"You're the most headstrong person I've ever met," he said forcefully, and abruptly turned away. "Sit still and I'll go get an ace bandage," he barked.
It would have been the perfect time to leave, but how? She didn't have a car. Of course, she could take his. The keys hung on the wall beside the door. All of which was irrelevant. He had offered her a perfect way out. Go see the doctor.
He was back almost immediately, carrying an ace bandage. He avoided her gaze and began wrapping her foot. His big hands were surprisingly gentle as he wrapped her foot and secured it with tiny safety pins. His dexterity was amazing. Even she would have had trouble working with something so little, but his big hands dispensed with the job in short order.
He tested her foot for circulation. "There, that should hold you." His tone had softened. Maybe he had swallowed her story. Maybe he was merely angry because she had gone wandering in the woods after he had warned her against it. Maybe he figured she had learned her lesson. He glanced up and met her gaze with an expression that made her heart flutter.
"You looked like a scared school girl out there when I found you." His eyes were no longer piercing. In fact, they held a tenderness she had never seen.
She blushed. "I thought you were a bear."
His expression was sober as he placed a hand on the counter on each side of her. "And what would you have done if it had been a bear?"
His close proximity sent her heart racing. She had a wild urge to throw her arms around his neck and kiss the worry from his face. She squirmed and gave him a bright smile. "Grin him down?"
His expression remained serious. A stern tone entered his voice. "I want you to promise me you won't go into the woods alone again."
She met his gaze and spoke earnestly. "I promise I won't go into the woods alone again."
He looked relieved and reached up, pulling a leaf from her hair. "That's better." He gently brushed a stray strand of soft hair away from her cheek. "You could have been killed today, you know that?"
"I know." She stared down at her hands. Was he actually concerned about the fact that she might have been killed, or that his hideout might have been discovered in a search for her body? "Your getting awful good at pulling me out of scrapes." She said. "Are you sorry you brought me here?"