The Winner Takes It All. Alison Roberts
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“Neither am I.”
“But I’m the one who is naked under my robe.”
“I can undress.”
She gave him a look.
He grinned, then faced the door. “Better?”
“Yes, thank you.” Mustering her courage with a deep breath wasn’t going to work, with her incision and ribs. She settled for a slight intake of air, untied the belt, dropped her robe and stepped inside the tub. She closed the shower curtain. “You can turn around now.”
“Is the water the right temperature?”
Hot water poured over her. Steam rose toward the ceiling. She picked up a bar of soap. “Perfect.”
“I remember you like it hot.”
She remembered the showers they’d taken together. Hot water pulsating down on them. Washing each other. Kissing. Touching.
The soap slipped out of her hand and clattered to the tub.
“Sarah—”
“I dropped the soap,” she said at the same time.
“Can you reach it?” he asked.
Bending hurt. But she wasn’t about to ask him to get it for her. That would be too awkward. Too…tempting. “No, but it’s okay. I really just wanted to wash my hair.”
“I’ve got the shampoo,” he said. “Stick out your hand when you want some.”
Once her hair was wet enough, she extended her left arm. The cooler air temperature made her shiver. Goose bumps covered her exposed skin.
He poured a dollop of shampoo onto her palm. “Is that enough?”
“Yes.”
Washing her hair was easier this time. “I’m getting the hang of using one hand.”
“Just takes time.”
Time she didn’t have. For the past twenty-four hours, Cullen had occupied the majority of her thoughts. Not Mount Baker. Once she had work to distract her everything would return to normal. She couldn’t wait for that to happen. She rinsed the shampoo from her hair.
“Need more?” he asked.
Yes, but not from him. He hadn’t been able to give her what she needed. She couldn’t be the wife he wanted. That was why they were better off apart. Still, the thought made her heart hurt. Not a want-to-throw-herself-a-pity-party aching, but a too-bad-this-couldn’t-have-worked pining. “I’m good.”
At least when it came to shampoo.
After she returned to the institute with her marriage and Cullen behind her, everything in her life would be good, too. Given how bad things had been, it sure couldn’t get any worse.
Later that evening, the doorbell rang. Sarah remained on the couch while Cullen answered the door. Her babysitter for the night, Leanne Thomas, must have arrived.
Sarah was looking forward to Cullen going to work. A physical separation from him would be a relief, even though she’d spent most of her day in bed while he caught up on things around the cabin. But she’d been thinking about him constantly. On her mind was the last place he belonged. Well, actually her heart was the last place, but that wasn’t going to happen again.
A pretty woman with long, shiny brown hair, an easy smile and wearing a huge diamond engagement ring carried in a platter of mini red velvet cupcakes. She placed the dessert on the kitchen table, then removed a green tote bag from her shoulder. “Hi, I’m Leanne.”
“I’m Sarah.” Cullen had called the by-the-book paramedic and mountain-rescue volunteer tough as nails, but Sarah didn’t get that impression at all. “Nice to meet you.”
“The pleasure is mine.” Leanne glanced at Cullen, who was sticking a water bottle into his backpack. “Hope I’m not late.”
“Right on time.” He swung a backpack strap over his right shoulder. “Thanks for taking the overnight shift. I left a list of instructions on the breakfast bar. Sarah’s meds are on the kitchen counter. She should rest as much as possible. Short walks are okay, but not outside.”
“Bummer. I thought I could take her on a midnight stroll around Mirror Lake,” Leanne teased.
His gaze hardened. “You’re kidding.”
Sarah shook her head. He needed to lighten up and not take things so seriously.
Leanne’s mouth quirked. “Give me a little credit.”
“Just making sure,” he said. “Call me if you have any questions.”
What? Sarah bit her lower lip. He hadn’t wanted her to call him at work no matter what was going on. If she did contact him, he never got back to her. Most of the times she’d tried calling had been because she missed him and wanted to hear his voice.
“I’m sure Sarah will be able to answer any questions I might have,” Leanne said.
“Definitely.” Sarah liked how direct Leanne was. “I don’t know what instructions Cullen left, but my doctor’s orders are to take my medication. Sleep. Rest. Sleep some more. Rest some more.”
Leanne frowned. “Sounds boring.”
“It is,” Sarah agreed. “I fear I’m turning into a couch potato.”
Cullen’s lip curled. “Resting is important if you want to recover.”
“True, but you can still do stuff while you take it easy,” Leanne said. “I’ll have to see what I can come up with.”
“Thomas,” Cullen said, his voice containing a clear warning.
“Relax,” Leanne countered in a stern voice that made Sarah bite back a giggle. “Sarah will be fine. Get going before we throw you out.”
He raised his hands in mock surrender. “I’m going.”
As soon as the door closed, Leanne sat on the couch. “I’m sorry about your fall.”
“Thanks. I was at the wrong place, wrong time.”
“Well, you’re in the right place now. Hood Hamlet will be good for you. It won’t be long until you’re exploring Main Street.”
“I can’t wait.”
Colorful prisms of light reflected off Leanne’s diamond ring and danced around the living room. She stared lovingly at her ring.
“Congrats on your engagement,” Sarah said.
Leanne beamed. “Thanks. I still can’t believe I’m getting married.”
“Have you set a wedding date?”
She nodded. “The Saturday before Christmas. We hadn’t been together long when my fiancé, Christian, proposed on Christmas Day so we thought a year engagement sounded good.”
Very good. A year was long enough to get know someone, but not so long you would feel you’d wasted a lot of time if it didn’t work out. “Cullen said you’re a member of OMSAR. Does Christian belong, too?”
“No. He climbs and thought about joining, but he thinks I need something of my own, since we work together.”
“Smart guy.”
A dreamy expression filled Leanne’s brown eyes. “Very smart and smokin’ hot. Ever since we got together I feel like I won the lottery.”
“I know that feeling.”
“With Doc?”
Cullen had treated her with such respect from the moment they met. No other man in her life had ever done that. The cascade of memories made it hard to breathe. How had it gone