Читать книгу Christmas On The Silver Horn Ranch - Stella Bagwell - Страница 9
ОглавлениеThe next morning the sun was out, but there was a layer of snow covering the patch of yard in front of Ava’s house. Snowplows had already cleared the few side streets she took to reach the main highway, but the last ten miles of graveled road leading to the ranch were another story. After a few incidents of sliding and spinning, she managed to reach the Silver Horn, although the effort left her tense and exhausted.
When she eventually entered the house, Greta instantly began to scold her. “Miss Archer, you should have called the ranch for a ride. The roads are messy today.”
Ava handed her coat and gloves to Tessa, who was kindly waiting to take her things. “They weren’t that bad in town,” she told the cook. “But I must say the rural road leading up here to the ranch was treacherous.”
Greta clucked her tongue with disapproval. “From now on, you call and let us know you need a lift. We don’t want you hurt, too.”
“I’ll do that,” Ava promised, then asked, “Is Bowie in his room?”
Greta let out a loud, frustrated groan. “He’s up there. After he ate his breakfast, he insisted he was going to get in the shower. I told him he couldn’t.”
“That’s right. Only a sponge bath. He can’t get his burns or cast wet.”
“Well, he won’t let me or Tessa help him with a sponge bath. And seeing he was so hell-bent on getting into that shower, I unscrewed the showerhead and brought it down here. He won’t be using it for a while. But he’s probably still fuming.”
Ava had to laugh. “Good thinking. And I’ll remind him of what he’s to do and not to do.”
“Well, brace yourself. He wasn’t too happy when I left him,” Greta warned.
She was going to brace herself, Ava thought a few minutes later as she climbed the two flights of stairs to Bowie’s bedroom. Not because of his present mood, but because she needed to control herself.
After a firm knock, she stepped into the bedroom to see Bowie standing with the aid of his crutch, staring out the window. The brooding expression on his face was a far cry from the playful guy she’d met yesterday.
“Good morning,” she said.
His head jerked in her direction as though he’d been expecting anyone but her.
“Oh. I thought it was that damned Greta back to torment me.”
Ava shut the door and moved deeper into the room. “It’s a good thing the cook is keeping an eye on you. She told me about the shower. Are you trying to ruin everything the doctors have done so far? Maybe you’d like to go through a series of skin grafts. Think a shower would be worth that?”
“Damn it, I just want to feel clean. I can wash the bottom half of me okay. But I can’t handle the top half.”
“Greta says she and Tessa have offered to help you.”
He mouthed another curse under his breath. “Not on your life. Greta is like a grandmother. And Tessa came to live with us when she was just a very young teenager. She’s like a baby sister to me. Understand?”
Unfortunately, she did.
Dropping her tote bag on the foot of the bed, she motioned toward the private bathroom. “Okay. I told you yesterday I wasn’t going to do this, but I will. Just because I don’t want you to have a setback and cause me to have to see you for the next four months instead of the next six weeks.”
His eyes widened. “What are you going to do?”
The surprised look on his face was comical. “I’m going to give you a bath. What else?”
“In the bathroom?”
She shook her head in disbelief. “I don’t see any soap and water out here. Do you?”
For a moment she thought he was going to start singing a different tune about wanting a bath, but then he heaved out a heavy breath and hobbled off toward the bathroom. Ava followed behind him.
Bowie’s private bathroom was nearly as big as her kitchen. A green marble tub was situated on one side, while a glass-enclosed shower spanned the opposite wall. Green and white tile covered the floor, while white towels and washcloths hung on racks conveniently positioned around the room.
Spotting a padded dressing bench over by the tub, she dragged it over to the sink. “Sit down here,” she ordered.
“Ava, I—”
“You what? Have decided you don’t want a bath as much as you thought you did?”
“No. I still want a bath. I just— Well, it suddenly occurred to me that I probably sound like a spoiled brat to you. And I’m not. I’m just sick of being helpless, that’s all.”
“And a little bit stubborn to go with it?” she added impishly.
He grinned at that, and Ava was relieved to see his mood lift. She was a nurse—she didn’t want him to be miserable. Not physically or mentally.
“Just a little,” he admitted.
Turning slightly away from him, she filled the sink with warm water, then gathered a bar of soap and a washcloth. “How did you get that sweatshirt on?”
“Very carefully,” he answered. “It hurt my shoulder a bit when I pulled it over my head. But I don’t think it damaged anything.”
“You don’t, do you? Well, let’s hope it didn’t tear any flesh.” She turned back to him. “I can see you’re going to be a difficult patient. Didn’t you learn to follow rules in the Marines?”
“Yes. And I followed them. But I didn’t always like them.”
“I see. So now you want to make up your own rules.”
“Life is more fun that way.”
“You say that word a lot, you know.” Stepping closer, she reached for the hem of his sweatshirt. “Bend your head and I’ll try to get this thing off. And then I never want to see it again.”
After some slow, careful maneuvering, she worked the sweatshirt over his head and tossed the garment aside.
“What word do I say a lot?” he asked.
Deliberately ignoring the sight of his naked chest, she began to soap the wet washcloth. “Fun. That’s the word.”
“What’s the matter? You object to having fun?”
“No. But everything isn’t fun and games.” She wrung out the cloth and turned back to him. “Now don’t move. Otherwise, I’ll get soap and water where it doesn’t belong.”
“I’ll be as still as a statue,” he promised.
Stepping closer, she decided to start with his good arm and save the more problematic areas for last.
Wrapping her hand around his wrist, Ava held his arm out straight and washed the corded muscles. As she worked, the erotic male scent of his skin and the faint caress of his warm breath against her arm were impossible to ignore. Over the years, she’d done this very same thing to hundreds of male patients. None had made her so aware of being a woman. None had made her feel as though she was touching a man for the very first time.
“I didn’t think you’d show up today,” he said. “There’s quite a bit of snow on the ground.”
Ava wasn’t going to explain how his father had made plans beforehand to make sure she got to the ranch. From what she could see, Bowie wasn’t the sort that appreciated being coddled by his family.
“The drive took a bit longer,” she admitted. “But I made it without any problems.”
“When the weather is bad, you should stay out here on the ranch instead of driving back and forth to Carson City. We have plenty of empty rooms.”
His invitation took her by surprise. Mainly because she wasn’t a friend or even an acquaintance. She was hired help.
“Thank you for offering, but I couldn’t do that. I work six nights a week in the ER at Tahoe General.”
Finished with his arm, she rinsed the washcloth and started on his shoulder. It was thick and padded with heavy muscle. Even through the thickness of the wet cloth, she could feel the sinewy curves beneath her fingers. The sensation caused her breathing to slow and her hand to linger.
He looked up at her and Ava’s gaze dropped to his lips. What would it feel like, she wondered, to have those lips skimming over her skin, to be kissing her mouth until she couldn’t breathe?
“No one told me that. I thought you worked freelance or something. Six nights a week. That’s a grind, isn’t it?”
No, it was a relief, she thought. Working that many nights gave her a reprieve from an empty house and a lonely bed. But she wasn’t about to admit such a thing to him. Not for anything did she want this man to pity her. She was living the life she’d chosen. And it was all she wanted or needed.
“Not really. I love my work. I’ve been a nurse since I was twenty-two—a long time. And it’s rewarding to help people. Especially those too sick or injured to take care of themselves.”
“Like me?” he asked with a grin.
In spite of her chaotic senses, she managed to give him a faint smile. “You’re injured, but not helpless. You just want me to think you are.”
“And why shouldn’t I? You’re a beautiful woman, Ava. And you have hands like an angel.”
Ava couldn’t remember the last time her heart had raced like a stock car, but it was definitely breaking the speed limit right now.
“Like I said before, I’m not here for your amusement.”
“That doesn’t stop me from looking and feeling,” he said huskily.
By now Ava had forgotten what she was supposed to be doing, until the heat of his skin began to burn through the washcloth. Heaving out a heavy breath, she tossed it into the sink, then tried her best to glare at him. But she simply couldn’t come up with enough anger to pull it off.
“Bowie, have you forgotten everything I told you yesterday? I’m thirty-five years old. Doesn’t that mean anything to you?”
His green gaze traveled lazily over her face and down the vee of her dress. The intimate search caused Ava’s cheeks to burn.
“Sure,” he replied. “It means you’ve had time to grow wiser. And more beautiful. And more womanly.”
Those were hardly the answers she’d expected to come out of his mouth, and for a moment she didn’t know how to respond. Finally, she asked, “Did the nurses in the hospital have this much trouble with you?”
Although a grin tilted one corner of his lips, there was a serious look in his eye. It bothered Ava far more than all the words he’d said to her.
“The nurses in the hospital weren’t you,” he said simply.
Struggling with the effort to keep from groaning out loud, Ava grabbed the washcloth and scrubbed the bar of soap against the terry fabric until lather was spilling over her hands.
When she turned back to him, she lifted his head until it was out of the way, then plopped the cloth against his chest. Bubbles and water meshed with the golden-red hair matted between two flat brown nipples. Ava pushed the washcloth up, down and across until his skin was slick.
Over and over, she kept reminding herself that she was only doing her job. Yet nothing about it felt like a job. Touching him this way was taking her on an erotic journey, unlike anywhere she’d ever traveled before.
By the time she reached his navel, she heard him draw in a sharp breath. The sound caused Ava to lift her head. Which was a big mistake. The movement had brought her lips a scant inch away from his.
Her gaze fluttered up to his and suddenly she realized if she didn’t take a quick step backward, she was going to be in trouble. But the warning bells clanging in her head weren’t enough to make her legs move.
“Am I hurting you?”
The question came out as a whisper and Ava wished she’d not said anything. At least that way he might not have guessed how deeply his nearness was affecting her.
“I’m hurting like hell to do this,” he murmured.
Before she could ask what this was, his hand was at the back of her head and the next thing she knew her lips were being captured by his.
Stunned by the contact, she started to pull back. But after a split second, she recognized that resisting was the last thing she wanted to do. He tasted like a hot summer night. Like tangled sheets and endless passion. And she wanted his kiss. Desperately.
Her lips yielded to his, then quickly began a search of their own. How long she stood there, her head bent down to his, their mouths fused together, she didn’t know. She wasn’t sure about anything until the hand at the back of her head finally fell away and cool space separated their faces.
Sanity suddenly rushed in to replace her foggy senses, and she glanced down to see the washcloth she’d been holding had slipped to his lap. Soapy water had soaked the front of his jeans and a dark stain spread out from the fly. “Oh! Damn it! Now look what I’ve done! What you’ve done!”
* * *
She whirled her back to him and dropped the washcloth into the sink as if it were aflame. As she sagged against the vanity counter, Bowie stared at her as he tried to digest what had just happened. Kissing Ava had set off a series of explosions in his head, blasts that had been so strong the aftershocks were still ricocheting through his body.
“This isn’t going to work, Bowie,” she said in a low, firm voice. “I’m going to tell your father he has to find a different nurse for you.”
“No!”
Before he could stop himself, Bowie reached out and snatched her arm. The contact had her twisting back to face him.
“What do you mean, no? You don’t have a say in this. Not now! I can deal with your flirting, but kissing me crossed the line!”
“What about you kissing me? That wasn’t exactly a one-sided deal, you know.”
His remark must have hit the mark, because her lips suddenly formed a small O and the rigid line of her shoulders drooped.
“You’re right, Bowie. I was kissing you, too. Which gives me two reasons why I can’t remain your nurse.”
Just hearing her say she was leaving and not coming back was enough to shake Bowie. “Ava, I’m sorry.”
Her expression sober, she studied his face. “I’m sure. You must be feeling like an idiot for letting yourself kiss an older woman.”
“I’m not sorry about that! I’m not sorry about anything I’ve done!”
“You just said you were,” she reminded him.
“That because I thought it was what you wanted to hear,” he admitted.
With an exasperated groan, she started to step around him, but Bowie tightened his hold on her wrist and rose from the dressing bench to stand in front of her.
“You’re incredible!” she muttered. “Totally incredible!”
“And if you quit, what is that going to make you? A nurse who was incapable of handling her patient?”
Incensed, she stared at him. “That’s a low blow, Bowie. Really low.”
Ashamed of himself, he eased his hold on her wrist and slowly slid his hand up her forearm. Even with an angry glare on her face, it was heavenly to touch her, to be close enough to smell her perfume, to feel the heat of her body.
“You’re right. And I’m sorry. This time I do mean it. And I don’t want you to leave. You’re the first woman to—” Unsure of how to go on without making a gushing fool of himself, he turned away from her and swiped a hand over his face. To his surprise, he found his fingers were trembling.
What was happening to him? In spite of his injuries, he wasn’t physically weak. Not to the point of having the shakes.
“The first woman to what?” she prompted.
“Nothing. I don’t know why I said that.” He twisted back to her. “Ava, there’s something going on between us. You know it as well as I do.”
His gaze picked up the flare of her nostrils, then dropped to her lips. The kiss had left them puffy, and the rose-colored lipstick she’d been wearing earlier was now gone. Bowie wished he had every right to lean into her and kiss her all over again.
“That’s another reason why you need a different nurse,” she said tersely. “I—I’ve hardly been behaving like a professional.”
“That’s my fault. Not yours,” he said quickly.
“All the same, I—”
Wrapping his hands around her upper arms, he leaned toward her. “I’ll behave myself, Ava. Just promise you won’t quit. I need you.”
Her expression turned cynical. “Anybody can change a bandage. That’s all you need.”
“If that’s all there was to it, then I’d get my brother or dad to take care of me.”
She leveled a stern look at him. “Those burns are serious, Bowie.”
And so was the way she made him feel, Bowie thought. Yet he was smart enough to keep that bit of information to himself. She wasn’t ready to hear it. She might never be ready. But he wanted the chance to know her better, to find out exactly what this electricity between them was all about.
“That’s why I need you. To make sure they keep healing.”
Groaning, she turned her head to one side and Bowie’s gaze was drawn to her slender throat. He wanted to kiss her there. Just as much as he wanted to kiss her lips again.
“I don’t know why I’m doing this,” she said quietly. “And it’s against my better judgment, but I’ll give this one more try. But we are going to be patient and nurse. Nothing else. Understand?”
Relief poured through him, and Bowie wondered if he was going crazy. No woman should be having this much effect on him. Especially a widow who wanted nothing to do with him. Or did she? Her kiss had certainly said there was something she liked about him.
“What about friends?” he asked. “We can be that, can’t we?”
She studied him for long moments and then finally a smile of surrender spread across her face. “Friends. Just friends.”
“Great.”
He maneuvered his way around the dressing bench and took a seat with his back to her.
“What are you doing now?” she wanted to know.
“I think the front of me is pretty clean. But you haven’t done my back.”
A stretch of silence passed before he felt the washcloth between his shoulder blades. As water rolled down his backbone, he grinned to himself.
Ava Archer was quite a woman.
* * *
Ava had just stepped out of the shower the next morning when she heard the phone ringing. Annoyed at the interruption, she hurriedly dried off, but before she could finish wrapping a fleece robe around her, the ringing stopped.
Out in the bedroom, she checked the call log on the nightstand phone and was surprised to see the caller had been her mother.
Since Velda Archer rarely called her daughter at this time of the morning, Ava decided she’d better check in.
Velda answered cheerfully on the second ring. “Good morning, honey. Did I wake you?”
“I was in the shower. Is anything wrong?”
“No. I just wanted to ask you about your plans for Christmas.”
Ava sank onto the edge of the bed. “Christmas? Mother, it’s only the fourth of December. The holiday is a long way off yet.”
“Not as far as your father and I are concerned.”
Even though Ava’s parents had been divorced for the past ten years, they spent more time together than they did apart. They clearly loved each other, yet they couldn’t live under the same roof for more than two weeks at a time.
“Oh, so what do you two have planned?”
“I’m leaving this morning for San Diego. Stu has a bunch of things planned for us to do. Including a trip up to Santa Anita.”
“And probably a trip down Rodeo Drive. Like a shopping trip,” Ava added sagely.
Velda laughed. “Honey, you know your father isn’t that rich. Comfortable, but hardly rich enough to shop on Rodeo Drive. Still, he’s promised he has a nice surprise hidden away for my Christmas gift. I’m guessing jewelry. He knows how much I love diamonds.”
Even though her mother couldn’t see her, Ava shook her head in wry disbelief. “Along with emeralds, sapphires, rubies and any other colored stone known to man. Mother, you’re shameless. You won’t sleep with Dad, yet you’ll accept his gifts.”
There was a long pause before Velda laughed. “Not sleep with him? Ava, where in the world did you get that idea? Sex is the best thing we have going for us.”
Leave it to her mother to be so blunt. “But you two are divorced.”
“What’s that got to do with it? A piece of paper hasn’t altered our feelings for each other. It just means if we try to live with each other twenty-four hours of every day, then I start getting on his nerves and he starts getting on mine.”
