Page 15 of Kian

“Fine. I hate having to wear the gauze.”

“Too bad,” she replied.

“Not exactly a great bedside manner, Doc,” he teased with a smirk.

Gretchen chuckled. “Well, I’m all you’ve got right now.”

“That’s very true.”

Standing in front of him, she unwrapped the gauze on his shoulder.

“It looks good. No swelling or redness,” she remarked.

She dipped the cloth in the water and gently tended to his wound before rewrapping it. Once finished, she looked into his eyes and couldn’t look away.

“You’re a beautiful woman, Gretchen,” he murmured as he gazed into her eyes and then down at her lips before meetingher eyes again. “Your eyes are so beautiful. They’re the color of Granny Smith apples.”

“Thank you,” she whispered back.

“You’re welcome.” He leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips.

Her whole body reacted to his touch, but then she remembered that he could potentially have someone waiting for him at home. She pulled away.

“Kian...”

“No, don’t say anything. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“It’s okay. It’s just... we don’t know if you have someone waiting for you at home, and I can’t get involved with a man who might have someone else in his life waiting for him.”

He nodded in understanding. “I get it. I wish I knew for sure because if I’m not involved with anyone, I’d love to get to know you.”

“I’d like that too, Kian. But right now, other than your name, we know nothing about you.”

He sighed. “Okay, I understand.”

“Alright, you’re all set. The wounds look like they’re healing well, which is good. We’ll leave the sling off for a little while. You should try to use that arm, but don’t overdo it. Let me get you some acetaminophen for the pain.”

“Thank you,” he said, sincerity lacing his words.

“Sure,” she replied with a small smile, trying to keep her emotions in check. She entered the kitchen and leaned back against the counter, taking deep breaths to calm herself. It had been so long since she’d been kissed, and even though it had been brief, her pulse was still racing. “You cannot get involved with him. As long as he can’t remember anything, you just can’t do it.”

She turned to grab a glass of water and some pills from thebottle on the counter, then headed back to the living room. Standing in front of him, she handed him the glass and the pills. He took them with a drink of water before setting the glass on the end table.

“I think I hear ice hitting the windows. Just what we need, more bad weather,” she said, walking to the door and flipping on the porch light. She opened the door and shook her head as she saw sleet in the beam of the porchlight. “It’s sleeting. I hope it’s better tomorrow.”

Quickly closing the door, she walked back toward the living room and added a few logs to the fire.

“I agree. I guess it’s a good idea to keep the fire going,” Kian remarked.

“Power has gone out before. I’ll bring in some more logs.” Gretchen got up to retrieve more logs when Kian stood up too.

“I can do it. Stay inside,” he insisted.

“You don’t even have a coat.”

“It’s fine. I can carry more than you. Just take a seat.” Without waiting for her response, he picked up the log bag, and walked out the door.

Thinking of something, Gretchen headed toward the spare bedroom and opened the closet door, pulling out a large chest that belonged to her late uncle. She rummaged through it trying to find something that might fit Kian. Upon hearing him enter the cabin, she called out to him.

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