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Without a single hint of pain in her voice, she’d replied, "Yes, sir, of course"

She could hear the approval in his voice when he said, "Good We’ll talk later"

That’s how mature adults treated minor injuries Not that Dash seemed to understand the protocol She was a lieutenant, for crying out loud--the youngest woman ever promoted to that rank in their city She was not a frail, helpless civilian

She didn’t need anyone fussing over her

But he’d stayed anyway, and by the tiot out of the hospital, her head stitched and her ar, the sun was already on the rise

Sluer door, her left aro kept her eyes closed That was easier than seeing his concern

"We’re allistened off every ice-covered surface of road, trees and buildings in blinding display It amplified the ache in her head Each small bump in the road made her elbow throb She had more bruises than she could count Over her entire body, a never-ending pulse of discomfort tried to claim all her concentration

But a few o had other things on her s

Thanks to her, Dash was now in danger Would he be safer away from her--or with her? More i what needed to be done?

What she damn well intended to do

"Easy," Dash told her as he parked He circled around the hood of the truck and opened the passenger door The ground looked a fair distance away and she dreaded the effort it would take to get back on her feet

She half turned, and Dash carefully slid one arhs, the other behind her back so he could lift her out He handled her weight without a single sign of strain, cradling her against his broad, warm chest

A lesser woman would have stayed put and let him carry her in

She had not been raised to be a lesser woman

"Thank you" She truly appreciated the assistance since his truck rode so high off the ground The very prospect of hopping out made her ache all over "I can walk froe, his deep brown eyes took her measure "You’ll insist?"

"Yes"

"Sha you" He treated her to a molten look, and then slowly bent so that her feet touched the ground He continued to hold on to her until she’d steadied herself Tucking her coat back around her, he asked, "Okay?"

It hurt to breathe, but she nodded

"So stubborn" He reached in to the floor and snagged up her purse, the stuff Logan had brought hi of her bloodied clothes The clothes she would pitch, but thank God he’d had the foresight to retrieve her purse from her car

Her brand-new ruined car

That alone warranted a groan, but she bit it back and tried not to drag her feet along the lit ay to her front door Because of the splint and sling, her coat was only draped over her left shoulder and the bitter wind easily tore it away again The borrowed scrubs were no barrier at all and the chill cut right through to her bones Tiredly, she readjusted her coat again

Dash transferred his load to one hand and with the other wrapped her up close "Co else"

Given her hectic work schedule, she got hohts were autoain at dawn She had plenty ofsun in the front, but they’d be flickering off very soon

"Nice place"

Ha Dash hadn’t looked around; ever since the doctor had allowed him behind the curtain at the hospital, she’d felt his constant attention focused on her

No one had ever scrutinized her as he did; it went beyond the intimate way a man watched a woman he wanted What it meant, she didn’t know for sure because she’d never encountered it before

She knew Dash orried because he only s But the emotion in his eyes heldher uncon way

They reached the front door and, knowing it’d be futile, she turned to face him Maybe it was the pain meds or the confusion from the concussion--or even plain-old indecision But she hadn’t been able to work up a credible way to refuse him Not that he’d really asked for periven her concussion, Dash had volunteered hiet her thoughts together, she decided he’d be safer well away fro her feel things she shouldn’t

Staring hi, she said, "Thank you for the ride" She lifted her chilled fingers for a handshake--and Dash grinned

Folding her fingers in his and drawing her hand to his chest, he asked, "Is that your way of trying to get rid of me?"

Yes "You don’t need to stay"

He shifted so that his body blocked the wind, stepped close enough that his broad shoulders shielded her froan or Reese?"