Page 24 of Finding You

Just the thought of it put those X-rated images back in the forefront of his mind and…well…everything south of the belt was ready with a resoundingYES!But Devin knew it would be rough for him to simply push aside his ultimate wants and needs for the sake of being with MacKenzie before she left town.

The bulk of the parts for her car were due to be delivered to the shop by the end of the week, and he’d already patched up her exhaust system and replaced the hoses. He wasn’t going to charge her for them; it just gave him a little peace of mind to know it was done. If everything went according to schedule, he could be done by Monday–Tuesday at the latest–and then she’d be gone.

On her way to…west.

That one still made him chuckle. Although, after several conversations with her on the subject, it didn’t seem as if MacKenzie knew where she was going to end up. She was toying with the idea of looking up her mother, but otherwise, she was simply driving west until she got someplace. Just the thought of doing something like that made Devin shook his head. How could somebody do that? There was no way he could just pick up and go without a destination in mind, and there was no way he could do it without a proper plan.

Or with a car that was in clear disrepair.

He really needed to stop harping on that one fact. There had been a good reason behind her hasty departure and the need to get out of town, and he should feel good about showing up when he did to help her. The thought of some stranger pulling up while MacKenzie was alone on a deserted stretch of highway made him shudder.

“Ow,shit…”

Devin sat up in bed at the sound of MacKenzie’s hushed curse from the hallway. What was she doing up this late? She’d mentioned being tired while they’d shared dinner–burgers they’d grilled on his back patio–so he was kind of surprised to hear her up and about at this hour.

And you said you were tired too. Maybe we’re both liars…

Sitting quietly, he listened. A minute later he heard the distinct crash of a glass breaking and more swearing from MacKenzie. Jumping up from the bed, he immediately pulled the door open and made his way toward the kitchen. The first thing he noticed was that it was still pretty dark in there–no lights were on–the second was MacKenzie hopping around and cursing like a sailor.

Flipping on the overhead light, Devin immediately walked toward her and lifted her up, placing her on top of the granite countertop. She let out a small scream as her skin hit the cold surface, but then she was back to cursing.

Next, he went and grabbed a broom to start clearing up the floor. “You all right?” he asked, his voice sounded just a little gruff.

“I’m not sure yet,” she replied with a small whine. When Devin looked over at her, she was examining her foot. “I didn’t want to turn the light on when I came out here because I didn’t want to wake myself up more than I already was. So when the glass slipped from my hand and shattered, I had no idea how to avoid any of it because it was so dark!” With a moan, she added, “I know I stepped on some of the glass. Just not sure if any of it’s stuck.”

Careful not to suffer the same fate, Devin quickly swept the floor and got all the glass onto the dustpan and into the trash before going over the area a second time, just to be safe. When he was done, he turned all his attention to MacKenzie.

“So? How does it look?”

She shook her head. “It feels like there’s something in there, but I can’t really see it and I sure as hell can’t get a grip on it, but I can feel it. It hurts like hell, too.”

Devin reached over and gently grasped her ankle and turned her so the light was better for him to see what they were dealing with. “Let me grab my first aid kit and we’ll take care of this.”

When he turned to walk away, MacKenzie said, “Sorry about waking you up. And the glass.”

He shrugged and grabbed the small kit from the drawer at the far end of the kitchen island. “I was surprised to hear you up this late.”

It was her turn to shrug. “I was thirsty.”

Nodding, he pulled out a pair of tweezers and cradled her foot in his hands as he lowered his head for a better look. She was wearing next to nothing–an oversized t-shirt and…he swallowed hard…red panties. With the way she was positioned, it was hard to miss. Doing his best to keep his attention focused on the task at hand, he ran his thumb gently along the arch of her foot until he heard her soft hiss of breath.

Without a word, he took the tweezers and pulled the tiny shard of glass from her foot. He examined it and put it in the trash before going back and inspecting for any more pieces. After the second one, they both agreed that there weren’t any others.

Devin cleared his throat as he straightened. They were still close. Very close and he could see her pulse beating rapidly at her throat and knew his own was no different. That was also when he became aware that all he was wearing was a pair of boxers.

Hell.

“You should probably…um…rinse your foot and we’ll put some antibiotic cream and a bandage on it.”

He saw her swallow as she continued to look at him before nodding. A slow breath left his lungs as he turned and tried to put his attention on getting what she’d need from the kit and then putting the dustpan and broom away. Behind him, he heard the water turn on in the sink and heard her hiss as it hit her foot. Leaving the room, he went to grab her a towel to dry off with.

When he returned, he handed it to her and together they worked in silence to get her foot cleaned and bandaged. He cleaned up the rest, put the kit away and then went and poured MacKenzie a glass of water. She looked at him quizzically.

“You said you were thirsty,” he murmured, his eyes focused on her lips. Hell, he was holding on by a thread. Now his X-rated fantasies were going to include the knowledge of how soft her skin was and how red was a fantastic color on her.

She didn’t take the glass from him, so Devin placed it on the counter beside her and willed himself to walk away, put some distance between them. Logically, he knew it was what he should do. But he couldn’t seem to make his body cooperate.

MacKenzie’s eyes were wide as she studied him and…wait…did she move closer, or did he? It was hard to tell. When her hand came up and rested on his bare chest, Devin closed his eyes and tried–again–to remember why he should be putting space between them. Why he should wish her a good night and simply go back to his room.

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