feelings, he could have eaten a box as well.
The kiss lasted less than five seconds. I pulled away and started to apologize, but Tanner bit my lower lip and grinned.
“That was nice,” he whispered. “And if there’s any more Assam, I would love a mug.”
I swatted his arm and grinned right back.
“I can make it to the living room by myself,” he added. “Go see what the guys need. And let Kaz know I’ll be out when I’m done icing my swollen…” He shrugged and gestured to the lower half of his body. “Knee.”
Thatch was waiting at the kitchen table, his cell phone in his hand, a stack of plates and a platter of muffins by his elbow. Harper and Leilani were seated on the bench, heads together whispering to
